Maltese sound designer wins UK Royal Television Society award
Renzo Spiteri was recognised for his work on the Emmy-winning 'Billy and Molly: An Otter Love Story'
A Maltese musician and sound designer has won a UK Royal Television Society (RTS) award for his work as sound recordist on an award-winning National Geographic film.
Renzo Spiteri was among a team of five to win the award for sound at this year’s RTS Craft & Design Awards 2025 for their work on Billy and Molly: An Otter Love Story, a feature shown on National Geographic and Disney+.
The 2024 documentary was shot in Scotland and follows the story of a wild otter called Molly and her human rescuer, Billy Mail.
Writing on Facebook, the Glasgow-based sound artist said he was “speechless. Thanks to the awesome team behind this wonderful project. What a journey!”
The award follows an Emmy nomination earlier this year for his work on the same project. The film won an Emmy for outstanding writing in a documentary.
This year’s RTS awards took place last night at the Hilton London, hosted by Northern Irish TV presenter Christine Lampard.
The BBC led the results last night, taking home seven awards across the 29 categories, with Netflix and Disney in second place with two awards each – the latter including Spiteri’s feature, which was also recognised with awards for directing and photography.
RTS Craft & Design Awards chair Emma Gormley said: “This year’s winners show the full scope of this talent – from camerawork, production, costume and make-up to sound and much more".
Spiteri blends traditional, experimental and contemporary techniques in his compositions, often including environmental sounds. He has previously exhibited sound installations at Spazju Kreattiv and Palazzo de Piro in Mdina.
The Royal Television Society is a London-based educational charity widely regarded as the world’s oldest television society.
It organises lectures, debates, conferences and training events for television professionals and students across the UK and Ireland. It also publishes Television magazine and is known for its annual Programme Awards and Craft & Design Awards.
Last night’s awards “recognise outstanding achievements across all genres and disciplines, and on both sides of the camera”, according to the RTS website.