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For Immediate Release Contact: Modio Media, LLC 312 239-8577

Modio Media Wins Big At Telly Awards

Chicago – March 17, 2008 – Modio Media took top honors at the 29th annual Telly Awards, winning five Silver Tellys in multiple categories for the TV special And They Came To Chicago: The Italian American Legacy, which premiered to critical acclaim on WTTW11 (PBS) and NBC5 in Spring 2007.

Four Silver Tellys, the highest honor in this annual competition, will go to the following individuals: Modio Media managing partner Beppe Mangione, Sound/Sound Design; Martin Nelson, Editing; Italian composer Mirio Cosottini, Use of Music; and writerproducer- director Gia M. Amella, Cultural Programming. Modio Media also garnered a Silver Telly in the TV Programs-Documentary category.

“The Telly is one of the most sought-after awards in our industry, and we didn’t expect to win in every category we entered,” Gia M. Amella, also a managing partner at Modio Media, said. “I am especially proud that my colleagues are being recognized for outstanding achievement in their specific crafts. They are first-class professionals who put boundless energy and passion—and countless hours--into creating a show of lasting historical and cultural significance.”

Narrated by Tony Award-winner Joe Mantegna, And They Came To Chicago traces the remarkable story of the Italian presence in Chicago from the first wave of immigrants who settled here in the 1850’s through the present day, while probing universal themes key to understanding the Italian American experience nationally. In an unprecedented move, Chicago PBS affiliate WTTW11 and NBC5 formed a partnership in an effort to bring the program to an expanded and more diverse audience. WTTW11 plans additional airings of And They Came To Chicago later this year.

The Telly Awards honor outstanding local, regional, and cable television commercials and programs, video and film productions and work created for the Web. Since 1978, the Telly Awards’ mission has been to strengthen the visual arts community by inspiring, promoting and supporting creativity. The Telly Awards is a highly respected competition that receives over 14,000 entries annually from all 50 states and many foreign countries.

Amella and Mangione founded Modio Media in 2006, a full-service production company based in Chicago and Tuscany. Their work has been seen on A&E, National Geographic International, The Weather Channel, WLIW21-New York, KQED11-San Francisco and other public television stations around the country. Please visit www.modiomedia.com for more information.