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Continuing Education Overview
Certificate in Documentary Arts
Weekend Courses & Summer Institutes
What Students Have to Say
Courses Offered for the Current Term – Fall 2010 Courses
Past Term Courses
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Overview
CDS offers a wide range of courses for adults who are interested in learning to do their own documentary work. These documentary arts courses, available through flexible admission with reasonable fees, involve instruction in photography, film and video, audio, and writing. Special topics and such subjects as documentary traditions, techniques, fieldwork theory, and the ethics involved in conducting and presenting documentary work are also offered. These hands-on courses help adults achieve their goals of completing a first project or refining an ongoing project. All courses are designed to help students explore concepts in documentary arts and apply them to their own work. This open-admissions adult education program includes the option of completing a Certificate in Documentary Arts, which requires a minimum of six sixteen-hour courses (or the equivalent) and the completion of a final documentary project. Most courses are offered during the evening or on weekends, to accommodate the schedules of working adults.
Certificate in Documentary Arts
The cornerstone of the CDS continuing education program is the Certificate in Documentary Arts. Enrollment in the certificate program is not required for students to take CDS courses; however, working toward a certificate provides a more formal process for involvement and for reaching specific goals. No prior educational specialization or expertise is required for enrollment in the program. Certificate students receive special invitations to events and other unique opportunities at CDS.
The certificate program establishes a process for engaging and empowering already motivated people to do the work they care about. Specific project goals, integral to the certificate program, create better opportunities for the successful completion of this work. In addition, certificate students can become part of a vibrant program with interested, supportive colleagues. Students are encouraged to think broadly about their projects. While most are photo, audio, or video projects, students have also completed multimedia projects, websites, books, and installations.
Weekend Courses & Summer Institutes
Summer intensive institutes and weekend courses offer both local students and those who live in other areas the opportunity to participate in the CDS documentary arts program. Photo, video, audio, and Literacy Through Photography institutes and an Intensive Introduction to Documentary Studies course are available during the summer months. Students may receive continuing education credit toward the Certificate in Documentary Arts for some of these short courses and institutes. Examples of work produced in these institutes are posted on the Duke University iTunes site under Student Showcase and the CDS website.
What Students Have to Say
“My first exposure to CDS was attending the final project presentation program of certificate candidates. It was so inspiring to experience the body of work and meet such enthusiastic students. Now I am pursuing my own certificate, learning new skills, and making lots of friends along the way. We are blessed to have CDS located here in the Triangle.”—Jon Parker, community organizer and certificate student
“CDS is a mecca for anyone wanting to learn about the art and craft of documentary filmmaking. As a physician, I needed a program that could adapt to my schedule. In addition to being one of the top documentary schools internationally, CDS offers an extremely flexible program, allowing students to take classes at night and on weekends in specific areas of the student's interests. At the completion of the program, I had crafted a documentary short that was screened at the certificate ceremony. I learned the skills needed to make a film with audience impact. Every class and every instructor were top notch. The Institute fosters a community that promotes learning and inspires the budding documentarian. I've met a score of friends and network contacts for life. New classes are added all the time, and I'll continue to take classes at CDS following my graduation from this very well-managed program.”—Russell A. Ball, M.D., Certificate in Documentary Arts graduate
“I thought I would like this course but actually I loved it! I haven’t felt that level of passion for anything in a long time. I have learned so much. The comments/discussion with other students was fantastic—everybody had such good ideas. The presentations on the last day were amazing. . . . I’m sure that I’ll apply for the certificate based on this course alone.”—Sandra Stinnett, Introduction to Documentary Studies class, spring 2009
“The Center for Documentary Studies is unlike any other program out there. It is not a place that simply teaches you how to hold a camera and print an image, but a place that asks you to consider what you are photographing and who the work is for. The classes are taught by working professionals who deal not only with the technical skills required to photograph, film, or record, but the ethical and existential questions that arise throughout the process of in-depth documentary work. Your fellow students are not just documentarians, but psychologists, photographers, anthropologists, artists, community organizers, and social workers. Through its interdisciplinary curriculum, CDS offers not just a place to continue your studies, but an opportunity to explore and share the process of documentary work with a remarkable group of people who are themselves following the same journey.”—Anne Weber, certificate student
Courses for the Current Term – Fall 2010
FREE INFORMATION SESSION
April Walton
Prospective and current students welcome! Come and ask questions about courses at CDS, meet instructors, and learn about the Certificate in Documentary Arts.
Monday, September 20, 2010, 6–7 p.m.
Center for Documentary Studies, 1317 West Pettigrew Street, Durham, North Carolina 27705
Please register on-line for this free session using our new on-line registration system
For additional information, contact Continuing Education at the Center of Documentary Studies by calling 919-660-3663 or emailing cdscourses@duke.edu.
Fall 2010
GENERAL INFORMATION / Course Levels and Lab Fees
Download fall 2010 course descriptions and instructor bios 
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Documentary Studies courses are marked “All Levels,” “Beginning,” “Intermediate,” or “Advanced” to assist students in determining the most appropriate course in which to enroll. The specific designations are defined as follows:
1. All Levels: This course is open to all skill levels.
2. Beginning: No experience needed to take a course with this designation.
3. Intermediate: This level assumes students have taken the Intro class in the subject and are able to work independently with software or in the darkroom.
4. Advanced: This level assumes students have taken the Intro and Intermediate courses and have acquired a comfort level working independently with the medium.
Students are expected to supply their own equipment and paper, unless stated otherwise. A CDS lab fee of $85 is included in the cost of courses where indicated; this fee covers the use of darkroom and editing facilities for the duration of the course. Students who are enrolled in other courses and who wish to use these facilities must pay the $100 lab fee and complete registration/orientation with the CDS Photography and Digital Arts Associate in order to use the labs. Students need only pay ONE lab fee per term. Certificate students working on their final projects may pay the lab fee and use the lab(s) if they have enrolled in the Final Project Seminar within the calendar year.
Courses are filled on a first-come, first-served basis, and space is limited.
If you have questions, please contact Continuing Education at the Center of Documentary Studies by calling 919-660-3663 or emailing cdscourses@duke.edu.
• SPECIAL TOPICS & GENERAL INTEREST
• AUDIO
• PHOTOGRAPHY
• VIDEO
• WRITING ADVANCED PROJECTS SEMINARS
• REQUIRED COURSES
• SUMMER INSTITUTES
Courses for the Current Term – Fall 2010
Spring/Summer 2010 CDS Continuing Education Courses
Fall 2009 CDS Continuing Education Courses
Banner photograph: Graduating CDS Continuing Education students, spring 2009 (from left): Lisa Marie Albert, Jennifer Carpenter, Jamara Knight, Margaret Morales, Jean Parker, Marcia Sutherland, Anne Weber. Composite photograph by Christopher Sims.
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