This course, co-taught by a nonfiction writer and a photojournalist, explores the art and craft of documenting place through words and images. Using the city of Durham as a practice ground, students will learn the skills essential to create both documentary writing and photography, as well as explore how these two genres can be used in concert to deepen a story. Given its rich history and current state of growth and change, Durham offers many opportunities for place-based storytelling that motivates thinking and reflection in others.
In addition to studying writing and photographs that effectively capture place and discussing the ethical aspects of gathering and working with stories that are not their own, students will learn the practical skills of both genres. They will learn how to report and conduct interviews as well as how to focus and structure written work. And they will learn essential elements of good visual storytelling, with an emphasis on portraiture and building a narrative through photo essays.
Christina Cooke is associate editor at the daily food-policy website Civil Eats and a Durham-based freelance writer who writes about people, place, and culture for venues including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, the New York Times, the Guardian, the Oxford American, Our State, and High Country News. Previously, she worked two years as a staff writer for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, and another year as the only full-time reporter for a weekly paper in Portland, Oregon. Cooke finds herself drawn to tell stories at the fringes of society, about people who are offbeat and unconventional, passionate and obsessed, and masters of their own, very specialized domains. She holds an MFA in creative nonfiction writing from Portland State University and is a graduate of the nonfiction writing program at the Salt Institute of Documentary Studies. Find out more and view writings at christinacooke.com.
Kate Medley is a documentarian telling stories about good causes, companies, and campaigns. Following a ten-year career in corporate communications as lead documentary storyteller for Whole Foods Market, during which time she spearheaded a journalistic approach to the company's marketing of farmers and producers, Medley now leads a media agency in Durham, North Carolina. Through a longtime partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance, she has created several documentary film projects exploring Southern culture through stories about food. Counter Histories, produced to mark the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, is a series of five films documenting lunch counter sit-ins across the south, and A Spoken Dish celebrates the diverse food culture across the region through a series of 85 video vignettes. Medley received her bachelor's degree in photojournalism from the University of Montana and her Master's in Southern Studies from the University of Mississippi. She has worked as a photojournalist for newspapers across the South, including the Charlotte Observer, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, and as a regular contributor for The New York Times.
Haven Kimmel is the author of eight books: Two memoirs, the #1 New York Times bestseller A Girl Named Zippy and She Got Up Off the Couch, and Other Heroic Tales from Mooreland, Indiana; four novels; and two books for children. She graduated from Ball State University with a degree in creative writing and studied with the novelist Lee Smith at North Carolina State University. She is currently working on a horror novel and a non-fiction collection of essays about Quakerism. She lives in Durham.
Janine Latus is a freelance journalist and the author of If I Am Missing or Dead: A Sister's Story of Love, Murder and Liberation, which made bestseller lists in New York, London, and Toronto. She is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and a former board member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors. Her work has appeared in Discover, O, The Oprah Magazine, Parents, Fitness, More, and dozens of other magazines and websites. She is at work on her second book, about her recent year living as a nomad.
Barry Yeoman is a Durham-based freelance magazine journalist whose recent work has appeared in The American Prospect, Saturday Evening Post, onEarth, Audubon, and Parade. He is the author of "The Gutbucket King," a longform multimedia profile of New Orleans bluesman Little Freddie King, published by The New New South. He specializes in putting human faces on complex social, political, and environmental issues. His website is barryyeoman.com.
The enrollment fee includes dinner the first night and all lunches during the week. Students are responsible for housing and transportation.
Sunday, June 9: 5 p.m.–9 p.m.
Monday–Thursday, June 10–13: 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Friday, June 14: 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
Sunday, August 4: 5 p.m.–9 p.m.
Monday–Thursday, August 5–8: 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Friday, August 9: 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
Friday's sessions conclude with a public presentation of student work.
See the course blog for a schedule, information on housing options, and more.
Please note: This is a hybrid onsite/online class. Distance students will participate via teleconference.
Joshua Dasal has taught at CDS since 2010. He is an Emmy- and Silver Telly–winning director, producer, screenwriter, and video marketer. A master's graduate of the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, he has created projects and/or consulted for Discovery Channel, PBS, Sony Screen Gems, and director Wes Craven. He has taught filmmaking courses at UNC-Chapel Hill and Missouri State University, and his films have screened at venues like the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Director's Guild of America, and USC's First Look Film Festival. He is the owner and chief creative officer of Kaboonki Creative, a video production and marketing firm based in Raleigh.
To participate from off-site, a late-model computer, fast internet connection, and built-in camera are recommended, though not required. Students with less than optimal hardware or internet connections are welcome to take the course, though it may be difficult to participate fully.
There will be a one-hour break for lunch.