Cinematic Arts
Once coronavirus lockdown orders and social distancing rules went into effect, people began to consume more visual media than ever before. Streaming platforms saw their numbers surge as subscribers binged new shows and watched movies into the wee hours of dawn. Behind the scenes, however, million-dollar film and television productions were forced to come to a halt. In the interval, many independent filmmakers began to rise and release fresh media. Working with the resources and knowledge they had, new filmmakers seized the… read more about Student Filmmakers Seize the Moment as Industry Adapts »
Although the Rubenstein Arts Center’s film theater is quiet this semester, Screen/Society is finding ways to keep bringing the cinematic arts to Duke and Durham. This semester’s lineup is called “New Releases/New Restorations,” a timely selection of films to acquaint cinephiles with the current film landscape. The seven-film slate features a curated selection of six newly released films and the 35th anniversary restoration of 1985's “Smooth Talk," which stars Laura Dern in her breakout role. The other films are diverse in… read more about 'New Releases/New Restorations' aims to attract every kind of film lover »
Part of our “Art and Artists are Essential” collection and invitation. “I started writing music over winter break from home. I met Robbie Rosen, a producer and American Idol finalist, who helped me write original songs for the first time! This is a song about being stuck between two places, and I think every Duke student has felt this in some capacity, especially during the pandemic. We were back in our hometowns for longer than we are used to, and many of us are questioning where we feel most at home. I feel really… read more about Sophia Roth ‘22: “Between Two Worlds” »
Almost a year ago, Duke alumni had a winning presence at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Now, the Duke community will have the opportunity to see one of these works from the comfort of their own screens. “Assassins” tells the story of the assassination of Kim Jong-Nam, which caused international news furor when CCTV footage showed two young women confront him in broad daylight — with a lethal nerve gas slathered on their hands. The documentary film follows the pair of women, exploring the twisty sociopolitical path… read more about Screen/Society screens Duke alumni-directed film 'Assassins' »
One of the most internationally acclaimed auteurs of contemporary cinema, Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar Wai returns to the public sphere with a 4k restoration series in collaboration with Janus Films. Both innovative and retrospective, the “World of Wong Kar Wai” series features seven of the writer-director-producer’s best works: “As Tears Go By,” “Chungking Express,” “Days of Being Wild,” “Fallen Angels,” “The Hand,” “Happy Together” and, last but certainly not least, “In the Mood for Love.” >> Read More read more about Return of the master: Screen/Society organizes seven-film Wong Kar Wai retrospective »
Congratulations to the following student award winners from Duke University units in 2020. African & African American Studies John Hope Franklin Award for Academic Excellence: Elizabeth DuBard Grantland Karla FC Holloway Award for University Service: Beza Gebremariam Mary McLeod Bethune Writing Award: Jenna Clayborn Walter C. Burford Award for Community Service: Kayla Lynn Corredera-Wells Art, Art History & Visual Studies Mary Duke… read more about Student Honors and Laurels for 2020 »
Screen/Society's public screenings may be on hiatus for the time being (stay up to date with Duke University's Coronavirus Response here) but we have been busy exploring ways to bring Screen/Society programming into your home streaming environment, in our new incarnation as "Stream/Society". Our Spring 2020 streaming schedule details can be found here. For info about other 'Virtual Events in the Arts' at Duke, click here read more about AMI's Screen/Society rises from the ashes, reborn as "Stream/Society" »
When Clarence Hammond enrolled at Duke in the fall of 2005, he thought he wanted to be a lawyer. He was an overachiever, too, so in his first semester he took six classes, almost all of which were in political science. By winter break, he knew something wasn’t right. “I felt like the deeper I got down this pre-law/political science path, I wasn’t quite in love with it the way I hoped,” he said. “The courses were great, but it wasn’t really sparking that passion that I had as a kid.” Since he got ahead in that first semester… read more about Cinematic Arts: A New Concentration and Minor Bring Film at Duke into Focus »
Since its founding in 1991 by graduate students, the Arts of the Moving Image's Screen/Society series has been the center of eclectic film programming on campus. ... Free to both the Duke and Durham communities, the program’s selection offers an assortment of films, with an emphasis on international and arthouse films that are not otherwise easily accessible. read more» read more about Screen/Society's fall lineup brings arthouse and international cinema to Duke »
Students often come to know their professors over the course of a semester-long class, where instructors serve more as mentors and advisors than writers, researchers or filmmakers. The 2019 AMI Faculty Filmmaker Spotlight, held this past Thursday at the Rubenstein Arts Center, highlighted the role of AMI professors as artists in their own right through a screening of their most recent filmmaking projects. <<Read the whole article on the Duke Chronicle website>> read more about AMI Faculty Filmmaker Spotlight showcases professors' latest projects »
Arts of the Moving Image Faculty members Alex Cunningham, Jim Haverkamp, Shambhavi Kaul, Anna Kipervaser, and Jason Sudak all have showings at the Cosmic Rays film festival held in the historic Varsity Theater in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The festival will run from February 28 to March 1. Click here to check out the program! read more about AMI Faculty Showings at Cosmic Rays Festival in Chapel Hill on Feb 28-Mar 1 »
Read the article on DukeStories. read more about Shambhavi Kaul Featured In the "Faces of the Ruby" »
Between the opening of the Power Plant Gallery at American Tobacco Campus and the Rubenstein Arts Center, as well as programs through Full Frame, the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke and the Arts of the Moving Image, more people are getting involved in making and enjoying movies. Read the whole article on Duke Today. read more about Duke employee filmmakers screen documentaries and movies around the world. »
For some, it can be difficult to engage in the arts at Duke. Heavy class loads, career-oriented extracurriculars and burgeoning social lives make it difficult to explore the vast array of screenings, exhibits and workshops around campus, all free to students. The Art of the Moving Image department is particularly unsparing in its offerings, often holding screenings of rare 35mm prints and recent limited-release films. Starting Tuesday, AMI will host the Filmcraft series, comprised of workshops designed to provide an… read more about AMI Filmcraft series teaches amateur filmmakers practical skills »
At 88 years old with nearly 60 years in the film industry, Jean-Luc Godard remains at the cutting-edge of cinema. His newest film, The Image Book, or Le livre d'image, was the first film to ever receive a Special Palme d'Or at Cannes 2018. Duke students will be able to see the film a full two weeks before its American opening on Jan. 25 in New York City with Screen/Society hosting showings Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m. in the Rubenstein Arts Center. <<Read the whole article on the… read more about Jean Luc-Godard's latest film comes to the Ruby ahead of New York premiere »
AMI faculty member Shambhavi Kaul presents a program of her films at MoMA, October 22, 7 pm. "Applying deep research, precise editing, and fine-tuned humor to a combination of her own cinematography and found footage, Shambhavi Kaul depicts landscapes and figures that exist between imagination and reality. Her work uses cultural tropes from places like Hong Kong, India, and Mexico to reveal the ambiguous meanings behind loaded popular signifiers. Kaul presents a selection of her films,… read more about An Evening with Shambhavi Kaul at the Museum of Modern Art »
AMI Program Director Josh Gibson's "Pig Film" receives its North American Premiere this weekend at the New Orleans Film Festival. AMI Lecturing Fellow Steve Milligan served as the Director of Photography on the film. "Pig Film" will make its Durham-area premiere on Nov 26, with Josh Gibson in attendance. Gibson also has a film installation in New Southern Photography at the Ogden Museum of Art, on view October 6, 2018 - March 10, 2019. read more about North American Premiere of Josh Gibson's "Pig Film" »
Just like that, the Screen/Society podcast is under production! Stay tuned for the launch! Pictured here are Chi-hui Yang and Jon Sesrie-Goff who have collaborated on "Visible Spectrum,” the inaugural program for a new, annual film series at Duke called, Experimental and Documentary Cinema. Also pictured are the interviewers, Michael Betts II and Alex Morelli, both current Duke MFA students. read more about Screen/Society podcast is under production! Stay tuned for the launch! »
Experimental and Documentary Cinema is a new, annual film series to be presented as part of Duke’s Screen/Society at the Rubinstein Art Center. The purpose of this film series is to expand discourses of “experimental” and “documentary” in cinema. Each fall semester, a guest curator or a curatorial team will be chosen to design a 5-part program that highlights films that lie at the interstice of these two terms. This inaugural year, the guest curators are Chi-hui Yang of the Ford Foundation and Jon-Sesrie… read more about New film series--"Experimental and Documentary Cinema: The Visible Spectrum" »
Screen/Society presents: “Material Desire and Experimental Film”(Curated by Kim Knowles) Four very special evenings of short experimental films at Duke University’s Rubenstein Arts Center, Film Theater, during the Spring 2018 semester: Wed Feb 28, 7pm: Program One: “Forms of Contact” - with curator Kim Knowles in attendance!{online registration required to reserve seats for this program} Thu March 22, 7pm:… read more about AAHVS & Screen/Society present "Material Desire & Experimental Film" - 4 programs of short films curated by guest curator Kim Knowles (Feb 28/March 22/March 30/April 12) »