DV Lab: Documenting Science Through Video and New Media
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this introductory course combining documentary film theory with hands-on video production, focused on science and engineering subjects. Students learn to make documentary videos while analyzing how science documentaries construct meaning, drawing readings from social studies of science and documentary film theory. The course pairs classroom lectures and in-class film screenings with a lab component devoted to digital video production, so students both study media critically and produce their own short documentaries about scientific and technical worlds. Materials include the syllabus, readings list, and assignments as published on MIT OpenCourseWare under a Creative Commons license, free to access with no certificate offered. It suits anyone curious about how documentary form shapes public understanding of science, and how to build a short nonfiction video from concept to edit.