This course is offered in collaboration with the MediaUnis Studios of the Cultural Activities of the University of Geneva. In pairs or individually, students define film projects and ensure their realization from beginning to end: from shooting to editing, with professional equipment made available by the UNIGE's cultural activities. The training is offered in the form of practical and theoretical presentations, support sessions for each documentary film project, pooling of ideas, and a public presentation at the Maison des arts du Grütli.
There are 3 main stages. In the first stage, students learn the technique, the language and the specific rules of photography. This stage takes the form of theoretical courses given during the first two months. At the same time, the students define their specific thematic project (e.g., a theme on vulnerabilities for this year), make appointments with the actors they wish to film and begin shooting. They are then offered editing assistance to produce the final documentary, the last step of which is a public screening. Throughout the process, students have free access to the MediaUnis studios, which have computers equipped with professional image editing software (Final Cut Pro) to edit and mix the various filmed sources.
The evaluation of the course takes place at two points during the year: in January after the shooting and first editing and in June after the presentation of the final production. It is done not only on the content, the form and the aesthetics of the video, but also on the whole production process.
