Emerging Documentary Artists

Emerging Documentary Artists were part of CDS's Documentary Diversity Project, which was active 2017–2020.

Emerging Documentary Artists, part of CDS’s Documentary Diversity Project (DDP), are local young people, ages 18 to 24, from groups underrepresented in the documentary field—including Black, Latinx, Native American (American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian), Asian or Asian American, Pacific Islander, Puerto Rican, and Middle Eastern/North African.

These young artists, selected from applicants who at the time were not in school or employed full-time, served in full-time eighteen-month residencies at CDS and were paid a living wage with health benefits. They had access to Duke University and CDS resources and programs as well as one-on-one mentoring with a variety of successful documentary makers, educators, and other professionals. Emerging Documentary Artists worked alongside CDS faculty, staff, and artists to explore and develop their skills in audio, photography, writing, film, and/or other documentary mediums. They participated in program activities (workshops, conferences, classes, trips, etc.) to further develop and encourage community connections and their own artistic voices, while planning and working on their documentary arts projects and interacting with local and national mentors. These artists engaged in peer mentorship, presented their projects to the larger community, and received support as they planned for their next steps (within the documentary arts or otherwise).

An image of Haillee Mason

Haillee Mason

2019–20 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Haillee Mason is a critical thinker and creator who is enchanted by the power of vulnerability and intimacy that is inherent to Black diasporic life.

An image of Audria Byrd

Audria Byrd

2019–20 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Audria Byrd (she/they) is a Black transfeminine filmmaker and poet hailing from Greenville, South Carolina, and currently based in Durham, North Carolina. She graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2017 with BAs in media arts and African American studies.

An image of Shay Hendricks

Shay Hendricks

2019–20 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Shay Hendricks is an aspiring artist of many mediums. They are currently practicing and studying fashion design as a form of documentary art.

An image of Anthony Hendricks

Anthony Patterson

2019–20 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Anthony Patterson, born in 1995 in Durham, North Carolina, received his BFA in painting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (2017).

A photo of Greg standing in front of a graffiti wall, with a camera held up to his face.

Greg Weaver II

2018–19 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Greg is a skateboarder, photographer, and writer.

A shoulders-up picture of Paul Newman in front of an orange background.

Paul A. Newman Jr.

2018–19 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Paul is a Connecticut-born, North Carolina–bred artist.

A shoulders-up picture of Steven Cheek in front of an orange background.

Steven Cheek

2018–19 Emerging Documentary Artist, Documentary Diversity Project

Steven describes some of his skills and interests: “I love to cook a lot of foods that I believe most people my age don’t know how to cook.