Film – Visual Journalism – Photography – Graphic Design
Brooks Institute offers intensive training in narrative and documentary filmmaking with campuses in Ventura and Santa Barbara California. With a 65-year legacy, degree programs, and a working faculty, Brooks challenges students to ‘learn by doing’ in a campus housed in a former working studio.
Founded in 1945, Brooks built its reputation on a combination of creative and technical excellence in photography and the visual arts. The school offers students a unique environment for concentrated instruction that interconnects the fields of film, photography, journalism and graphic design. Training in the arts is complemented with a carefully balanced set of Business and Liberal Arts courses designed to fulfill the educational goals of each program.
The setting of Santa Barbara and Ventura California offers a spectacular visual world of coastal mountains and ready access to Los Angeles and Southern California’s diverse economic and media environment. Students can access a wide range of internships and employment opportunities.
The Brooks community includes passionate students, a committed, accomplished faculty of working professionals, a dedicated staff, and an outstanding alumni network. Many faculty and alumni are recognized leaders in their fields, including Academy Award, Emmy, Pulitzer, Newspaper and Magazine award winners, among others. Films by students, faculty and alumni regularly compete in major film festivals including the Sundance Film Festival, including a partnership with the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
Global exploration is encouraged at Brooks through the school’s annual International Documentary Trip and Domestic Documentary Trips. These cross-program, semester-long courses create collaborative learning environments where students create and publish print, DVD and web materials. Recent trips have included Ireland, China, India, Chile, and Vietnam. Recent Domestic Documentary Classes included a New York trip for a 10-year retrospective of “911”, a class project in economically embattled Detroit and most recently exploring stories in the Hawaiian Islands. Brooks is also offering its first “Semester in Paris” this summer with an emphasis on Fashion Photography.
