MasterClass Announces First-of-a-Kind Class With Ava DuVernay on Reframing Your Thinking

Ava DuVernay for MasterClass. Courtesy of MasterClass
Ava DuVernay for MasterClass. Courtesy of MasterClass

MasterClass Announces First-of-a-Kind Class With Ava DuVernay on Reframing Your Thinking

Gives members access to the visioning and execution of DuVernay's new feature film, ORIGIN, to learn how to build upon a dream, practice authentic leadership and achieve extraordinary outcomes as a team

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- MasterClass, the streaming platform where anyone can learn from the world's best, today announced that award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay will teach a class on directing the life you want to lead. Exclusively for MasterClass, DuVernay will take members on the actual set and through the post-production process of her newest film, ORIGIN.

 Filmed over a six-month period, the class showcases her methods for identifying, developing and executing a vision to direct the life that you want. The class is available now only on MasterClass, where subscribers have unlimited access to all 200+ instructors with an annual membership.

In this class, DuVernay takes MasterClass members on a journey of self-discovery, guiding them through the art of reframing their mindset to unleash their full potential in everyday life. The class provides an unprecedented, behind-the-scenes look into the filmmaking process for ORIGIN, dropping members right into the middle and allowing them to follow DuVernay's journey in making the film. She uses the filming of ORIGIN as a backdrop to teach critical skills for leaders of all types, whether members lead a team, a family or are pursuing their first solo project. Members will learn how to find motivation, set their vision, build a strong team, lead with empathy, keep people engaged and take action every day.

"Collaborating with MasterClass to create a learning module unlike anything they'd done before was truly thrilling," DuVernay said. "My goal was to make the viewer feel embedded in the action, intention and energy of directing and producing a feature film— with all of the discipline and dedication that the endeavor requires. Only MasterClass as a platform could provide the kind of a teaching experience that I wanted to share, one that offers a bird's-eye view into the creative and philosophical process of filmmaking."

Beyond ORIGIN, DuVernay's feature work includes the Academy Award–winning historical drama SELMA; the Academy Award–nominated criminal justice documentary 13TH; the Sundance Best Director Award win for her micro-budgeted romance MIDDLE OF NOWHERE; and Disney's A WRINKLE IN TIME, which made her the highest-grossing Black woman director in American box office history. In 2019, her four-part television series, WHEN THEY SEE US, was honored with 16 Emmy nominations. DuVernay's critically acclaimed TV series QUEEN SUGAR is the longest-running Black family drama series by a Black woman creator in American television history. She amplifies films by people of color and women of all kinds through her nonprofit narrative change collective ARRAY, which is a winner of the Peabody Institutional Award. The filmmaker sits on the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, representing the directors branch. She is a vice president of the Directors Guild of America and an advisory board member of the American Film Institute. DuVernay has previously served on the juries of the Cannes Film Festival and Mumbai Film Festival.

MasterClass partnered with ARRAY's Seat16 to bring the ORIGIN and MasterClass experiences to thousands of teens. Each $16 donation will give one young person in the U.S. a ticket to see ORIGIN and a free one-year membership to MasterClass.
MasterClass is the streaming platform that provides the insights, tools and lived experiences of the world's best so you can become your best. In as little as 10 minutes, you can gain new skills that can be applied immediately. With an annual membership, you get unlimited access to 200+ instructors and classes through flexible formats for any way you like to learn. Shift the way you see and experience the world through a wide range of subjects, including business and leadership, writing, cooking, acting, sports and more. Cook with Gordon Ramsay. Write with Shonda Rhimes. Get negotiation tactics from Chris Voss. Learn how to navigate relationships with Esther Perel or make bold choices with Samuel L. Jackson.

 Original Series provides a new way to learn through quick, highly engaging episodic stories designed to change the way members see the world. With MasterClass at Work, companies can develop durable skills that transform employees into future-ready leaders through cinematic lessons and life-changing stories taught by the world's best. Each MasterClass offering is available at home or on the go on mobile, tablet, desktop, Apple TV®, Android™TV, Amazon Fire TV and Roku® players and devices.

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