Documentarian Ken Burns, notable for directing The Civil War (1990), Baseball (1994), Jazz (2001), and The Natural Parks: America’s Best Idea (2009), will answer questions in an open session hosted during an upcoming faculty break by History Department Chair Joseph Lyons.

Mr. Burns’ most recent work was a series on Prohibition, released by PBS in 2011. He has received 12 Emmy awards and two Oscar nominations for his work and has been awarded over 25 honorary degrees. For those familiar with videography, Mr. Burns is also known for popularizing “the Ken Burns effect,” in which a frame pans across a still picture to create the illusion of movement.

“Probably any student who has taken history here has, whether they know it or not, seen a clip of his work in class,” said Mr. Lyons. “He’s really the best in his field.”

Mr. Burns will visit Deerfield on February 23, 2012.