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Research Guides

Media at the Drew Library: Streaming Video Options- ALL

Drew Library makes video and audio available in several formats, for use by students, faculty and staff. This Guide explains the options.

All streaming video services

All streaming videos are purchased or licensed content, limited to current authorized Drew students, faculty and staff.  You may link to them in Moodle.

A note to faculty about stability: Some of our streaming services  provide a changing selection of items. It is recommended that you check each semester whether the item you plan to use in class is still available. Items should be stable for the length of a semester. 

See boxes for additional information  about Swank, Kanopy, Academic Video Online and Digital Theatre+ 

All Streaming Video Services

Netflix has made over 1700 films available without a subscription under “Grant of Permission for Educational Screenings”. This is for one-time classroom showings only, and you must have a Netflix account to show it 

Here is the link showing all the films with that designation.

https://media.netflix.com/en/search?term=%E2%80%9CGrant%20of%20Permission%20for%20Educational%20Screenings%E2%80%9D&countryCode=US&newsType=blogs&newsType=pressRelease&category=titles

It does not seem to be possible to search within that list for a specific film, but you can search for a film in the search box,  and if it has the designation  “Grant of Permission for Educational Screenings”, it will show in the first paragraph of the description.

There are regulations and policies regarding the showing of these films: 

GRANT OF PERMISSION FOR EDUCATIONAL SCREENINGS Netflix is proud to present original documentaries that speak to our users in a meaningful way. We know that many of you are as excited about these films as we are; and because of their informational aspects, you’d like to show them in an educational setting -- e.g., in the classroom, at the next meeting of your community group, with your book club, etc. Consequently, we will permit one-time educational screenings - "one-time screening" means that you can't hold screenings several times in one day or one week, but if, for example, you're an educator who wants to show the film once a semester over multiple semesters, that's okay. Educational screenings are permitted for any of the documentaries noted with this information, on the following terms:

  • The documentary may only be accessed via the Netflix service, by a Netflix account holder. We don’t sell DVDs, nor can we provide other ways for you to exhibit the film.
  • The screening must be non-profit and non-commercial. That means you can’t charge admission, or solicit donations, or accept advertising or commercial sponsorships in connection with the screening.
  • Please don’t use Netflix’s logos in any promotion for the screening, or do anything else that indicates that the screening is “official” or endorsed by Netflix.
  • We trust our users to respect these guidelines, which are intended to help you share and discuss our documentary content in your community.

To the extent your institution requires you to demonstrate that your have a license for your screening, please show them this page.

Kanopy available at Madison Public Library

The Madison Public Library offers Kanopy access to library card holders. All Drew faculty, staff and students are eligible to obtain a Madison public library card. 

To obtain a Madison Public Library card, follow these procedures

To access their Kanopy site, go here

Other streaming options

Many films are also available from other streaming services (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Google Play, ITunes) for a minimal cost (usually  $1.99 - $5.99 per film )

This site (justwatch.com)  allows you to search for any film to determine options for streaming. 

Because Swank and Kanopy films are expensive to license ($100-150 for a year) , we strongly encourage you to suggest  other options to your students  whenever possible, before requesting Kanopy or Swank films. The Library can help you determine access options via this form: Media Purchase Request form,by requesting a film directly on the Kanopy or Swank site, or by emailing liborders@drew.edu. 

Questions? Need Help? Email reference@drew.edu

Drew University Library, http://www.drew.edu/library