Swank Digital Campus provides academic streaming access to feature films, documentaries, and television shows. Swank features content from Walt Disney Pictures, Warner Bros., Universal Studios, Paramount Pictures, Lionsgate Films, Magnolia Pictures, A24 Films, and other studio partners.
VCU Libraries purchases one-year licenses for individual films in the Swank Digital Campus portal when requested by VCU faculty for course use. Due to the cost of annual licenses, we ask that you use our DVD collection when possible. Film licenses expire after one year and must be requested by faculty again if needed for course instruction. If you plan to show a Swank film that is currently accessible, please check the expiration date of the current film license by navigating to that film in the Swank portal, or by referencing the Swank License Expiration Dates spreadsheet. If the film is set to expire in the middle of course instruction, please contact Megan Goldfarb (goldfarbma@vcu.edu) at least one week in advance to ensure continuous access. The portal is accessible to VCU students, staff, and faculty via the library's A-Z Database list.
Students and faculty will be asked to self-identify when opening the Swank Digital Campus portal for the first time each session. The Swank portal appears differently for students and instructors. Students can only see the content that we have licensed, and they cannot see restricted titles.
Student view of Swank portal:
Instructors can see both content that VCU has licensed, as well as the other content offered in the Swank catalog. Instructors can also see "limited access," or restricted films. However, to watch or share restricted films, or to request other films in Swank, instructors must create an instructor account.
Instructor view of Swank portal:
In addition to self-identifying as an instructor, faculty can set up an instructor account that will allow them to see limited access films and request films directly through the portal.
Faculty can request Swank films by filling out the Film Streaming Request Form, or by requesting films directly through Swank. Film requests made directly through Swank go to the VCU Swank admin, Emily Winthrop (edwinthrop@vcu.edu) and Megan Goldfarb (goldfarbma@vcu.edu). Requests do not ensure instantaneous access so please make your requests at least one week in advance.
Restricted titles are titles that students cannot see in the Swank contents catalog; rather, they must view the film with a direct link provided by their instructor. Restricted titles are most commonly Disney films.
Faculty can obtain links to individual Swank films to add to their course pages in Canvas.
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