One of the more challenging aspects of the StudentCam competition can be finding clips of C-SPAN video programming that best complement your documentary’s theme. You should NOT be paying to download C-SPAN footage for use in your documentary. If you need help finding video related to your topic, please email us at: educate@c-span.org.
While you are not required to use a specific duration of C-SPAN video, one of the criteria your video will be judged on is the relevance of the C-SPAN clips that you select for use in your documentary. We highly recommend that you consider using several short video clips from C-SPAN programs throughout your documentary in order to show background, context and/or varying viewpoints related to your chosen issue. We also suggest that any individual C-SPAN clip used should not run longer than 10-15 seconds at a time. Review some of the past winning videos to see how other students have used C-SPAN video clips to support and enhance their documentaries.
We have a large library of ready made clips of C-SPAN programming that are available for you to stream and download for free through Dropbox file hosting.
Start by looking through the topic areas on the StudentCam Downloads page, Click on the broader topic area that best relates to your issue, and then search that page by keywords related to your issue. When you find a clip that looks interesting, click the link to open the Dropbox video of the clip you would like to view.
If you like what you see, you can then download the MP4 video file from Dropbox by either clicking File -> Download, or clicking the download icon that looks like a downward facing arrow:
When the pop up window appears, scroll to the bottom of the box that pops up and then click on the button that say “Continue with Download only”:
This will save the video file to your computer, and you can then edit out the specific portion you want to use in your documentary using your video editing software.
You may use any video clips that include C-SPAN graphics, including any of C-SPAN’s branded properties, like the Washington Journal, Ceasefire, BookTV, and American History TV.
Again, if you are having difficult finding C-SPAN clips related to your topic and you need help, simply email us at: educate@c-span.org.
