GIF via IWDRM Hi everyone! We wanted to apologize for the radio silence in the past two weeks. We’ve been very busy preparing ourselves and our staff for the coming semester. Look forward to regular posts returning next week. Welcome to all the university’s incoming freshmen!
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Hi everyone! We wanted to apologize for the radio silence in the past two weeks. We’ve been very busy preparing ourselves and our staff for the coming semester.
Look forward to regular posts returning next week. Welcome to all the university’s incoming freshmen!
Now comes the difficult part of every year when we say farewell to our departing senior staff. This year, we have five staff members graduating: Caitlin, Claire, Jasmine, Travis, and Trevor. We’ve gotten to know this crew over the past several years, and they’ve done a terrific job exceeding patron expectations of great library service. … Continue reading “So long, farewell to our seniors!”
Now comes the difficult part of every year when we say farewell to our departing senior staff. This year, we have five staff members graduating: Caitlin, Claire, Jasmine, Travis, and Trevor. We’ve gotten to know this crew over the past several years, and they’ve done a terrific job exceeding patron expectations of great library service.
We’re sad to see them go, but we know they’re moving onto exciting careers and future programs. We wish them the best of luck!
We’re about halfway into April, and we know that it’s gorgeous outside. (Well, except today, since it’s raining.) Even with finals season approaching and forcing everyone into their study bunkers, we’d all rather be outside. We see you, Frisbee players! We envy you! We want to go where our patrons are, so for one day … Continue reading “Too nice to stay indoors? Come to the Media pop-up library!”
We’re about halfway into April, and we know that it’s gorgeous outside. (Well, except today, since it’s raining.) Even with finals season approaching and forcing everyone into their study bunkers, we’d all rather be outside. We see you, Frisbee players! We envy you!
We want to go where our patrons are, so for one day only, we’re taking Media Services outside!
On April 14th from 2pm to 5pm, we’re setting up a table on the quad outside of the Mary Graydon Center and checking out movies to anyone passing by. We’re still working out logistics, but we’re going to bring up a decent selection of our newest titles for checkout. No strings attached to this: bring your AU ID, and you can check items out just like you’re in the library.
This is the second pop-up stand the AU Library has hosted; the Music Library set the standard with their pop-up library in February last year.
We’ll send out another update once we’re closer to the event. See you on the quad!
While everyone was out over break, the Library of Congress continued tradition by adding 25 new titles to its permanent archives in the National Film Registry. Each year, the National Film Preservation Board selects films that it deems “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” for preservation for future generations. It’s an eclectic collection that spans decades … Continue reading “Ferris Bueller and The Dude join this year’s National Film Registry list”
While everyone was out over break, the Library of Congress continued tradition by adding 25 new titles to its permanent archives in the National Film Registry. Each year, the National Film Preservation Board selects films that it deems “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” for preservation for future generations. It’s an eclectic collection that spans decades and genres, and this year’s additions are similarly well-rounded.
The highest-profile films in the NFR’s latest wave include stoner-bowling-mystery-comedy The Big Lebowski, World War II drama Saving Private Ryan, 80s teen wish fulfillment vehicle Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and Pixar’s first ever short, Luxo Jr. But there are also odder gems beyond that, like 13 Lakes, a long-take documentary about America’s lakes, and the untitled Bert Williams Lime Kiln Club Field Day, the first film to feature an all-black cast.
You certainly can’t fault the National Film Preservation Board for picking some interesting films. If you’d like to catch up on what the government now considers essential, the following recently selected films are also in our collection:
The Big Lebowski – HU DVD 25
Into the Arms of Strangers – DVD 305
Little Big Man – HU DVD 650
Saving Private Ryan – HU DVD 1313
Luxo Jr. – HU DVD 3411
Rosemary’s Baby – HU DVD 5783
Down Argentine Way – HU DVD 6094
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – HU DVD 6126
Rio Bravo – HU DVD 7326
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory – HU DVD 10240
The Gang’s All Here – MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 300
Every year, our friends/overlords at the American Library Association release a list of Notable Videos for Adults featuring some of the most significant and interesting videos recently released. The ALA has just released their picks from 2013, and they’re good ones. Most of these are in our collection, but since we trust the ALA, we’re … Continue reading “ALA names Notable Videos of 2013”
Every year, our friends/overlords at the American Library Association release a list of Notable Videos for Adults featuring some of the most significant and interesting videos recently released. The ALA has just released their picks from 2013, and they’re good ones. Most of these are in our collection, but since we trust the ALA, we’re in the process of ordering the ones we don’t have.
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry – HU DVD 10873
Brooklyn Castle – HU DVD 2826
The Central Park Five – HU DVD 6371
The Gatekeepers – HU DVD 2858
The House I Live In – HU DVD 5094
How to Survive a Plague – HU DVD 11006
The Imposter – HU DVD 10925
The Invisible War – HU DVD 10567
Jiro Dreams of Sushi – HU DVD 3005
Kumare – Coming soon!
Leviathan – Coming soon!
A Place at the Table – HU DVD 2859
Project Nim – HU DVD 9714
Soul Food Junkies – HU DVD 11017
Where Heaven Meets Hell – Coming soon!
Because of the inclement weather, American University is closed today. The library will operate at limited capacity, so there’ll still be room to study, but service desks will be either closed or minimally staffed. The exact hours of Media Services and the New Media Center for the day are TBA. This is perhaps the most … Continue reading “AU Library OPEN today, but limited”
Because of the inclement weather, American University is closed today. The library will operate at limited capacity, so there’ll still be room to study, but service desks will be either closed or minimally staffed. The exact hours of Media Services and the New Media Center for the day are TBA.
This is perhaps the most inconvenient time for a snow day; the AU Library is committed to making sure you have a place to work!
This might not be the most exciting news for people outside the library community, but it’s big for us: we’ve officially upgraded our checkout equipment! The guy pictured above is the Mediacheck Model 325. It’s faster and more reliable than the equipment we’ve previously used. It won’t make too much of a difference on the … Continue reading “We love our new equipment! (And it needs a name)”
This might not be the most exciting news for people outside the library community, but it’s big for us: we’ve officially upgraded our checkout equipment!
The guy pictured above is the Mediacheck Model 325. It’s faster and more reliable than the equipment we’ve previously used. It won’t make too much of a difference on the user’s end, but it’s a big step up for us.
If you can think of a great name for these things, please let us know! One member of our staff suggests Domokun, and that’s a hard one to beat.
Last week, home video mainstay Blockbuster announced the closure of its last remaining stores, effectively ending what was only a decade earlier a vertiable empire of film distribution. This is no surprise, especially for those in the DC area (the closest Blockbuster is nearly 30 miles away). Decades later, no one will likely lament the … Continue reading “The last DVD checked out from a Blockbuster is appropriate, sad”
Last week, home video mainstay Blockbuster announced the closure of its last remaining stores, effectively ending what was only a decade earlier a vertiable empire of film distribution. This is no surprise, especially for those in the DC area (the closest Blockbuster is nearly 30 miles away). Decades later, no one will likely lament the death of Blockbuster at the hands of Internet services, but it’s nonetheless a little sad for old-timers to see this era coming to an end. Where else will we get the personal, possibly-substance-enhanced movie recommendations from the guy at the checkout?
As a fitting end to the Blockbuster retail dynasty, the company announced that their final DVD rental was a copy of This is the End. Hold back your tears, folks. After years of accidentally renting Transmorphers from the store shelves and kindly rewinding VHS tapes, this seems like an appropriate send-off.
This isn’t to suggest that DVDs and Blu-rays are going anywhere in the long-term. In any event, take a moment to remember the first time you stepped foot in a rental store and how far technology has come since then
Because of scheduled campus-wide power outages, the library will close at 9pm tonight. Please keep this in mind if you’re planning to watch movies in the library… or even watch movies on your own! Many of the residence halls will not have power for several hours.
Because of scheduled campus-wide power outages, the library will close at 9pm tonight. Please keep this in mind if you’re planning to watch movies in the library… or even watch movies on your own! Many of the residence halls will not have power for several hours.
A luminary of the film industry is throwing in the towel. With the release of The Wind Rises, his eleventh feature film, Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki has announced his retirement from filmmaking. The sudden announcement was perhaps inevitable given Miyazaki’s age, but his absence from the world of animation will be felt immediately. Miyazaki’s production … Continue reading “Miyazaki retires! Celebrate the legendary director’s work”
A luminary of the film industry is throwing in the towel. With the release of The Wind Rises, his eleventh feature film, Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki has announced his retirement from filmmaking. The sudden announcement was perhaps inevitable given Miyazaki’s age, but his absence from the world of animation will be felt immediately. Miyazaki’s production house, Studio Ghibli, has often been called the Japanese equivalent of Disney; Ghibli is responsible for many critically acclaimed Japanese films, including 2010’s The Secret World of Arrietty.
Miyazaki will probably still have a hand in the operations of Studio Ghibli and in producing more animated films, but his absence in the director’s chair will be sorely missed. Miyazaki’s My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away are among the most cherished and lauded animated films ever.
Luckily, Miyazaki leaves behind three decades of quality animated features. We have the director’s entire filmography available for checkout in Media Services. Watch one or two and pay tribute to his enormous and acclaimed body of work.
Spirited Away – HU DVD 586
Princess Mononoke – HU DVD 1206
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind – HU DVD 2977
Castle in the Sky – HU DVD 2978
Howl’s Moving Castle – HU DVD 2979
My Neighbor Totoro – HU DVD 4709
Kiki’s Delivery Service – HU DVD 6077
Ponyo – HU DVD 6937
Porco Rosso – HU DVD 10216
The Castle of Cagliostro – HU DVD 10694
