Residential Life brings cinema to campus

Students now have a new way to watch movies for free on campus.

St. John’s University Residence Life has partnered with Swank Motion Pictures to launch Residence Life Cinema, a streaming service offering students access to more than 500 movies at no additional cost. The site is officially up and running.

Students can access Residence Life Cinema through the SJU Residential Life page on myCSBSJU by clicking the blue Residence Life Cinema button. QR codes directing students to the service are also posted in residence halls.

Unlike many streaming services, students do not need to create an account, enter a password or pay for a subscription. Access to the platform is instead connected to the campus network.

“This service is available to all students while on campus,” said Corey Klatt, director of residential life at SJU, via email. “The service is bound to the IP range of campus, so it will be accessible while on campus.”

Students can stream movies from a laptop or mobile device and can also cast them to a television or connect their device to a TV using an HDMI cable.

Residence Life has been working on bringing the service to campus since June. During that process, Residence Life gauged interest from resident assistants, faculty residents and the SJU Student Senate to better understand what students were looking for.

The addition of Residence Life Cinema goes beyond providing students with another streaming option. Klatt said the service can also make it easier for campus groups to hold movie showings without facing some of the costs that can come with showing a movie to a larger audience.

“The service allows for residents of dorms to stream movies completely free,” Klatt said. “Typically, if a campus group wanted to show a movie to large audiences in a public showing, they would have to buy the copyright of the movie which can cost hundreds of dollars. This service completely eliminates that need.”

The service could therefore become another resource for residence hall programming. Instead of relying on individual streaming subscriptions, RAs can use movies available through Residence Life Cinema when planning events for their communities.

Blake Schaeffer, SJU sophomore and residential assistant, sees the platform as an opportunity to increase interaction between students in the residence halls.

“I can see this leading to a more engaged community and providing a reason for more use of the lounge TVs in the residence halls,” Schaeffer said via email.

Residence hall lounges already provide places for students to gather, and the new platform gives those spaces another potential use. A movie night offers RAs a way to bring residents together, while students can also use the service informally with friends.

Schaeffer said that from a student’s perspective, the service could also provide an outlet from the stress of academics.

“School is stressful. With the Res Life Cinema, it will give me another outlet to relax and hang out with friends,” Schaeffer said.

Residence Life Cinema arrives as students balance classes, extracurricular activities and other responsibilities throughout the semester. Having free access to movies provides another option for students looking to spend their free time on campus without purchasing an additional streaming service.

The service also provides flexibility in how students choose to use it. While Residence Life can incorporate movies into organized programming, students do not have to attend an event to take advantage of the platform. They can access it on their own devices while connected to the campus wi-fi network, both at CSB and SJU.

To introduce students to Residence Life Cinema, Residence Life is planning a launch watch party for Wednesday, Oct. 14. The event will give students an opportunity to experience the new service in a group setting.

After months of planning and gathering student input, Residence Life Cinema gives students both another entertainment option and a new resource for programming within residential communities.