A detailed image of various equipment in the Video Data Bank office.

Facilities & Resources

Film, Video, Media, and New Animation Facilities and Resources

The Department of Film, Video, Media, and New Animation offers a wide breadth of programming, facilities, and top-of-the-line equipment.

Screenings and Video Libraries

Jordan Arseneault, Shirin Fahimi, Amir Ashrafi. Photo: Connor Fenwick.

Conversations at the Edge

Conversations at the Edge is a dynamic series of screenings, performances, and talks by groundbreaking media artists.

Exterior shot of the Gene Siskel Film Center.

Gene Siskel Film Center

The Gene Siskel Film Center presents approximately 1,500 screenings and 100 guest artist appearances every year to more than 65,000 film enthusiasts at its unique, sophisticated, modern facilities at 164 North State Street.

An image of the outside of the Video Data Bank office.

Video Data Bank

Founded at SAIC in 1976 at the inception of the media arts movement, Video Data Bank (VDB) is a leading resource in the United States for video by and about contemporary artists. The VDB’s collection has grown to include the work of more than 600 artists and 6,000 video art titles. VDB is dedicated to fostering awareness and scholarship of the history and contemporary practice of video and media art through its distribution, education, and preservation programs.

Available Equipment

Within the Film, Video, New Media, and Animation department, you will have access to our production studios and the following equipment and facilities:

  • RED camera package
  • Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro G2 4.6k cameras
  • Blackmagic Pocket Cinema 6k Pro cameras
  • Sony PXW-Z100 cameras
  • Sony Alpha a7S II cameras
  • Canon 5D Mark III cameras
  • Insta 360 Camera & Nikon 360 Camera
  • Arriflex S & SR2 16 & Super 16mm motion picture cameras and accessories
  • Bolex 16 & Super 16mm motion picture cameras and accessories
  • Sound Devices and Zoom audio recorders
  • Neumann, Sennheiser, AT, and EV microphones
  • Vocal Booth (sound booth)
  • ProTools 5.1 surround sound mix suite
  • Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro editing systems
  • 2 advanced editing labs with M1 Ultra Mac Studios
  • 1 advanced CG lab with Alienware Area 51 R5 PC computers
  • 2 CG Suites with Alienware Area 51 R5 PC computers
  • Sandin Image Processor analog video synthesis system
  • Analog to ProRes file transfer and transcoding room
  • Advanced HD editing suites with M1 Ultra Mac Studios
  • Advanced animation digital suites with Wacom displays
  • 2 puppet animation studios
  • Steenbeck flatbed editing machines
  • JK and Oxberry optical printers
  • Mobile Dragon Stop Motion Animation carts
  • 2 shooting studios including a Green screen cyclorama studio
  • Variety of portable lighting kits
  • 16mm and Super 8 HD telecine suite
  • 2 Installation Studios
  • 52 seat Flaxman Screening theater