Databases - articles and more - ARTH 522 Documentary Aesthetics - InfoGuides at Rochester Institute of Technology

Last Updated: Sep 16, 2025 10:23 AM

Databases -- Best Bets

Databases help you locate a variety of information sources: basic introductory information on a topic (dictionary/encyclopedias), specific/in depth journal articles, news and magazine articles, high quality images. Below are selected key databases to assist you with your discovery and research in documentary.

Some tips to keep in mind:

Often, you can search multiple databases at once
Think creatively about terms and try different permutations (e.g., some articles/databases might refer to "20th century" while some might use “1900s”)
Keep a list where you document what terms you searched and where (in which database, catalog, website, etc.) you searched them
Use Boolean operators to construct a powerful search

Smart Searching: Boolean Search
Navigating the Library Website
Confused about the different types of content available on the library website? This video goes over navigating the site, including resource types and search tools.
All Library Databases
Not finding what you need in the databases below? Browse this listing of all 200+ library databases to discover somewhere new to search!

Article/Journal

Film, art, and photography databases

Use keywords related to film titles, artists, or themes in these databases.

Film & Television Literature Index with Full Text
Tool for film and television research covering film & television theory, preservation & restoration, screenwriting, production, cinematography, technical aspects, and reviews.
FIAF International Index to Film Periodicals
The International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) produces the International Index to Film Periodicals which offers in-depth coverage of the world's foremost academic and popular film journals. The International Index to Film Periodicals contains over 500,000 article citations from more than 345 periodicals. Each entry consists of a full bibliographic description, an abstract and comprehensive headings (biographical names, film titles and general subjects). Also included is The Treasures from the Film Archives dataset; a database containing credits and holdings information about the silent-era film holdings of film archives from around the world.
Art & Architecture Source
Art & Architecture Source is the largest full-text art research database covering fine, decorative and commercial art, as well as architecture and architectural design. With strong international coverage, it offers hundreds of full-text art journals, magazines and books, plus detailed indexing and abstracts and thousands of images.

Additional databases

Try these databases for research on a themes, time periods, or other core concepts.

Academic Search Elite
Multi-disciplinary database of articles from scholarly journals, magazines, newsletters, and newspapers.
JSTOR
Features full-text articles (backfiles) of more than 2,800 academic journals across the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Access includes content from the primary sources collections, multidisciplinary collections, and discipline specific collections. JSTOR also features multimedia content and includes Artstor, a cross-disciplinary collection of over 2 million images for use in research and teaching.
Proquest Complete
All-in-one database that provides coverage for nearly all academic areas of study including arts, business, humanities, health, social sciences, sciences and current affairs.

Streamed Content

Films on Demand

Films on Demand is a streaming video platform for educational films and videos including titles from PBS, the BBC, CNN, celebrated documentarians, TED Talks, National Geographic, and more. Films on Demand is a packaged collection. NOTE: HBO and National Geographic limit their content to views originating in the United States and Canada. These films are not viewable at our global campuses.

Stash

Kanopy
Kanopy is a streaming video service including movies, documentaries, foreign films, classic cinema, independent films and educational videos. RIT subscribes to a faculty-curated collection.

Image Collections

Artstor on JSTOR
Artstor includes over 2 million images covering art, architecture, archaeology, and photography; all available for use in research and teaching. Images come with high-quality metadata from collection catalogers, curators, institutions, and artists themselves. DONATED: From the C. B. Neblette Collection on Photography and Reprography and a gift from Harold R. and Marian Condit.