Fairfield library patrons to receive free access to online film collection

The Fairfield Public Library is giving patrons one month of free access to a film streaming service called Kanopy.

The free trial begins Tuesday and gives patrons access to the service’s 30,000 films. Fairfield Library Director Rebecca Johnson said Kanopy’s collection consists of about 20 percent feature films, 60 percent documentaries and 20 percent educational films.

At the end of the 30-day period, library staff and its board of trustees will review the public’s response to the program, and will continue offering it on a more limited basis for a year, courtesy of a $700 grant from the Fairfield Public Library Foundation.

“Based upon the level of interest discovered during the trial, usage will be restricted to a specific number of ‘play credits’ per person per month to ensure we stay within budget,” Johnson said.

To begin watching, go to https://fairfieldlib.kanopy.com and click Log in to FairfieldLib. Follow the prompts to register with your Fairfield Public Library card number.

Johnson said access to Kanopy includes more than 500 Great Courses featuring everything from history to cooking to photography.

“The Great Courses can be quite expensive, costing a few hundred dollars each. We don’t have the budget to buy those, but we can provide access to more than 500 of them through Kanopy,” Johnson said.

Johnson said the library is lucky to have a foundation willing and able to contribute money to offer such a service to the library’s patrons.