Thursday, July 10, 2008

New Shelving Arrangement for Movies

You may have noticed changes to the arrangement of DVDs and videos at the Ridgefield Library.

Children’s entertainment movies are all now shelved front and center near the circulation desk. While our collections are now predominantly in DVD format, we still own a sizable number of kids’ films on VHS cassette to accommodate all those households with an old VCR in the playroom.

Also in this area are television shows on DVD, filed by the name of the series. From Masterpiece Theater classics to the latest HBO hits, this is one of the most popular and fastest growing collections in the Library.

Other entertainment-style films are shelved alphabetically by title in the first aisle, near the Storytime Sculpture Room. Foreign language films, formerly shelved on separate display units, are now interfiled with other movies and may be distinguished by a red or pink spine label with the letter L.

Children’s educational films are filed by Dewey Decimal number in Children’s Services, and other documentaries and instructional videos are interfiled with books on the same topic in the adult non-fiction section.

To assist families in finding appropriate viewing material, we have put colored spine labels on all movies indicating their rating from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) or similar organization in other countries (i.e. G, PG, PG-13, etc.). Be advised that not all films have been rated, especially those created for television or produced outside of the US. These items have a blue spine label marked NR. An NR designation does not necessarily mean that the content is appropriate for all viewers, simply that no rating has been done. Parents are cautioned to review all material before screening for their children, as even a G-rated film like “Bambi” could contain situations that may be frightening or inappropriate for certain youngsters.

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