With the election this November, C-SPAN is providing middle & high school students with a platform to tell us about the issues that are important to them. Read on and get started on your submission today!
TEACHERS: Click here to request free copies of our 11" x 17" StudentCam poster to display in your classrooms. Limit of 5 per person.
PRESS RELEASE: Announcing the 2025 StudentCam Documentary Competition (.PDF)
VIDEO: StudentCam 2025 Documentary Competition Video Promo (1:01)
StudentCam is C-SPAN's annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think critically about issues that affect our communities and our nation.
In this presidential election year, we're asking students in grades 6-12 to create a short (5-6 minute) video documentary on a topic that relates to the competition theme, "Your Message to the President."
The submission deadline for all entries is Inauguration Day on Monday, January 20, 2025.
C-SPAN awards cash prizes totaling $100,000 to the student filmmakers of the top 150 student documentaries.
Your Message to the President
What issue is most important to you or your community? Examine your selected topic from multiple perspectives and assess what action(s) the president should take after Inauguration Day.Click here for a printable Student Checklist (Google Doc)
- This annual competition is open to all students in grades 6-12. Grades 6-8 compete in the Middle School category, and grades 9-12 compete in the High School category. For more information, visit our Prizes page.
- Students may compete individually, or in teams of either 2 or 3 members.
- Documentaries must include clips of supporting or opposing C-SPAN video that relate to the chosen topic.
- Winning StudentCam documentaries will thoroughly explore a variety of viewpoints related to the chosen topic, including those that may oppose the filmmakers points of view. We recommend that you interview experts on your chosen subject.
- Documentaries must be between 5-6 minutes in length. *End credits, if applicable, must begin after the 5-minute mark but are permitted to run longer than the allotted 6-minute time frame.
- Entries must include either end credits or a works cited list. Students can use whichever format they currently use to cite their sources.
This past March, C-SPAN announced the prize-winning documentaries in StudentCam 2024 - our 20th anniversary of the competition.
We received entries from over 3,200 students representing 42 states, Washington, D.C., the Mariana Islands, Canada, and India.
Students were asked to address the theme: “Looking Forward while Considering the Past."
After evaluating each entry through multiple rounds of judging, C-SPAN is pleased to share the 150 prize-winning documentaries of StudentCam 2024, as well as the winners of the "Fan Favorite" award and our "Behind the Scenes" photo competition.
C-SPAN StudentCam 2024 Prize Winners
Thank you once again to all who participated in our 2024 competition.
We hope those of you with remaining eligibility will consider participating in StudentCam 2025!
When you have completed your documentary and you are ready to submit it for judging, click here to complete the Entry Form for yourself, any teammates, and your teacher adviser (if applicable).
If you are under the age of 18, you will also be emailed a Release Form for your parent/guardian to review and provide their consent. The Release Form may be signed after the upload deadline on Monday, January 20.
Key dates, including the official competition launch date and submission deadline.
- September 4, 2024
The official launch of the StudentCam 2025 competition.
- Monday, January 20 2025
All documentaries eligible to win prizes in the competition must be submitted by the end of the day on Monday, January 20.
- March, 2025
C-SPAN will announce the 150 prize-winning documentaries in mid-March, 2025.
- April 1 - April 21, 2025
Each day C-SPAN will air one of the top 21 prize-winning documentaries on C-SPAN Television Networks.