How to Cite a Film

Films are cited by director (APA and Chicago) or by title (MLA and Harvard). Examples for APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, IEEE, Vancouver, AMA, ACS, Nature, ASA, APSA, OSCOLA, the Bluebook and AGLC4 are below, each produced by the generator itself.

Examples in every style

APA 7th edition

References entry

Nolan, C. (Director). (2010). Inception [Film]. Warner Bros. Pictures.

In-text citation

(Nolan, 2010, 1:12:05)

MLA 9th edition

Works Cited entry

Inception. Directed by Christopher Nolan, Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010.

In-text citation

(Inception, 1:12:05)

Chicago 18th edition (notes and bibliography)

Bibliography entry

Nolan, Christopher, dir. Inception. Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010.

Footnote

Inception, directed by Christopher Nolan (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010), at 1:12:05.

Later footnotes

Inception, at 1:12:05.

Chicago 18th edition (author-date)

References entry

Nolan, Christopher, dir. 2010. Inception. Warner Bros. Pictures.

In-text citation

(Nolan 2010, at 1:12:05)

Harvard (Cite Them Right)

Reference list entry

Inception (2010). Warner Bros. Pictures.

In-text citation

(Inception, 2010, 1:12:05)

IEEE

References entry

[1] C. Nolan, Inception, (2010).

In-text citation

[1, 1:12:05]

Vancouver (NLM)

References entry

1. Inception. Warner Bros. Pictures; 2010.

In-text citation

(1)

AMA 11th edition

References entry

1. Inception. Warner Bros. Pictures; 2010.

In-text citation

1(1:12:05)

ACS

References entry

(1) Inception; Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010.

In-text citation

1

Nature

References entry

1. Inception. (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010).

In-text citation

1

ASA 7th edition

References entry

Nolan, Christopher, dir. 2010. Inception. Warner Bros. Pictures.

In-text citation

(Nolan 2010:1:12:05)

APSA

Reference List entry

Inception. 2010. Warner Bros. Pictures.

In-text citation

(Inception 2010, 1:12:05)

MHRA 4th edition

Bibliography entry

Nolan, Christopher (dir.), Inception (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010)

Footnote

Inception, dir. by Christopher Nolan (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010), 1:12:05.

Later footnotes

Nolan, Inception, 1:12:05.

OSCOLA

Bibliography entry

Inception (Directed by Christopher Nolan, Warner Bros Pictures 2010)

Footnote

Inception (Directed by Christopher Nolan, Warner Bros Pictures 2010) 1:12:05.

Later footnotes

Inception (n 1) 1:12:05.

Bluebook

Bibliography entry

Inception, (2010).

Footnote

Inception, 1:12:05 (2010).

Later footnotes

Inception, supra note 1, at 1:12:05.

AGLC4

Bibliography entry

Inception (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010)

Footnote

Inception (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010) 1:12:05.

Later footnotes

Inception (n 1) 1:12:05.

Style: APA 7th edition · APA guide

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    Where to find the details

    • The production company is in the opening or closing credits.

    Required in most styles: director, release year, film title, production company.

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    a Film in a specific style

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    Citations are formatted by citeproc-js by Frank Bennett (CPAL-1.0, or AGPL-1.0), the engine behind Zotero and Mendeley, running the official Citation Style Language styles (10,863 styles, commit 2e93558) and locales (commit a89adec), used under CC BY-SA 3.0. AGLC4 citations use the LexIntellect AGLC4 engine, checked against the Guide's worked examples. Always check a citation against the manual or your institution's guide before you submit.

    What do I need to cite a film?

    At minimum: director, release year, film title, production company. The production company is in the opening or closing credits.

    How do I cite a specific moment?

    Give the timestamp where the quote or point begins, in hours, minutes and seconds (for example 1:04:15). APA and Harvard put it in the in-text citation; MLA and Chicago put it after the title or in the note. Enter it in the pinpoint box and the generator places it correctly.

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