When your academic essay requires the inclusion of films as references in the bibliography, follow the Chicago style movie citation guidelines below. Depending on the instructor’s guidelines, a writer can use the author-date style or notes-bibliography to create the movie citation. Discover how to make in-text and footnotes in the Chicago style movie citation.
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Chicago Style Movie Citation – In a Nutshell
Understanding the citation of a movie according to the Chicago Manual of Style can be challenging if you mix up the rules of in-text and footnote citations. This article deals with:
- Including the right information in a Chicago style movie citation
- In Chicago style movie citation, a writer must include the director, movie title, production company, publication location, year of release and format.
- Chicago style movie citation examples
Definition: Chicago style movie citation
The Chicago style movie citation follows the style used for essays and books. The only addition is the medium type.
A writer can cite a portion of a movie in a similar manner as a chapter of a book since DVDs usually have chapter numbers. When formatting a Chicago style movie citation in the bibliography style:
- The entry for a movie lists the director as the author with the label ‘director’ after the name.
- In notes, the citation starts with the movie title before the director’s name.
- Writers can also use timestamps to point the reader to a specific scene in the movie.
| Chicago bibliography |
| Director’s Last name, First name, director. Movie title. Place of publication: Production company, year of publication. |
| Full note |
| Movie title, directed by director's First name Last name (production company, date), Medium. |
| Short note |
| Shortened movie title, timestamp. |
Chicago style movie citations include the following elements:
Film director(s):
- When citing, start with the last name, followed by the first name.
- For two directors, the last name should begin for the first director, while the second director can be cited starting with the first name (for example, Elton, John, and John Elton).
- The names should also end with ‘dir’ or ‘dirs’ to indicate the role in the film.
Movie title:
Use the movie title as presented in the source.
Place of publication:
Provide the place of publication from the source.
Production company:
Provide the publisher’s full name.
Publication Year:
Give the year of publication from the source.
Chicago bibliography:
Cameron, James, dir. Titanic. United States: Paramount Pictures, 1997.
Full note:
Titanic, directed by James Cameron (Paramount Pictures, 1997) DVD.
Short note:
Titanic, 1:11:35 to 1:13:59
Chicago style movie citation: Physical format
If the movie is available in a physical format like Blu-ray and DVD, it is important to address the format in the bibliography or note entry in Chicago style movie citation.
Sometimes, the year of the original theatrical release is different from the physical release. Since the bibliography and notes must list both years, it is crucial to list the original theatrical release before the production company. When generating an entry in the bibliography using the Chicago style movie citation, follow the guide below:
| Chicago bibliography |
| Director’s Last name, First name, director. Movie title. Original release year; Production company or distributor, video release year. Movie length. Format. |
| Full note |
| Movie title, directed by director’s First name Last name (original release year; production company, year), timestamp, format. |
| Short note |
| Shortened movie title, timestamp. |
Chicago bibliography
Singer Bryan, director. The Usual Suspects. 1995; Gramercy Pictures, 1999. 2hr 30 min. DVD.
Full note
The Usual Suspects, directed by Bryan Singer (1995; Gramercy Pictures, 1999), 1:15:27, DVD.
Short note
The Usual Suspects, 1:15:27
Chicago style movie citation: Other contributors
Many people contribute to movie production, and it may be necessary to include information about other contributors.1
You can mention a movie actor and discuss their performance or analyze the writer’s themes. According to the Chicago style movie citation, the information is optional and only relevant contributors are cited.
| Chicago bibliography |
| Director Last name, First name, director. Movie title. Other contributors. Production company, year. |
| Full note |
| Movie title, directed by director first name last name, other contributor information (production company, year). |
| Short note |
| Shortened movie title, timestamp. |
Chicago bibliography
Dafoe William, director. Parasite. Featuring Bong Joon-ho and Kelly Clarkson, Cinematography by Robert Eggers. Lighthouse Production, 2018.
Full note
Parasite, directed by William Dafoe, featuring Bong Joon-ho and Kelly Clarkson, cinematography by Robert Eggers (Lighthouse Production, 2018).
Short note
Parasite, 0:23:28.
Chicago style movie citation: Author
In the Chicago Manual of Style, source citation can be done in the notes and bibliography style above or the author-date style (preferred for social sciences). In author-date style, the in-text citations are in parentheses, which consist of the director, year of release and timestamp. In the reference entry, the Chicago style citation follows the same format as the bibliography.2
Chicago Author-Date Style: Online
| Chicago author-date format |
| Director’s Last name, First name, director. Release year. Title of movie. Production company. Movie length. URL. |
| Chicago reference entry |
| Rees, Davis, director. 2017. Mudbound. Elevated Movies. 2hr., 15 min. https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/80175694. |
| Chicago author-date citation |
| (Rees 2017, 1:27:15) |
Chicago author-date style: Physical format
| Chicago author-date format |
| Director Last name, First name, director. Year of release. Movie title. Distributor or production company, year. Movie length. Format. |
| Chicago reference entry |
| Rees, Davis, director. 2017. Mudbound. Elevated Movies, 2018. 2hr., 15 min. Blu-ray Disc, 1080p HD. |
| Chicago author-date citation |
| (Rees 2017, 0:23:15 to 0:32: 32) |
Chicago Author-Date Style: Additional Contributors
| Chicago author-date format |
| Director Last name, First name, director. Year. Movie title. Other contributors. Production company. Movie length. URL. |
| Chicago reference entry |
| Rees, Davis, director. 2017. Mudbound. Featuring Carey Mulligan and Jason Clarke. Elevated Movies. 2hr. 15 min. https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/80175694. |
| Chicago author-date citation |
| (Rees 2017, 0: 58:14) |
Chicago reference entry
Rees, Davis, director. 2017. Mudbound. Featuring Carey Mulligan and Jason Clarke. Elevated Movies. 2hr. 15 min. https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/80175694.
Chicago author-date citation
(Rees 2017, 0: 58:14)
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FAQs
Citing a movie scene in Chicago style movie citation requires the inclusion of a timestamp on the in-text citation for bibliography and author-date style. Hence, the timestamp should show the start of the scene and the end.
When citing a Netflix show, including the author’s last name and timestamp is required in Chicago style movie citation using the author-date style. In bibliography style, you include a superscript number in the paragraph and note at the foot of the page.
In Chicago style movie citation, the title of the movie is italicized in both the notes-bibliography and author-date.
Sources
1 Columbia College. “Chicago Citation Guide (17th Edition): Videos & DVDs.” January 6, 2023. https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/chicago/videos.
2 Mathewson, Adrienne. “Chicago Citation for Movie Examples.” Bibliography.com. Accessed January 12, 2023. https://www.bibliography.com/chicago/chicago-citation-for-movie-examples/.