how to write a film title in an essay

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How do you write a movie title in an essay complete guide.

Updated: Aug 06, 2024

Ever stared blankly at your screen, wondering how to correctly format a movie title in your essay? It's a small detail, but getting it wrong can distract from your hard work and lower your grade. In academic writing, movie titles should be italicized to distinguish them from other text. This guide will walk you through the importance of formatting, various style guidelines like MLA and APA, and additional tips to enhance your essay writing.

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Understanding the importance of correctly formatting movie titles.

Correctly formatting movie titles in academic essays is not just a minor detail; it is crucial for maintaining the professionalism and readability of your work. When you format movie titles properly, you adhere to academic standards and show respect for the works you are discussing. This practice helps in distinguishing the titles from regular text, making your essay easier to read and more formally structured.

Furthermore, proper formatting of movie titles can significantly impact the perceived quality of your essay. It demonstrates your attention to detail and your commitment to academic integrity. Whether you are writing for a class assignment or a college application, correctly formatted titles can contribute to making a positive impression on your readers.

Examples of Correctly Formatted Movie Titles

To illustrate the correct formatting of movie titles in essays, consider the following examples. In most academic styles, such as MLA and APA, movie titles should be italicized. For instance, when writing about the film Inception or The Godfather , the titles should appear in italics to differentiate them from the rest of the text.

It is important to remember that while the main title is italicized, certain elements such as articles or prepositions are not capitalized unless they are the first word of the title. For example, the movie title The Lord of the Rings should have only the first letter of each significant word capitalized and the entire title italicized. This standard ensures clarity and uniformity across your writing.

The Significance of Including the Release Year in Movie Titles

Including the release year in movie titles within essays is significant for several reasons. Firstly, it helps to clearly identify and distinguish between movies that have the same or similar titles but were released in different years. For example, The Great Gatsby (2013) and The Great Gatsby (1974) are differentiated by their release years. Additionally, the release year provides contextual information, helping readers understand the historical and cultural background of the film, which can be crucial for analyses or discussions within your essay.

To Italicize or Not: Formatting Movie Titles in Essays

When writing essays, the question often arises: should movie titles be italicized? The answer generally leans towards yes, especially in academic settings where such formatting helps distinguish titles from other text, enhancing readability and maintaining a formal tone. Italicization of movie titles is a common practice across various academic styles, including MLA, APA, and Chicago, each of which reinforces the importance of distinguishing works of art within scholarly writing.

However, the decision to italicize can sometimes depend on the medium of the essay. For instance, handwritten assignments might require underlining due to the absence of italics. It's crucial to consult the specific style guide relevant to your academic or publication context to ensure you adhere to the correct formatting rules. Always check the latest edition of the style guide you are using, as guidelines can evolve over time.

Is Underlining Movie Titles Still Appropriate?

While underlining movie titles was common practice before the advent of word processors, this method has largely fallen out of favor in the digital age. Today, underlining is primarily reserved for handwritten work where italics are not an option. In typed documents, however, italics are the preferred formatting choice for movie titles, as they provide a cleaner and more modern appearance. Underlining may still be used , but it’s increasingly rare in academic and professional settings.

Should Movie Titles Be Enclosed in Quotation Marks?

Enclosing movie titles in quotation marks is another method of formatting, but it is not typically used for the titles of entire films. Instead, quotation marks are more commonly applied to shorter works like articles, book chapters, or essays. For movie titles, most style guides recommend using italics to denote the title clearly and professionally within the text. Quotation marks could be considered if referencing a movie within a movie or a particularly emphasized segment.

Capitalization Rules for Movie Titles in Essays

Capitalizing movie titles correctly is crucial for proper formatting in essays. The general rule is to capitalize major words in the title, including the first and last words, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Prepositions, articles, and conjunctions should be in lowercase unless they start or end the title. For example, in the movie title The Lord of the Rings , only 'The', 'Lord', 'Rings' are capitalized. Attention to capitalization ensures clarity and professionalism in your writing.

Writing Movie Titles in Essays: MLA Style Guidelines

When adhering to the Modern Language Association (MLA) style guidelines, writing movie titles in essays requires specific formatting to ensure clarity and consistency. In MLA format, the titles of movies should be italicized to highlight their status as standalone works. This italicization differentiates the movie title from other text within your essay, making it clear that you are referring to a film. For instance, when mentioning the movie Forrest Gump , the title should appear in italics. This practice is consistent across all forms of media mentioned in your academic writing when using MLA style.

Additionally, while formatting movie titles in MLA style, remember to capitalize the principal words in the title, including the first and last words. However, do not capitalize small articles, prepositions, or conjunctions unless they are the first word of the title. For example, in the movie title The Silence of the Lambs , only 'The', 'Silence', 'Lambs' are capitalized. This rule helps maintain a formal and professional appearance in academic writing. It's important to consistently apply these guidelines throughout your essay to ensure that your work adheres to MLA standards.

APA Style Guidelines for Movie Titles in Essays

When formatting movie titles in essays according to the American Psychological Association (APA) style, the titles should be italicized to emphasize their formality and separation from other text. This is similar to the MLA formatting but it's crucial to note that APA style also requires specific capitalization rules. For instance, while the main title is italicized, articles, prepositions, and conjunctions are not capitalized unless they are the first word. This approach not only helps in distinguishing the movie titles clearly but also aligns with the broader APA guidelines on the presentation of titles in academic writing.

Moreover, when referencing a movie in the body of your essay in APA style, you should include the director's last name and the year of the film's release in parentheses after the title, for example, Inception (Nolan, 2010). This citation style helps in quickly providing the reader with contextual information without disrupting the flow of the essay. Always ensure that these elements are correctly italicized and punctuated to maintain the accuracy and professionalism of your academic work. Consistency in applying these rules across your essay will enhance its readability and credibility.

Simplify Your Essay Writing with Samwell.ai's Advanced Features

Using Samwell.ai can significantly simplify the process of writing essays , especially when it comes to correctly formatting movie titles. This AI-powered tool ensures that all titles are automatically formatted according to the required academic style, whether it's MLA, APA, or Chicago. This feature not only saves time but also helps you avoid common mistakes that could detract from the quality of your essay. With Samwell.ai , you can focus more on the content of your writing rather than worrying about the technicalities of formatting.

Furthermore, Samwell.ai offers a range of features designed to enhance academic integrity and success in essay writing:

Advanced plagiarism checks ensure that your work is original and free of plagiarism.
Access to a vast database of authentic sources aids in accurate citation and comprehensive research.
The ability to integrate multimedia elements , like relevant YouTube videos, enriches the understanding and presentation of your essay topics. These tools collectively ensure that your essays are not only well-formatted but also rich in content and compliant with academic standards.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you put a movie title in an essay.

In academic essays, movie titles should be italicized to distinguish them from other text. This formatting applies across various academic styles including MLA, APA, and Chicago. For example, the movie title Inception should be written in italics.

How do you write the title of a movie in a sentence?

When writing the title of a movie in a sentence, it should be italicized to highlight its status as a standalone work. Additionally, major words in the title should be capitalized, except for small articles, prepositions, or conjunctions unless they are the first word. For instance, in the title The Silence of the Lambs , 'The', 'Silence', and 'Lambs' are capitalized.

How do I list a movie in an essay?

To list a movie in an essay, you should italicize the movie title and include the release year to provide contextual information. For instance, The Great Gatsby (2013) . This helps in distinguishing movies with similar titles and enhances the clarity of your essay. Always adhere to the specific formatting guidelines of the academic style you are using.

Are movie titles written in quotes?

Movie titles are not typically enclosed in quotation marks in academic essays. Instead, they should be italicized to denote the title clearly and professionally within the text. Quotation marks are more commonly applied to shorter works like articles, book chapters, or essays, but not for entire films.

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How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay or Article

When you're writing a paper or article in school or at work, you may be in a situation where you need to write a movie title in your writing. But how should you format them? Should you use italics? Or quotation marks? Or maybe both? Or neither…

The first thing to note is that the rules will be different depending on whether you’re writing an article or an essay. In this guide, we'll explain how to write one in an essay or article so that your writing looks professional and polished. Refer to the relevant section, depending on the piece you are creating.

The main things to know are:

If you are writing a movie title in an article, the format you use is up to you (or the company you work for). Pick a format and stick to it.
If you are writing a movie title in an essay, then you should follow your university's or employer's referencing style guidelines.

Read on for suggestions of different formats for articles, and more in-depth guidance around different university referencing styles.

How to Write a Movie Title in an Article

Let's begin by exploring why you need a specific format, and examining some key principles and rules around writing a movie title in an article.

Why You Need a Specific Format

So picture this. You’re writing an article and want to refer to a particular movie - perhaps to illustrate a point, or maybe you’re critiquing it. But you’re unsure how to format it. You don’t want to be marked down for formatting it incorrectly, so you consider leaving it out to avoid the trouble. Not on our watch!

But hold on a sec! Why should you even worry about this? Why do movie titles need to be formatted correctly anyway? Well, it’s simple really. If you don’t differentiate the title from the rest of the text, your readers might not understand you’re referring to a movie title. Imagine, for instance, that you wrote:

I finally got around to watching three billboards outside ebbing missouri.

Can we agree this sentence doesn’t make any sense? With this punctuation (i.e. none) your reader may well believe that you headed out into the night and found a couple of billboards to look at for some time.

So do you see why it’s important to have some kind of format for writing movie titles?

Key Principles and Rules

Now here’s the tricky bit: with articles, there’s no hard and fast rule on how to format a movie title in your writing. There are many different options and any of them would be acceptable to use in an article you’re going to publish online or physically.

So what to do?

Our first advice is to check in with your editor/head of copywriting / your point of reference at the company you work at. They will most likely have a specific format they like to use and will be able to share that with you.

That’s if you are writing for a company.

If you’re self-publishing, say, for example, on your website or Medium.com, then you’re the boss, friend. The conventions you use are completely up to you.

But here are a few key principles and rules:

Common conventions are to use italics or quotations marks
Choose one format and stick with it - not only throughout the article but in everything you write
Keep an eye out for the correct spelling of the movie. For example, don’t forget the comma in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
Title case is a great way to further demarcate the movie title from the rest of the text to make it abundantly clear that it’s a movie title.

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay

Now let's turn our attention towards writing a movie title in an essay.

New scenario. You’re writing an essay for your college or university course. Perhaps you’re using the movie as an example, or maybe you’re critiquing it.

But you don’t want to be marked down for getting it wrong, so you consider avoiding mentioning it altogether. But that would be a shame! Let us help you.

Here are some general rules to get you started:

Follow the rules of your school’s academic writing style (APA, MLA, AP, or Chicago.)
Use title case
Use italics or quotation marks (depending on the writing style)

Academic Referencing Styles

There are different academic referencing/writing styles in the English language, and these vary depending on the education establishment. Different styles have different rules that govern the way that you might write, punctuate and cite within your essay.

The four most common styles are Associated Press (AP), Chicago, American Psychological Association (APA), and Modern Language Association (MLA).

Of course, there are many more than just four in existence, but these are the prevalent ones.

But why are there so many different writing styles, we hear you ask? Quite simply, this is to cater to different fields. For instance, the scientific sector places a lot of importance on using recent research, hence the APA style places the date before anything. Humanities tend to use the MLA style which places the author's name first.

Write a Movie Title in APA, MLA, and Chicago styles

Luckily, the APA, MLA, and Chicago styles all use the same format for movie titles, so it’ll be easy to remember.

These styles all require that you place the movie title in italics. Here are some examples:

Saving Private Ryan
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Do not use any quotation marks! This is not necessary and will be considered incorrect.

You’ll also notice that the title is written in the title case. This means you capitalize certain words in the title. More on that in the next section.

Write a Movie Title in AP style

The AP style is the exception here since it does not use italics to format movie titles. Instead, you’re required to use quotation marks. Let’s use the same examples as above, to make the difference clear:

“Kill Bill”
“Saving Private Ryan”
“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”

Again, here, remember to use title case.

Write a Movie Title in Title Case

Using title case means that you capitalize certain words in the title. But depending on the writing style you’re using, there are different rules on which words need capitalizing and which ones don't. Mostly, they disagree on whether or not to capitalize minor words.

Read on to find out the rules for each style, to ensure you’re writing it correctly.

Note that if you’re writing an article, this will again depend on the rules that the company you work for is using, or if you’re writing for your own business, then you can make your own rules. Remember to pick a structure and stick to it. Consistency is key!

Capitalize the major words.
Lowercase the articles the, a, and an.
Capitalize the ‘to’ in an infinitive (e.g., I Want To Eat Cake)
Capitalize the first and last words (overrides other rules)
Capitalize all words of four letters or more (overrides other rules)
Lowercase the second word after a hyphenated prefix

Chicago Style

Lowercase articles, prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions
Lowercase the second part of Latin species names.
Lowercase articles, prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions.
Do NOT capitalize ‘to’ in infinitives (e.g., I Want to Eat Cake).

As you can see, all four styles share some common rules but are different in certain small details.

Incorrect ways to write a movie title

Here are some examples of incorrect ways to write a movie title:

Saving private ryan
Eternal SUNSHINE of a Spotless Mind
“Shawshank Redemption”
One Flew Over the cuckoo’s Nest

Can you figure out what is wrong with each of these examples? We’ll give you a clue! It has to do with incorrect usage of title cases, block capitals and quotation marks.

A note on reference lists

We just wanted to include a little note here to remind you that when citing a movie in your essay, you should include it in your reference list, or bibliography, depending on the academic writing style you are using.

Again, the structure of your reference list will vary depending on whether you’re writing in APA, AP, MLA or Chicago, and you can find guidance on this in an official manual for the style (or online).

Other Points of Interest

There are some other things you might be interested in knowing that are related to the topic of how to write a movie title in an essay or article, so we’re detailing those below.

How to write a quote from a movie

So you’ve successfully referenced a movie using the rules outlined above. Now you’d like to quote a line from the movie. Which conventions should you use for this?

For this, you would use quotation marks. For instance, if you want to quote this famous line from the movie Star Wars , you would write: “May the force be with you.”

Remember that if you’re writing an essay, you might need to also include the reference in your in-text citation. Let us show you a full example of what this would look like:

History was made when General Dodonna said “May the force be with you.” in the iconic movie Star Wars (Lucas, 1977).

How to write the name of an episode of a TV show

If you wanted to cite a TV series, you would follow the same rules as those for citing a movie - as outlined above. But what if you also wanted to include the name of the episode you’re referring to?

Similarly to inserting a direct quote from a movie, in this case, we recommend using quotation marks. For example:

Friends , “The One Where Everybody Finds Out.”

If writing an essay, please refer to your academic writing style’s guide to learn about conventions around formatting and using title case.

Where does the word ‘movie’ come from?

Dating back as far as the early 1900s, the word ‘movie’ stems from the term ‘moving picture’.

Before they could be projected onto a screen for wider viewing, the first movies could only be seen by one person at a time, using an Electrotachyscope, Kinetoscope, or Mutoscope.

And there we have it! We hope that this article has helped you better understand the conventions around writing a movie title in your essay or article, so you can feel confident about handing in your essay or turning in your article to your line manager.

To summarize, when you’re writing an article, the rules are pretty much up to you if writing for your own business, or your manager if writing for another company. Check-in with them to find out which conventions are already in place.

If writing an essay, then you should always use the structure set out in the academic writing style’s manual. Find out first of all which style you are expected to use.

Now that that's done, it's time to get writing!

Learn More:

'Dos and Don'ts': How to Write Them With Proper Grammar
How to Write a List Correctly: Colons, Commas, and Semicolons
‘Right’ vs ‘Write’ vs ‘Rite’ vs ‘Wright’: What’s the Difference?
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How to Format Movie Titles in Academic Writings

by Lesley V.
October 26, 2023

How to write a movie title in an essay?

Students, especially those in Arts, often refer to films or movie series in their papers. The formatting rules here are easy to remember. But:

They vary a bit, depending on the citation style you use.

In this post, I’ve gathered the guidelines for citing movie titles in five primary formats. Examples included, for you to compare and remember everything better.

How to Write Movie Titles in Essays

Are movie titles italicized?

It’s the most frequent question students ask when looking for this information online. Indeed, most citation formats prescribe italicizing. Other general rules include:

Uppercase for subtitles
Extra short movie names (like “It” ) may also go in quotations
When using quotation marks (AP style), put punctuation inside them

Below are the details on how to format movie titles in essays and reference lists correctly.

Writing Film Titles in Different Citation Styles

For APA style (1):

Uppercase all four-letter words and above
Uppercase the first and the last word of a movie title, even if they are short articles (a, the) or pronouns (in, at, etc.)
Italicize the entire name

For MLA format (2):

Uppercase movie titles and subtitles
Use capital letters for both parts of hyphenated words
No uppercase for articles (a, the) and short conjunctions within the movie name
Italicize the entire movie title

For Chicago style:

Uppercase all main words
Lowercase short conjunctions (below four letters) within the movie title
Uppercase prepositions, regardless of their length

For AP citation style:

Lowercase articles (a, the) and prepositions/conjunctions that are shorter than four letters
Uppercase articles and prepositions/conjunctions in the beginning/end of the title
No italics; put movie names in quotation marks

For Harvard style:

Uppercase all primary words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.)
Lowercase articles and prepositions/conjunctions (below four letters) within the movie title

How to Capitalize Movies in Papers

When writing a film name in a sentence, capitalize every word except for:

Articles (a, an, the) within the movie title
Short (below four letters) prepositions and conjunctions within the title

If a movie name begins with the above, use uppercase. Also, write long prepositions/conjunctions (moreover, although, etc.) with a capital letter. For example:

Italics vs. Quotations vs. Underlines

Most citation styles, except AP, prescribe italicization for movies and film series titles. When writing in AP, use quotation marks.

Quotes are also possible to use if you mention super short movie names like “It” or “M.” You italicize them in APA, MLA, or Chicago.

Underlines are for handwritten essays. When written by hand, you can’t italicize, huh? Use underlining instead to highlight a movie title somehow.

How to Format Punctuation in Movie Titles

If punctuation is a part of a film name, place it inside quotation marks or italicize it.

For example:

Writing Movie Titles in Reference Lists

Do you italicize movie titles.

Here they go, the rules on formatting movie titles in essays. Now that you know how to write a movie title in an essay properly, the only detail remains:

Check the formatting guidelines before writing. What citation style does an educator or editor ask you to follow? If none assigned, choose one and stick to it for consistency.

References:

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/index.html
https://lib.westfield.ma.edu/c.php?g=354010&p=2388441

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay: Examples and Tips

August 23, 2024
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Table of Contents Hide

Rules on how to write movie titles, do i capitalize movie titles in an essay, how to write movie titles in an essay with mla writing style, how to write movie titles in an essay in apa style, write about the correct movie, check the words of the title, be careful with words like “a” and “the”, use capital letters in the movie’s title, use italics in movie titles, write the movie’s release year, are movie titles italicized, watch it fully a couple of times, share your personal thoughts about the movie, consider it carefully, finish with some lessons learned, we also recommend.

My university professor once gave me an essay to write about a movie. I started with so much enthusiasm until I realized I was making no progress. This brought about many questions from my end. I didn’t even know how to write the movie title in the essay. All I knew was the movie plot.

Google became my friend for the assignment. It was a long shot, but I eventually finished.

Writing essays is hard on its own, now imagine writing an essay on a movie. How you write it will determine if you’ll get an A+ or a D-. We have outlined all you need in this article.

Are movie titles italicized? Do you underline movie titles? Are movie titles placed in quotes? Are film titles italicized? These questions have been answered in this article.

Discuss the movie background first
Share your personal experience
Study the main ideas and topics, and discuss how they were portrayed in the movie
Describe what lessons it can teach
Basic grammar rules
Use the required formatting style
Write in the active voice
Structure or organize your work
Ensure smooth transitions between ideas
Make sure to use proper punctuation for titles and headings.

See also: How To Write A Song Title in an Essay: 7 Rules to Remember

A movie title must start with a capital letter

Capitalize all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and verbs.

Articles (the, a, or an), conjunctions, and prepositions must not be capitalized except; If they are long, use phrases such as still, furthermore, and additionally, or if they are the first word in the title

Proper nouns should always be capitalized.

So, now, let’s move to how to write movie titles in an essay written in different styles.

So, how do you write movie titles in an essay in MLA style? All movie names must adhere to the MLA standard for titles in papers. Essentially, there are only two main rules; Capitalize all first letters of significant words, avoiding non-essential phrases like conjunctions, articles, and prepositions (save those used at sentence openings). Secondly, Italicize every title in your essay’s body.

What exactly is MLA format? This style was created by the Modern Language Association and consists mostly of formatting and citation standards for academic writing.

The Great Gatsby

The Lord of the Rings

See also: How to Write in Third Person Point of View: 12 Tips for Writing in Third-Person Point of View

Capitalize the first letter of each essential word, excluding articles, prepositions, and other characters.

Place the entire title in italics.

APA also requires you to capitalize words that include 4 letters or more (even if it’s a preposition, etc.).

Another common format for writing a movie title essay is the APA format. It was designed by the American Psychological Association and is mostly used in academic writing and research in a variety of social science subjects, including sociology, psychology, and anthropology.

Keep in mind that to write all movie titles in an essay, you must use the same title case capitalization as MLA, APA, and Chicago styles. Furthermore, italics are required for all three styles. The formatting for MLA and APA is the same.

Gone With the Wind

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay with Tips

The titles of some movies are strikingly similar. Some have identical titles. You don’t want to confuse Broken Arrow, a Jimmy Stewart western, with Broken Arrow, a John Travolta thriller, for example, As a result, before using a title in your writing, ensure that you have the correct movie.

Many movies have multiple titles, typically because their original titles were changed to better suit viewers in different countries.

When bringing up a movie, make sure you know the proper wording for the scenario and how your audience wants you to discuss it.

See also: How to Write a Review on Airbnb as a Guest | Step-by-Step Guide, Examples, & Samples

Many movie titles begin with an article that most people do not say, or do not have one at all.

It can be confusing, but before you input the title, double-check that the “a” or “the” at the beginning is truly part of it.

When writing a movie title, you will capitalize. That is, capitalize the title’s first and last words, as well as any proper nouns or key keywords.

In formal academic writing, you will use standard capitalization except in rare cases where another scheme is important for understanding. That means that if a movie uses ALL CAPS, you will not use all caps unless they are an essential part of the title.

Most major writing styles italicized movie titles. This makes the title different from other words in the essay. There are some exceptions to the rule about italicizing movie titles.

Later in the article, we will explain more about italicization.

When citing a film for the first time, it is often best to include the year of release in parenthesis next to the title.

See also: How to Write a Love Song | Step-by-Step Guide, Examples, & Free Templates

The APA, MLA, and Chicago Style guides require that movie names be italicized while following the case capitalization format. Television and radio show titles should be italicized, just like movie titles.

Not all movies use italicized titles. Short film titles are frequently displayed in quotation marks rather than italics. This usually applies to segments of longer films as well as short subject films that are less than 30 minutes long.

This guideline is not rigid, therefore you should consult the style guide for your preferred writing style to see whether you need to use a different punctuation mark.

News writing is another exception. When using the APA style, movie names are written in quotation marks, with italicization reserved for highly special circumstances.

Tips on How to write about a movie in an essay

Write about the background.

Tell us what you took away from the movie, how it affected you, and how you felt. Do not repeat the background and plot, instead, reflect on the people and things that most impacted you.

Evaluate the plot and themes, as well as how the filmmakers used special effects and music to leave a lasting impression, and the acting skills of the main characters, among other things.

Describe for the readers what the movie has taught you and other young people.

For instance, this movie teaches us significant life lessons such as the fact that parents are usually quite insightful, that appearances can be deceiving, that we are capable of dealing with any situation, and many more.

See also: How to Write a Grievance Letter | Step-by-Step Guide, Examples, & Free

This article has tried to be extensive in its descriptions We hope that it has answered all he questions you have as regards how to write a movie or film title in an essay.

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When Writing the Title of a Movie in an Essay: Correct Format

My name is Debbie, and I am passionate about developing a love for the written word and planting a seed that will grow into a powerful voice that can inspire many.

When Writing the Title of a Movie in an Essay: Correct Format

Understanding the Importance of Properly Formatting Movie Titles in Essays

An overview of the correct format for writing movie titles in essays, key guidelines for writing movie titles in essays, tips for capitalizing and punctuating movie titles in essays, common mistakes to avoid when writing movie titles in essays, why consistency is crucial when referring to movie titles in essays, using italics or quotation marks: deciding on the suitable format for movie titles in essays, frequently asked questions, in conclusion.

In the world of essay writing, it’s essential to understand the importance of properly formatting movie titles . This seemingly minute detail can have a significant impact on the overall clarity and professionalism of your work. By adhering to the correct formatting guidelines, you not only demonstrate your attention to detail but also showcase your understanding of academic conventions.

One important rule to remember is that movie titles should be italicized when mentioned within the body of your essay. This helps to distinguish the title from other surrounding text, making it easier for your readers to identify and comprehend your references. Additionally, italics can also enhance the visual appeal of your essay, giving it a polished and sophisticated look. It’s worth noting that this rule applies when referencing movies as standalone works; for instance, when discussing the themes or impact of a particular film.

Furthermore, when including a movie title in your essay’s title or heading, it’s crucial to capitalize and italicize it to maintain consistency across your work. This helps to clearly convey the significance and prominence of the movie within the context of your essay. By following these formatting guidelines, you not only showcase your attention to detail but also contribute to the overall professionalism and coherence of your essay. Remember, precision in formatting is just as important as the content itself!

An Overview of the Correct Format for Writing Movie Titles in Essays

In the vast world of essay writing, it is crucial to follow proper formatting guidelines, even when it comes to movie titles. Including movie titles in your essays adds a touch of professionalism and clarity to your work. However, many students often find themselves at a loss when it comes to formatting these titles. Fear not! In this section, we will provide you with . So, grab your popcorn, and let’s dive in!

When including movie titles in your essays, it is important to adhere to the following formatting rules:

1. Italicize the title: To highlight the movie title, place it in italics. This conveys to the reader that you are referring to a specific film.

2. Capitalize important words: When writing a movie title, capitalize all the principal words, including the first and last word of the title, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives. For instance, in the title “The Shawshank Redemption,” capitalize “The,” “Shawshank,” and “Redemption.”

3. Maintain punctuation consistency: If the movie title already contains punctuation, such as exclamation marks or question marks, retain them in your essay. However, do not include additional punctuation marks solely for formatting purposes.

Key Guidelines for Writing Movie Titles in Essays

When it comes to writing movie titles in essays, it’s important to follow a set of key guidelines to ensure clarity and accuracy. Whether you’re discussing a classic film or analyzing the latest blockbuster, here are some essential tips to consider when incorporating movie titles into your writing.

1. Capitalization is crucial: Movie titles should always be capitalized properly. This means that all major words, such as nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, should be capitalized. Minor words, such as articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or), and prepositions (in, on, at), should be in lowercase, unless they are the first or last word in the title. For example, “The Shawshank Redemption” or “Gone with the Wind.”

2. Use italics or underlining: Movie titles should be formatted in italics or underlined for clarity and to distinguish them from the rest of the text. This helps to indicate that the title is the name of a film and not just a regular word or phrase. By using these formatting options, you can make the title stand out and show that it is a specific work. For instance, “The Lord of the Rings” or “Gone Girl.”

Remember, accurate formatting of movie titles in essays helps to enhance the overall professionalism and readability of your writing. By following these guidelines, you can ensure that your movie titles are presented correctly and effectively within your essay, capturing the attention of your readers and properly honoring the cinematic masterpieces you’re discussing.

When it comes to writing essays about movies, it’s essential to know how to capitalize and punctuate movie titles correctly . Follow these tips to ensure your essay looks professional and polished:

– Capitalize the first and last word of the title, regardless of their parts of speech. For example, in the movie title “Gone with the Wind,” both “Gone” and “Wind” should be capitalized. – Capitalize all principal words, such as nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. However, articles (a, an, the), conjunctions, and prepositions of four letters or fewer should remain lowercase. For example, in the movie title “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,” “Lord,” “Rings,” “Fellowship,” and “Ring” should all be capitalized.

Now, let’s move on to the rules for punctuating movie titles in your essays:

– Use italics or underline to format movie titles, as this will differentiate them from the rest of your essay. Avoid using quotation marks, as those are typically reserved for shorter works like articles or short stories. For example, write “The Shawshank Redemption” or The Shawshank Redemption, not “The Shawshank Redemption.” – When mentioning a movie title within the body of your essay, make sure to capitalize and punctuate it correctly. For instance, instead of writing “I saw the movie saving Private Ryan,” write “I saw the movie Saving Private Ryan.” Remember to always use proper capitalization and punctuation to maintain the accuracy of your essay.

By adhering to these guidelines, you’ll exhibit a clear understanding of capitalizing and punctuating movie titles, ensuring that your essays stand out as examples of professionalism and attention to detail. Remember, proper formatting helps to convey your ideas effectively, so take the time to get it right.

When it comes to writing essays about movies, it’s crucial to pay attention to every detail, including the movie titles. However, many students often make common mistakes in this aspect that can negatively impact their writing. To ensure that your essay stands out and presents a professional tone, here are some common mistakes you should avoid when writing movie titles:

Mistake 1: Using quotation marks for movie titles

One common error students make is to enclose movie titles in quotation marks. However, according to formatting guidelines, italicizing movie titles is the correct way to go. Quotation marks are only used for shorter works, such as an episode in a TV series or a short film.

Mistake 2: Omitting capitalization rules

Another mistake to avoid is forgetting the capitalization rules when writing movie titles. Just like any other title, movie titles should be capitalized properly. The first word, last word, and all major words within the title should be capitalized. However, minor words such as “a,” “an,” “the,” or conjunctions like “and,” “but,” “or” should be in lowercase, unless they are the first or last word of the title.

In academic writing, it is essential to maintain consistency when referencing movie titles to ensure clarity and coherence. Consistency not only enhances the overall professional appearance of an essay, but it also helps readers understand the references being made. By maintaining a consistent approach to movie titles, writers can avoid confusion and maintain the integrity of their work. Here are two reasons why consistency is crucial when referring to movie titles:

Improves readability: Consistency in the formatting of movie titles improves readability for the reader. When all movie titles are presented in a uniform manner, it becomes easier for the audience to distinguish between titles and other elements within the text. It allows the reader to quickly identify the names of films and understand their significance in the context of the essay.
Ensures clarity and comprehension: By consistently referring to movie titles in a specific format or style, the writer ensures clarity and comprehension. When titles are presented in a different manner throughout the essay, it can lead to confusion and make it difficult for the reader to follow the arguments or examples being presented. Consistency eliminates the potential for ambiguity, allowing the reader to focus on the content rather than deciphering different formatting styles.

Therefore, it is essential for writers to establish a consistent approach when referring to movie titles in essays. Whether italicizing, using quotation marks, or following a specific style guide, adherence to a chosen format enhances the overall quality of the writing and contributes to a more professional and coherent piece of academic work.

When it comes to including movie titles in essays, one common dilemma is deciding whether to use italics or quotation marks. Both formats have their own unique purposes, allowing writers to express their intentions effectively. Here’s a breakdown of when to utilize italics or quotation marks for movie titles:

Using italics: 1. Emphasizing the title: Italics are used to highlight the title of a movie and draw attention to it. This format allows readers to easily identify the movie title within the essay. 2. Standalone references: When referring to a movie title without mentioning the work it belongs to, such as in a thesis statement or discussing cinematic aspects, italics are the preferred choice for clarity. 3. Formal writing: In academic essays or professional papers, italics lend a more polished and standard look. It showcases your command of proper formatting and adds a professional touch to your writing.

Using quotation marks: 1. Citing within the text: Quotation marks are commonly used when directly quoting a movie title within your essay. This helps to differentiate the movie title as a separate entity. 2. Informal writing: If you’re writing a personal essay or something with a more casual tone, quotation marks can be used to indicate the title and add a conversational touch to your writing. 3. Titling articles or entries: When mentioning a movie title as the title of an article, blog post, or entry in your essay, quotation marks are appropriate to distinguish it from the surrounding text.

Remember, consistency is key when deciding on the suitable format for movie titles in your essay. Whichever format you choose, whether italics or quotation marks, make sure you apply it consistently throughout your work to avoid any confusion. By properly formatting movie titles, you enhance the coherence and professionalism of your essay while showcasing your attention to detail.

Q: What is the correct format for writing the title of a movie in an essay? A: When it comes to writing the title of a movie in an essay, you should follow specific guidelines to ensure consistency and accuracy throughout your work. The correct format depends on whether you are using MLA (Modern Language Association) or APA (American Psychological Association) style.

Q: How should I format the title of a movie according to MLA style? A: According to MLA style, you should italicize the title of a movie in your essay. For example, if you are referring to the movie “The Shawshank Redemption,” it should be written as “The Shawshank Redemption.”

Q: Are there any exceptions to italicizing movie titles in MLA style? A: Yes, there are a few exceptions to the rule of italicizing movie titles in MLA style. If you are writing an essay by hand or using a typewriter where italics are not possible, you can underline the movie title instead. In both cases, however, it is important to maintain consistency throughout your essay.

Q: How should I format the title of a movie according to APA style? A: According to APA style, you should use sentence case when referring to the title of a movie in your essay. This means that you should capitalize the first word of the title and any proper nouns, but the rest of the title should be in lowercase. For example, if you are writing about the movie “The Godfather,” it should be written as “The godfather.”

Q: Do I need to include the release year of the movie in the title? A: No, it is generally not necessary to include the release year of the movie in the title when writing it in an essay. However, if you are discussing multiple works by the same director or mentioning a specific version or adaptation, it may be useful to include the year in parentheses after the title for clarity.

Q: How do I cite a movie in my essay’s references page? A: To properly cite a movie in your essay’s references page, you should provide the following information: director(s), producer(s), date of release, title of the movie (italicized or in sentence case according to the style guide you are using), production company, and the medium (e.g., DVD, streaming, etc.). Make sure to follow the specific citation guidelines of the style you are using (MLA or APA).

Q: Are there any additional rules or considerations when writing the title of a foreign-language movie ? A: When referring to a foreign-language movie in your essay, follow the same formatting rules as mentioned earlier according to the chosen style guide (MLA or APA). However, if the movie is commonly known by an English title, it is generally better to use that English title instead of the original foreign-language title to avoid confusion among readers.

Remember, following the correct format for writing the title of a movie in an essay not only helps maintain consistency and accuracy but also enhances the overall professionalism of your work.

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How to Write Common App Essay

How to write a movie title in an essay.

Ever wondered how to properly write a movie title in your essay? You’re not alone. We will break down the rules in a simple way, so whether you’re writing a high school paper or a college essay, you will know how to correctly format movie titles or just refer to this post in the future. So, grab some popcorn, and let’s check out some examples.

Why Formatting Matters for Movie Titles in Essays

Before diving into the specifics, let’s talk about why formatting matters. Properly formatting movie titles helps your essay look polished and professional. It also keeps everything clear for your readers, making it easy for them to understand which movie you’re referring to. Imagine reading an essay where titles of movies were just mixed in with the regular text—it would be confusing, right? Good formatting makes everything clearer and more enjoyable to read.

General Rules for Formatting Movie Titles

The basic rule is simple: italicize the titles of full-length movies. For example:

✅ Correct: Inception
❌ Incorrect: Inception

This rule applies to other full-length works like books and plays as well. Shorter works, like articles or short stories, should be put in quotation marks. But for movies, always go for italics.

Examples on How to Write Movie Titles

Here are some examples to help you see how to format movie titles correctly in different contexts:

In a Sentence

When you mention a movie in a sentence, italicize the title:

If you’re listing several movies, each title should be italicized:

In a Reference

If you’re citing a movie in a reference list or bibliography, the title should still be italicized:

Common Mistakes When Citing Films and How to Avoid Them

Using Quotation Marks Instead of Italics . A common mistake is putting movie titles in quotation marks instead of italicizing them. Remember, quotation marks are for shorter works. So, don’t write “Titanic” when you mean Titanic .

Capitalization Errors . Always capitalize the major words in a movie title. Words like “and,” “the,” “of,” and “in” are usually not capitalized unless they are the first or last word of the title. For example:

✅ Correct: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
❌ Incorrect: harry potter and the philosopher’s stone

Forgetting to Italicize . Sometimes, in the rush of writing, you might forget to italicize the movie title. Double-check your work to make sure every movie title is properly formatted. This attention to detail can make a big difference in the overall presentation of your essay.

How to Put a Movie Title in an Essay in Different Citation Styles

Different academic styles (MLA, APA, Chicago) might have specific guidelines for citing movies, but the rule of italicizing movie titles remains consistent across the board. Here’s a brief look at how each style handles movie titles:

🎥 MLA Style

In MLA style, italicize the movie title and follow it with the director’s name and the year of release:

🎥 APA Style

In APA style, italicize the movie title and include the director’s name and release year in parentheses:

🎥 Chicago Style

In Chicago style, italicize the title and include the director and release year:

Special Cases for Movie Citations

Foreign Language Titles

For movies in foreign languages, the same rules apply. Use italics for the title, and if you include the English translation, it should be in parentheses and not italicized:

✅ Correct: La Dolce Vita (The Sweet Life)
❌ Incorrect: “La Dolce Vita” (The Sweet Life)

Movie Franchises and Series

If you’re referring to a series of movies, each individual title should be italicized:

✅ Correct: The Star Wars series includes A New Hope , The Empire Strikes Back , and Return of the Jedi .
❌ Incorrect: The Star Wars series includes A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi.

Tips for Writing About Movies in Your Essays

It’s important to follow some additional rules except for italicising the titles you want to mention.

Practice Makes Perfect!

The best way to get good at writing movie titles in essays is to practice. Write a few sentences or a short paragraph about your favorite movie and focus on correctly formatting the title. Here’s an example to get you started:

Inception is a mind-bending thriller that explores the concept of dreams within dreams. Directed by Christopher Nolan, the movie features stunning visual effects and a complex narrative structure. One of the most memorable scenes in Inception is when the characters navigate a zero-gravity hallway during a dream heist.

How do you put the title of a movie in an essay?

To properly include the title of a movie in an essay, you should italicize it. This makes the title stand out from the rest of your text and follows standard formatting rules. For example, write Titanic instead of Titanic. This approach is clear and keeps your essay looking professional.

Do you italicize a movie title in an essay?

Yes, you should italicize a movie title when writing an essay. Italicizing titles is the standard formatting rule for full-length works, including movies, books, and plays. This helps distinguish the title from the rest of the text, making your writing clearer and more professional.

How to reference a movie title?

When referencing a movie title, italicize it and include key details like the director’s name and release year if needed. For example, Inception (directed by Christopher Nolan, 2010). This format provides context and ensures readers understand exactly which movie you’re discussing, adding clarity to your writing.

How to write the name of a movie in an essay in MLA?

In MLA format, you should italicize the name of a movie. Additionally, include relevant details such as the director’s name and the year of release. For instance: The Godfather . Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, Paramount Pictures, 1972. This comprehensive approach ensures proper citation and context.

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Movie Title in Essays: How to Write Them in Text

Do you italicize movie titles?

Students ask this question for essay writing and referring to cinematography works. Formatting rules are more or less universal here, so they’ll be easy to remember.

In this blog post, you’ll learn how to write movie titles for various citation styles.

Are Movies Italicized?

Yes, please use italics for a movie title in essays (1) of all citation formats except for AP. When writing in AP, use quotations.

Another exception is the movie series. When writing the name of the series episode, put it in quotation marks.

Example:

In “The One with the Fake Monica” of Friends , Ross tries to get his monkey Marcel into the zoo.

“The One with the Fake Monica” is the episode’s name, so we put it in quotation marks. Friends is the name of the whole series, so we italicize it. If we wrote this sentence in AP style, “Friends” would be in double quotations, too.

Keep reading for more details.

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay

Let’s find out how to put a movie title in an essay. To do that properly, consider the citation style you’ll use for the paper.

Differences are minor but still worthy to know and follow. Here they go:

Capitalization

All main parts of speech start with a capital letter in movie names. Exceptions:

Determiners like definite and indefinite articles (the, a, an)
Short prepositions and conjunctions (those shorter than four letters): of, on, in, and, etc.

Use uppercase for the above only if a movie title begins or ends with the article or short prepositions. Subtitles start with a capital letter, too.

The First Slam Dunk; A Thousand and One; The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Huesera: The Bone Woman; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem; John Wick: Chapter 4

APA, MLA, and Chicago Styles for Movie Titles

Need more? Check:

How to Write Book Titles in Essays How to Cite a Movie in APA Format

Italics vs. Double Quotations

The AP style is the one prescribing quotation marks, not italics for movie names. When writing in AP, format films like this:

“Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend”
“On the Line”
“The School for Good and Evil”

Underlining?

Underline movie titles in papers only when writing them by hand. Since you can’t italicize your handwriting, it will help you highlight film names. Like this:

Punctuation

If a movie name includes punctuation, italicize or put it inside quotation marks.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
“Wham!” (AP style)
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

Citing Movie Titles in References

How do you write a movie title in an essay.

Now you know how to write a title of a movie in an essay. Why not take your favorite film and craft a story about it? The best way to remember rules is to practice them, agree?

Follow the guidelines, stick to the citation style — and you’ll write titles correctly.

References:

https://nau.edu/writing-style-guide/treatment-of-titles/
Essay samples
Essay writing
Writing tips

How to Title a Movie or Film in an Essay or Paper

College professors carefully look at proper nouns when grading student essays. They do this to ensure they are written correctly. When they find proper nouns, such as movie titles, are not written correctly, they do not give maximum points for formatting.

In this post, we will reveal how to write movie titles correctly in MLA, APA, Chicago, Harvard, and AP-style papers. What you will learn in the next few minutes will help you not lose formatting points during grading.

Let’s begin.

Formatting a Movie Title in an Essay or Paper

Notice that formatting and capitalizing movie titles in an essay or academic writing piece largely depends on the style guide that you are using. If you are writing in MLA, Chicago/Turabian, or APA, you must write the movie titles in italics. In AP style, you have to use quotes for the movie titles.

When referring to the movie within the body of your paper, all the major style guides prefer using a title case where all the major words in the movie title are capitalized.

Let us delve further into how best to write a movie title in a paper, depending on the writing style.

1. How To Write A Movie Title In-Text On An MLA-Style Paper

MLA stands for Modern Language Association. US college professors founded the association in the nineteenth century. It published the MLA format in 1951. The MLA format is the recommended format in humanities disciplines.

The correct way to write a movie title on an MLA-style paper is to capitalize the first letter of the first word and all the principal words in the title, including the hyphenated words. These words include proper nouns, common nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, subordinating conjunctions, and verbs.

The only words you should not capitalize when you write a movie title in an MLA-style paper are the articles (e.g., a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (e.g., but, or, for, and), and prepositions (e.g., on, of, between, against) after the first word.

In addition to following the above rule on capitalizing the first letter of the first word and every principal word, you should italicize your movie title. You must italicize your movie title in virtually all major writing styles.

Examples of correctly written movie titles in MLA style

The movie The Batman follows a superhero’s battle to rid his city of criminals and criminal syndicates.
Under the Skin is probably Johansson’s best performance as an actress to date.
In Man of Fire, Washington is an alcoholic ex-CIA operative who gets a high-paying and high-drama job as a bodyguard in Mexico.

2. How to Write a Movie Title In-Text on an APA-Style Paper

APA is an acronym for American Psychological Association. Just like the MLA, the APA was founded in the nineteenth century. The APA stylebook was published in 1929 and is one of the world's most popularly used formatting styles.

The right way to write a movie title in APA style is to capitalize the first letter of the first word and every major word (nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, and verbs) in the sentence.

The only words that should not have their first letter capitalized are minor (articles plus prepositions and conjunctions under four letters long). In short, every word over three letters in length should have its first letter capitalized in an APA paper.

The above statement shows that writing a movie title in an APA-style paper is quite similar to doing the same in an MLA-style paper. The biggest difference is that all words with over three letters have their first letter capitalized. No MLA-style exceptions for long prepositions like between and against.

In addition to capitalizing the first letter, you must italicize the entire movie title in APA, just like in MLA.

Examples of correctly written movie titles in APA style

Everyone who has watched The Pirates of the Caribbean loves the Captain Jack Sparrow character, played by Johnny Depp.
In 12 Years a Slave, the director artfully reveals the deep hate and violence faced by slaves in pre-emancipation America.
The Wolf of Wall Street is a fun yet thought-provoking film about a young man who made much money in the capital markets.

3. Writing A Movie Title In-Text On A Chicago-Style Paper

Writing a movie title on a Chicago-style paper is the same as writing a movie title on an MLA-style paper. You capitalize the first letter of the first word and every principal word in the sentence.

The only words you don’t capitalize are the articles (e.g., a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (e.g., but, or, for, and), and prepositions (e.g., on, of, between, against) after the first word. Again, the case here is just like in MLA style format.

You also have to italicize your entire movie title in Chicago-style formatting.

Examples of correctly written movie titles in Chicago style

In The Hunger Games, themes such as power, wealth, and violence dominate the storyline.
Killers of the Flower Moon is an upcoming movie by Martin Scorsese based on gruesome events that took place in the Osage Nation.
Schwarzenegger’s Terminator movie is a classic action film featuring a cyborg as the main character.

It is crucial to note that writing a movie title Chicago style is very similar to writing a movie title Harvard style. Therefore, if you want to know how to write a film title Harvard style, follow the rules and the examples above.

4. How to Write a Movie Title In-Text on an AP-Style Paper

The AP is an acronym for the Associated Press. This is a global news organization that was founded in the mid-nineteenth century. It is one of the most reliable news organizations in the world. The organization published the AP format for journalists to use in 1953.

The correct way to write a movie title on an AP-style paper is to capitalize the first letter of the first word and all the main words. Conjunctions and prepositions more than three letters long also need their first letter capitalized. The first letter of the last word also needs to be capitalized regardless of how long or short it is.

In addition to the above, the movie title must be put in quotations. It must not be italicized.

Examples of correctly written movie titles in AP style

“Memories of Murder” is an award-winning movie that was released in 2006.
Critics agree that “Train to Busan” is a well-made film with an exciting storyline, excellent actors, and wonderful cinematography.
“American Pie” was among the best movies ever produced by Paul Weitz.

Seven Steps to Writing a Movie Title

Follow the steps below to write movie titles in your college papers correctly.

1. Ensure the Movie You Are Referencing Is the Correct Movie

It is relatively easy to confuse movies because sometimes films have the same name, and other times they have names that can easily be confused. Therefore, before writing any movie title in your essay, ensure the movie you want to note is correct.

Noting down a movie by name in your article and then it ends up being the wrong one could have consequences for you. It could make your essay confusing, disorganized, or poor. You do not want your professor to think your essay is any of these things if you want an excellent grade.

So do a bit of research to ensure you have the right movie.

2. Ensure You Have the Wording Right

Students often forget a part of a movie title when talking about a movie in their essays. This is unacceptable. It is unacceptable because it doesn’t give the reader the complete information they need to research should they feel it necessary.

Therefore, to ensure your work is perfect, make sure the movie title you want to note down has the right wording. Do not forget or ignore any articles, conjunctions, or prepositions.

3. Do Not Leave Out Articles

Many famous movies have an article before them, e.g., “the” or “a.” You must not ignore the article before a movie, even if you feel like your reader will still know what you are talking about. For example, even if you feel your reader will know Shawshank Redemption, writing down the movie title like this is wrong. Write the full title, e.g., The Shawshank Redemption.

Sometimes, an article is the only thing distinguishing one movie from another. Therefore, leaving it out could mislead the reader into thinking you are discussing something different from what you are talking about.

4. Capitalize the First Word and the Main Words

Most writing formats require you to capitalize the first and main words in a movie title when you write it in-text in an essay. This doesn’t mean you write everything in capital letters. It simply means you make the first letter in the first word a capital letter plus the first letter in every other keyword (noun, pronoun, adjectives, and so on).

The example below shows how to capitalize a movie title in an essay. Even if a movie title is written in all caps, you are still supposed to capture it in the manner detailed in the example.

Example: In The Hunger Games , themes such as power, violence . . .

The only words you are not supposed to capitalize when writing a movie title are the prepositions, conjunctions, and articles within the movie title. Check the example below.

Example: Everyone who has watched The Pirates of the Caribbean loves . . .

5. Italicize the Title

As you may have noticed so far in this article, movie titles are italicized in all the major writing formats. This is done to make it clear to the reader quickly what words are part of the title and the ones that are not.

Therefore, immediately after capitalizing a movie title in your essay, you should go ahead and italicize it. Instead of italicizing it, you can add quotation marks when a movie title is short. This is, however, not always tolerated by professors. In most cases, they expect movie titles in italics.

Only when writing an AP-style paper are you expected to add quotation marks to a movie title instead of italicizing it.

6. State the Year of Release

The first time you refer to a movie in your paper or essay, you should state the year it was publicly released in parentheses. This will help the reader to understand the movie better because they will have the time context.

Sometimes movies/films share names. Adding a year in parentheses helps the reader precisely tell which movie you are discussing. While stating the year of release is encouraged, it is not always necessary. In addition, in most cases, professors do not care if the year of release is stated.

If you choose to give the year of release, you should only do it the first time you mention the movie.

7. Consider Using an Assignment Help Service

If you doubt your formatting skills and are unsure how to write movie titles, consider using an assignment help service like Gradecrest.com. Experienced masters and Ph.D. graduates who know everything there is to know about formatting papers typically offer our movie review writing services. They can help you format and edit your paper to ensure it is standard.

Moreover, we also have experts who can help you write your paper from scratch. All you need to do is to order a paper on your topic of choice, and a writer will be assigned to it to deliver outstanding results. Unlike other assignment help services, our service goes above and beyond to ensure the papers our clients receive are error-free, plagiarism-free, and have zero CHAT-GPT input.

As we come to the End…

As you may have noticed in this article, there are so many rules to remember when you want to write a movie title in an essay. While the rules are similar across different writing styles/formats, they are also slightly different. You must check the rules for writing movie titles to ensure you are on the right track according to your college’s recommended writing style.

Is it necessary to include the year of release when writing a movie title in a college essay?

It is not necessary. When writing a movie title in a college essay, you must write it correctly and add a credible source on the ‘Works Cited page. You can include the year of release the first time you mention the movie in your essay. You can do this by putting the year in parentheses next to the movie title. But it is not a must.

Should I put quotation marks on a movie title?

No, you should not. You should capitalize and italicize it. Quotation marks are not required or recommended when writing a movie title following the APA, MLA, Harvard, or Chicago formats. They are only required when writing a movie title following the AP style. And when they are used in AP style, the title shouldn’t be italicized.

Should movie titles be written in title cases in an essay?

Yes, they should. All writing styles require you to write your movie title in title case (AP, APA, Chicago, MLA, and Harvard). The major words or principal words of the movie title should all be written in the title case.

Why do some news organizations put movie titles in quotations?

They do this because most news organizations require their journalists to follow the AP (Associated Press) style when writing news items. And since the AP format requires movies to be written in quotations rather than italics, you have the current situation where news articles have movie names in quotes.

Do you underline movie titles in essays?

No, you do not. You don’t underline movie titles in essays. This is because almost all writing and formatting styles require you to write the movie name in the title case and italicize it. Nothing more. You only underline movie titles in essays if you are handwriting your essay because italics aren’t possible when handwriting.

Is there a problem if I do not format my movie title correctly?

Yes, there is a problem. A big problem. You should format your move title correctly to get the total points for proper formatting during grade. If you don’t, you won’t get all the points your professor allocates for formatting the essay. This will result in a poor or average grade.

Gradecrest is a professional writing service that provides original model papers. We offer personalized services along with research materials for assistance purposes only. All the materials from our website should be used with proper references. See our Terms of Use Page for proper details.

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay: Examples and Tips

Writing essays is hard on its own. But there is also a whole bunch of different tiny details that can affect the final grade. These details, though may seem insignificant, can either make your essay worth an A+ or turn it into a real disaster. And one of such important but small details is the way you are writing movie titles in your paper.

If you are now wondering who even needs to know how to write movie titles in essays, it’s quite a natural concern. However, there are multiple occasions when you may need to do this. Namely, you will definitely have to mention the title when writing an essay about a specific movie, discovering the plot, and reflecting on your experience from watching it. Besides, you may need to use titles when supporting your ideas with quotes from movies or using them as examples.

But how to do it right?

This article, written by our write my essay service professionals, will be your ultimate guide to writing movie titles in essays in different formats, so sit back and let’s get down to it!

Writing Movie Titles: Key Principles and Rules

To succeed in writing an essay about a movie, follow these core principles and rules:

General rules

Discuss the movie background first;
Share your own experience;
Study the main ideas and topics, and discuss how they were disclosed in the movie;
Tell what lessons it can teach.

Basic grammar rules

Follow the required formatting style;
Write in the active voice;
Structure your work appropriately;
Make smooth transitions between ideas;
Keep an eye on the correct punctuation of headings and titles.

These are the main tips from our write my essay for me service to keep in mind when writing a paper about a film. But, as we said earlier, there is also one more detail to pay special attention to - the titles.

So, let’s figure out how to punctuate movie titles the right way. First, to understand how to write movie titles in a paper, you need to understand that there are different formatting styles, each of which has different rules. The two most popular are MLA and APA.

So, now, let’s move on to the most important part and define how to write movie titles in an essay right!

How to Write Movie Titles in MLA?

As we said earlier, the MLA formatting style is one of the most common styles for essay writing. Just like any other style, it has its own manual that dictates how to organize and format your essay the right way.

Okay, but what is MLA format in the first place? This style, created by the Modern Language Association, is basically a collection of citing and formatting guidelines used in academic writing.

So, how to write movie titles MLA you may wonder? The MLA format for movie titles dictates that all titles should be formatted uniformly throughout the entire paper. And, basically, there are only two main rules

All first letters of the major words should be capitalized, excluding insignificant words like conjunctions, articles, prepositions, etc. (except those placed at the beginning of a sentence)
All titles placed in the body of your work should also be italicized.

The Great Gatsby

The Lord of the Rings

Now you know how to write movie titles in an essay using the MLA format, but if you still have any troubles with ' do my paper ' request, just contact us! So let’s move on to the APA format.

How to Write Movie Titles in APA?

Another widely used format you may be required to use when writing an essay about movies is called APA. It was developed by the American Psychological Association and is most often applicable to academic writing and research performed in different fields of social sciences (e.g., sociology, psychology, anthropology, and so on).

If you are wondering how to write movie titles in APA style, the good news is that you already know how to do it. Here is one thing to remember - MLA, APA, and Chicago style as well, all imply using the same title case capitalization approach for all film titles. Also, all these three formats imply using italics.

Thus, the core rules for formatting AP style movie titles are no different from those we mentioned for the MLA styles:

Capitalize the first letters of important words, leaving out prepositions, articles, etc.
Italicize the entire title.

The only difference you should know about is that APA also requires you to capitalize words that include 4 letters or more (even if it’s a preposition, etc.).

Gone With the Wind

Tori Spelling as a Good Character to Write About in Your Essay

For a paper on a movie, a great choice can be the TV series Beverly Hills.

With its main cast featuring Tori Spelling, Jennie Garth, Ian Ziering, and others, Beverly Hills is a classic. The show spans a wide range of acute social issues like domestic violence, rape, homophobia, racism, teen suicide, early pregnancy, and many others. Thus, it’s very relevant for youth.

One of the main characters you can focus on is Donna Martin, performed by Tori Spelling Troop Beverly Hills. What makes Tori Spelling 90210 notable is that she is one of the few actors to appear consistently throughout the entire show.

What do you need to know about Tori Spelling? A 48-year-old star of a cult show is a daughter of a famous producer Aaron Spelling, who, in fact, produced Beverly Hills. She was only 17 when she got the role. And, appearing in the show from 1990 to 2000, she was twice nominated for the Young Artist Award.

In 2019, Tori also participated in the show “The Masked Singer.” In the show, Tori Spelling nickname was the Unicorn.

If you need any help with writing an essay about a movie or any other kind of paper contact our service with your ' do my essay for me ' request.

Older Than America Movie: Title Ideas for Your Essay

If the idea of writing an essay about the Beverly Hills series didn’t inspire you, another great subject for your paper could be the Older than America film.

Older than America movie was released in 2008. It is a suspense drama movie directed by Georgina Lightning and featuring Georgina herself, as well as Bradley Cooper, Adam Beach, Tantoo Cardinal, and Wes Studi.

If you are wondering what makes Older than America a great topic choice for an essay, the movie displays several unique stories that explore the devastating impacts of Native American Boarding Schools on children from the American Indian community.

What should your title be like? Given the wide range of deep topics discussed in this movie, the number of possible title options is vast. Here are a few samples:

Older than America: The Causes and Effects of Cultural Genocide
The Hardship of Assimilation in a Culturally Different Society on the Example of Older than America Movie
Older than America: Is It Ethical to Try to “Civilize” Children and Youth Into a Different Culture

Need help with your paper? Just drop us a line saying, 'please, write an essay for me ,' and we’ll help you get the highest grade with ease!

Writing Movie Titles in Essays

So, now you should know how to write the title of a movie in an essay. We’ve also shared the example of MLA and AP style movie titles. And the only question that is still left unanswered is how exactly you should write an essay about movies and what you can do to make it flawless?

In this part of our DoMyEssay article, based on the example of a cult TV show Beverly Hills, we will tell you how to start an essay about a movie, how to write it well, and how to ensure success. Here come the main tips and tricks you need to know:

Watch it fully (maybe even a couple of times).
Write about the background. For instance, speaking of Beverly Hills, try to dig deeper to define what else is there apart from teen drama related to relationships and friendships; namely, as we said earlier, there is a wide range of acute problems discussed in the show, and you should recognize them.
Tell about your own reflection on the piece. Tell what you grasped from watching Beverly Hills, how it affected you, and how you feel after watching it. Important: do not repeat the background and plot, instead make a reflection on the characters and events that impressed you the most.
Assess it critically. Analyze the storyline and topics discussed in Beverly Hills, assess how producers used music and special effects to make a better impression, evaluate the acting skills of the main cast, etc.
Finish with some lessons learned. Tell readers about the lessons you personally and youth, in general, learn from the series. Namely, the show teaches us many vital life lessons such as - parents always have great wisdom, appearances can be very deceiving, we can handle anything, etc.

Hopefully, this was helpful. Follow the tips our essay writers team shared, and you should be able to write a great essay without a hassle!

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First things first, let’s talk about italics. When you’re writing an essay and you want to mention a movie title, the general rule is to italicize it. Italics make the title stand out and show that it’s the name of a movie. For example:

Interstellar explores the depths of space and human emotion.
Parasite is a thrilling commentary on class disparity.

By italicizing them, you clearly indicate that you are talking about a movie. This rule applies to all full-length movie titles since they are the most popular in student works, so don’t forget it.

How to Write Movie Titles in Quotes

Now, what if you’re mentioning a short film or a part of a larger collection?

In that case, you should use quotes instead of italics. This helps differentiate shorter works from full-length movies, especially when you are talking about several bodies of work and need to reference them. For instance:

“Paperman” is a delightful short film about a chance meeting and a paper airplane.
“Sanjay’s Super Team” explores the balance between modern culture and traditional values.

Using quotes for short films, TV episodes, or segments within a larger work keeps things clear and organized – and that’s exactly what you want to see in an academic paper.

Different Cases When Writing Movie Titles

Okay, now that the basic stuff is out of the way – what if the film you want to reference isn’t that simple? If you have a nitpicky professor, surely they would want to see proper formatting, if the film is foreign, re-released, or has several directors? Well, below you can find the most common cases (other than regular films) that might come up when writing your essay.

Capitalization

When writing movie titles, always capitalize the major words. This includes the first and last words of the title, as well as all principal words in between. Articles (like “the,” “a,” and “an”), prepositions (like “in,” “on,” “with”), and conjunctions (like “and,” “but,” “or”) are not capitalized unless they are the first or last word in the title.

Example : The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Reference Page Entries

When listing movies on a reference page, you’ll need to follow a specific format. For example, in APA style, you would write:

Example : Nolan, C. (Director). (2014). Interstellar [Film]. Paramount Pictures.

Always check the citation style you’re using (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.) as they have slightly different rules.

In-Text Citations

For in-text citations, you’ll include the director’s name and the year the movie was released. For example:

Example : (Nolan, 2014) or (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999)

This helps readers find the full citation in your reference list.

Multiple Directors

When a movie has multiple directors, include all their last names in the citation. For example, for The Matrix :

Example : (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999)

Special Editions and Re-Releases

If you’re referring to a special edition or re-release of a film, make sure to mention the version you’re talking about. For example:

Example : Blade Runner: The Final Cut is often considered the definitive version of the film.

Foreign Language Films

When writing about foreign language films, include the original title and its English translation in parentheses if the translation is not well-known. For example:

Example : Amélie (original title: Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain )

So, as you can see, there is a way to mention a movie no matter how many hidden details there are – you just have to pay attention (and maybe take a peek at this guide once again, just to remember).

Different Cases When Writing Movie Titles

By imagineHarry from Sketchify.

Adding Your Personal Touch

Adding your personal touch to your essay can make it more engaging. You can include your thoughts or experiences related to the movie. For instance, if Finding Nemo made you fall in love with the ocean, share that! Personal anecdotes can make your writing stand out and resonate with your readers.

The goal is to reflect, to discuss, to create something new; there is no need to state the obvious. When mentioning a movie in your work, don’t just give the main plot and say “how greatly the characters impacted you.” It can be extremely hard to get inspired, but more often than not professors want to see your own thoughts and reactions – maybe you can be the next person to take a new look at an old film and see something that was never seen before? Just give it some time to brew and you will surely deliver a great essay.

Most Popular Movie Titles Referenced in Student Essays

Sometimes students are given an assignment, but don’t know which film to talk about. Here’s a list of some popular movie titles with several plot lines and themes, so you can choose the one you want to talk about. These can serve as inspiration for your essays:

These movies offer rich themes, compelling characters, and memorable stories that can be analyzed from many angles. However, this list isn’t limited, obviously.

Final Thoughts

Writing movie titles in an essay might seem tricky at first, but with these tips, you’ll be a pro in no time. Remember to italicize full-length movies, use quotes for short films, capitalize correctly, and follow the specific citation style your teacher or professor prefers. And don’t be afraid to dig deep and share your personal insight to make your essay unique and engaging.

How do you put movie titles in an essay?

When writing an essay, you should italicize the titles of full-length movies to make them stand out. For example, you would write The Dark Knight . This applies to all major works such as books, movies, and TV shows. Short films and parts of a larger work should be placed in quotes.

How to put a movie title in an essay APA?

In APA style, you should italicize the titles of full-length movies. For example, you would write Interstellar . Additionally, include the director’s name and the year of release in your reference list like this: Nolan, C. (Director). (2014). Interstellar [Film]. Paramount Pictures.

How do I refer to a film in an essay?

To refer to a film in an essay, italicize the title if it is a full-length movie, for instance, Schindler’s List . Mention the director and the release year in your text or citations. For example, you could write, “Spielberg’s Schindler’s List (1993) is a powerful film about the Holocaust.”

Is movie title in quotes?

Movie titles are not placed in quotes if they are full-length films; instead, they should be italicized. For example, you would write Jurassic Park . However, if you are referring to a short film or an episode of a TV series, you should use quotes, such as “The Red Balloon.”

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How to Write Movie Titles in Essays?

Table of Contents

Writing a movie title in essay projects may be necessary when handling different academic assignments. Thus, knowing how to write movie captions in the correct format is vital for composing successful papers. While mastering this art is necessary, many students face challenges doing it.

This subject raises many questions regarding various components. For instance, italicizing, quoting, underlining, and punctuating are some of the challenges some students face.

Fortunately, relevant guidance exists to address all these challenges and improve your writing skills. This post addresses these difficulties in all the major academic writing styles like APA , Chicago, and MLA. Keep reading to learn more and master this area of academic writing.

How to Put a Movie Title in an Essay

Writing a movie title in essay has different components that have evolved through the ages. The rise of computer technology has drastically changed how learners handle this subject. It has changed some elements, like underlining movie titles. For instance, before personal computers became common, students used typewriters to write academic papers. This technology required them to underline movie titles. Also, underlining movie headlines was necessary because some scholars hand-wrote their assignments. The reason is that italicizing a title was difficult in a hand-written essay.

Rules to Follow When Writing a Movie Title in Essay

Here are the main rules to follow to write movie titles correctly in your academic papers.

Title Sources

As a rule of thumb, you should list the full title as it appears in the source you are citing. However, few exceptions exist for this rule, particularly when punctuating subtitles and standardizing capitalization.

You must capitalize every principal word, like an adjective, noun, and verb. However, don’t capitalize articles, prepositions, or conjunctions in the title’s middle. However, capitalize them if they are long, such as additionally and furthermore, or if they are a title’s first word.
Always separate subtitles with colons and spaces.

Italicization

Italicization is another vital component to pay attention to when including a movie title in essay .

You must italicize titles from self-contained and independent sources. Remember to italicize every book, play, film, periodical, database, and website title.

Quotation Marks

Put a title in quotation marks if its source is a part of a larger work.

Titles with Other Titles

Titles containing other titles occur commonly in academic writing. Also, if the title usually appears in double quotation marks, enclose the caption in single quotes. For instance,

“Madness in David’s ‘Make Common Sense Common Again.'”

Capitalization

Capitalization is another core component when drafting movie captions in essays. You should apply all the established capitalization rules when writing these titles. These laws require you to do the following:

Begin all movie captions start with capital letters.
Always capitalize all proper nouns.

However, you must pay special attention to some exceptions when applying these rules to place a movie title . The final rules will depend on the writing style you use. Please note that different academic formats disagree on minor matters that may complicate matters. So, use these rules, knowing they don’t apply universally across various educational writing styles.

Movie Title in Writing

You will format your essays using APA, MLA, or Chicago styles. While these disagree on different issues, they agree on a few core components. For instance, these styles need you to capitalize all movie titles. They also require you to capitalize adverbs, nouns, verbs, and pronouns. These formatting styles also agree on capitalizing prepositions, articles, and conjunctions only if they are the first word in titles.

APA requires capitalizing all words with more than three letters. It also capitalizes a caption’s first word and proper nouns. Here is an excellent example: When the bells ring .

When formatting your essay using AP style, place your movie titles in quotes. You still have to abide by all the rules of writing titles within quotes. For example:

“The Passion of the Christ” shuttered records within its first year of release.
“We are happy to work on any movie as popular as ‘The Lord of the Ring,'” John exclaimed.

While you should always italicize all TV shows and movie titles, several exceptions occur; for instance, treat every heading of a specific scene or episode and a short film as a shorter work. Therefore, place such captions in quotations.

Here are two main questions students ask about placing a movie title in essay s, plus their answers.

How do you write a movie title in an essay?

Capitalize all the major words in the headline, such as pronouns, verbs, proper nouns, and adverbs. However, don’t capitalize short prepositions articles like a, an , and the . The only exception occurs when these words open movie headlines or are four letters long and more, for instance, beneath or about. However, the three main formatting styles disagree on this last rule. So, consult your essay’s style guide before applying this rule.

How to draft a movie title in an essay MLA?

The MLA format for writing a movie title requires formatting all headlines uniformly in the entire essay. It has two major principles you must pay attention to.

Capitalize all the first letters of the main words except minor ones, such as conjunctions, articles, and prepositions. The only exception here applies when they exist at a headline’s beginning.
Italicize every title in the essay’s body.

Compare and Contrast Essay Outline Example

Sociology research topics making projects professional, how to write a short essay that impresses your teacher.

How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay APA?

Ever struggled with adding a movie title to your APA style essay? No worries – it's simpler than you think! The American Psychological Association has a straightforward approach, and we're here to break it down for you.

In this guide, our APA paper writing service will not only walk you through the process but also ensure that your references are presented uniformly across various papers and disciplines. By following APA guidelines, you not only adhere to academic standards but also facilitate clear communication in your writing. So, let's dive into the basics and make your APA formatting a breeze.

How to Write Movie Titles in APA: Consider the Following

When it comes to incorporating a film name into your APA style essay, precision is the name of the game. Here are some helpful steps for the process:

Italicization : You may have been wondering whether or not should movie titles be italicized in APA. The answer is - always. This rule applies whether you are mentioning the heading in the text or including it in your references page. Example : In the film The Shawshank Redemption,...
Capitalization: Capitalize all major terms in the heading, but avoid capitalizing articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but), and prepositions (in, on, under). Example: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Punctuation: Place commas and periods inside the quotation marks. For example, I thoroughly enjoyed watching Casablanca, a timeless classic.
Reference Page Entry: When listing the movie on your references page, follow this format: Last Name, First Initial. (Director), Title [italicized], Production Company. Example : Spielberg, S. (Director), Jurassic Park [italicized], Universal Pictures.
In-Text Citations: For in-text citations include the last name of the director and the year of release in parentheses. Example: ( Spielberg, 1993)
Multiple Directors: If a film has multiple directors, list them with an ampersand (&) between their names. Example: ( Coen & Coen, 1998)
No Author: If there's no individual author or director, use the production company as the author in your reference. Example : Pixar. (2003). Finding Nemo [italicized].

Writing Movie Titles in APA-Style Essays in Upper Case

When it comes to writing a movie title in essays, choosing the right style is crucial, and uppercase is a common choice that brings a touch of formality to your writing. APA style, a prevalent choice in scholarly articles and academia, particularly in the behavioral and social sciences, provides specific guidelines for this.

Capitalize Major Words: Nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and pronouns—all fall under the category of major words and should be capitalized. Additionally, any term of four letters or longer should be capital letters.
Minor Words in Lowercase: Conjunctions and prepositions of three letters or shorter, as well as articles, are in lowercase.
Proper Names: Always capitalize proper names, regardless of their length.
First Word in Title and Subtitle: Capitalize the first word in both the heading and subheading, even if it is an article like 'A' or 'The.'
After Colon and Em Dash: The first term after a colon or em dash is capitalized.
Words with Hyphens: If a major word is hyphenated, both parts are capitalized.
Movie Titles in Quotes or Italics APA : When referencing a heading in the body of your paper, use either quotation marks or italics.

Final Thoughts

Formatting movie headings is a small but important part of your essay. Whether you go with APA style or any other, just be consistent. Keep it simple; keep it steady. Consistency is your best friend here. So, whether it's italics or capital letters, stick with it throughout. It's the little things that add that pro touch to your essay. Using a movie review writing service can also help ensure your formatting is spot on.

So, as you wrap up your writing, think of it as rolling the credits on your cinematic masterpiece. The consistency in formatting, like a great ending scene, leaves a lasting impression. It's these little things that turn your paper into a pro-level production!

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Best Ways to Write a Movie Title in an Essay

Properly formatting movie titles in essays is essential for maintaining clarity and adhering to academic writing conventions. Whether you are analyzing a film or discussing its themes, accurately presenting movie titles demonstrates your attention to detail and professionalism. In this blog, we will explore the significance of correctly formatting movie titles and provide you with the best ways to do so in your essays. By following these guidelines, you can ensure consistency and accuracy in your writing, enhancing the overall quality of your work. So, let’s delve into the world of movie title formatting and discover the most effective methods to incorporate them seamlessly into your essays.

Understanding Formatting Styles

In the world of academic writing, different formatting styles govern the presentation of various elements, including movie titles. The most commonly used styles include MLA (Modern Language Association), APA (American Psychological Association), and Chicago (Chicago Manual of Style). Each style has its own set of rules and guidelines for formatting movie titles.

When writing an essay, it’s important to determine the specific formatting style required by your instructor or the academic institution before understanding How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay . This information is usually provided in the assignment guidelines or syllabus. Adhering to the correct style guide ensures consistency and conformity to the established conventions of scholarly writing.

For instance, MLA style typically uses italics for movie titles, while APA style utilizes title case and capitalization rules. On the other hand, Chicago style generally employs italics or quotation marks for movie titles, depending on the context.

Before proceeding with writing your essay, familiarize yourself with the specific formatting style required for your assignment. This will enable you to accurately format and present movie titles in accordance with the designated guidelines.

Formatting To Quote a Movie Title in an Essay in MLA Style

When following MLA style guidelines, there are specific rules to consider when formatting movie titles in your essay. Adhering to these guidelines ensures consistency and clarity in your writing. Here are some guidelines for formatting movie titles in MLA style:

Italics: Italicize the titles of larger works, including movies. For example: The Shawshank Redemption.
Capitalization: Capitalize the important words in the movie title, including the first and last words, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. However, do not capitalize articles (e.g., a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, but, or), or prepositions of four letters or fewer (e.g., in, on, at).
Punctuation: Use appropriate punctuation marks within the movie title as needed, such as colons or question marks. Follow the original title’s punctuation, unless it includes an exclamation mark. In that case, use a period instead.
Placement: Place the movie title either within the text of your essay or in parentheses after the relevant information. Maintain consistency in your choice throughout your essay.

Here are a few examples of correctly formatted movie titles in MLA style:

The Godfather
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Black Panther

By following these guidelines, you can ensure that your movie titles are properly formatted in accordance with MLA style.

Formatting Movie Titles in APA Style

When it comes to formatting movie titles in APA style, there are specific guidelines to follow. Adhering to these guidelines ensures consistency and conformity to APA formatting rules. Here are some guidelines for formatting movie titles in APA style:

Capitalization: to write a movie title in essay , capitalize the first word of the movie title and any subtitles. Capitalize all major words in the title as well. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or), or prepositions, unless they are the first or last word of the title.
Italics: Italicize the movie title throughout the essay. This includes both in-text citations and the reference list.
Parenthetical Citations: When citing a movie title in the body of your essay, use parentheses and provide the year of release. For example: (The Shawshank Redemption, 1994).
Reference List: Include the movie title in the reference list at the end of your essay. List it in alphabetical order according to the first significant word of the title. Provide the year of release in parentheses after the title. For example: The Shawshank Redemption (1994).

Here are a few examples of correctly formatted movie titles in APA style:

The Shawshank Redemption

Before you write a movie title in an essay you must follow these guidelines, to ensure that your movie titles are properly formatted in accordance with APA style.

Formatting Movie Titles in Chicago Style

When it comes to formatting movie titles in Chicago style, there are specific guidelines to follow. Adhering to these guidelines ensures consistency and conformity to Chicago formatting rules. Here are some guidelines for formatting movie titles in Chicago style:

Italics or Quotation Marks: In Chicago style, you have the option to use either italics or quotation marks for movie titles. It is recommended to choose one format and consistently use it throughout your essay.
Capitalization: Capitalize the first word of the movie title and any subtitles. Capitalize all major words in the title as well. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or), or prepositions, unless they are the first or last word of the title.
Punctuation: Use appropriate punctuation marks within the movie title as needed. Follow the original title’s punctuation, unless it includes an exclamation mark. In that case, use a period instead.

Here are a few examples:

“Inception”

General Tips for Writing Movie Titles

When writing a title of a movie in an essay that include movie titles, it’s important to keep in mind some general tips to ensure consistency and accuracy. Here are a few tips for writing movie titles effectively:

Consistency in Formatting: Choose a specific formatting style (e.g., MLA, APA, Chicago) and consistently apply it throughout your essay. This ensures that all movie titles are formatted in the same way, maintaining a professional and organized appearance.
Proper Use of Italics or Quotation Marks: Pay attention to the formatting conventions of the chosen style guide regarding italics or quotation marks. Use the appropriate formatting consistently for all movie titles. For example, in MLA style, italics are used, while Chicago style allows for either italics or quotation marks.
Handling Foreign Language Movie Titles: When dealing with foreign language movie titles, follow the formatting guidelines of the chosen style guide. Generally, movie titles should be presented in their original language, but transliterations or translations may be used if necessary. Ensure that the translated or transliterated title is properly formatted according to the chosen style guide.

By following these general tips, you can maintain consistency and accuracy when writing movie titles in your essays. This not only enhances the overall professionalism of your work but also ensures that your citations and references are correctly formatted.

Properly formatting to put a movie title in an essay is important for clarity and professionalism. The best ways to write movie titles vary depending on the formatting style, with MLA, APA, and Chicago being the most common. Regardless of the style, it is crucial to maintain consistency throughout the essay and use italics or quotation marks correctly. When dealing with foreign language movie titles, it is important to ensure accurate translations. By following these guidelines, writers can effectively convey their ideas and showcase their attention to detail.

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In this section

The essay film

Andrew Tracy explores the characteristics that have come to define this most elastic of forms, while eight more contributors highlight a dozen influential milestone essay films, from Jean Vigo to Chris Marker.

from our August 2013 issue

I recently had a heated argument with a cinephile filmmaking friend about Chris Marker’s Sans soleil (1983). Having recently completed her first feature, and with such matters on her mind, my friend contended that the film’s power lay in its combinations of image and sound, irrespective of Marker’s inimitable voiceover narration. “Do you think that people who can’t understand English or French will get nothing out of the film?” she said; to which I – hot under the collar – replied that they might very well get something, but that something would not be the complete work.

The Sight & Sound Deep Focus season Thought in Action: The Art of the Essay Film runs at BFI Southbank 1-28 August 2013, with a keynote lecture by Kodwo Eshun on 1 August, a talk by writer and academic Laura Rascaroli on 27 August and a closing panel debate on 28 August.

To take this film-lovers’ tiff to a more elevated plane, what it suggests is that the essentialist conception of cinema is still present in cinephilic and critical culture, as are the difficulties of containing within it works that disrupt its very fabric. Ever since Vachel Lindsay published The Art of the Moving Picture in 1915 the quest to secure the autonomy of film as both medium and art – that ever-elusive ‘pure cinema’ – has been a preoccupation of film scholars, critics, cinephiles and filmmakers alike. My friend’s implicit derogation of the irreducible literary element of Sans soleil and her neo- Godard ian invocation of ‘image and sound’ touch on that strain of this phenomenon which finds, in the technical-functional combination of those two elements, an alchemical, if not transubstantiational, result.

Mechanically created, cinema defies mechanism: it is poetic, transportive and, if not irrational, then a-rational. This mystically-minded view has a long and illustrious tradition in film history, stretching from the sense-deranging surrealists – who famously found accidental poetry in the juxtapositions created by randomly walking into and out of films; to the surrealist-influenced, scientifically trained and ontologically minded André Bazin , whose realist veneration of the long take centred on the very preternaturalness of nature as revealed by the unblinking gaze of the camera; to the trash-bin idolatry of the American underground, weaving new cinematic mythologies from Hollywood detritus; and to auteurism itself, which (in its more simplistic iterations) sees the essence of the filmmaker inscribed even upon the most compromised of works.

It isn’t going too far to claim that this tradition has constituted the foundation of cinephilic culture and helped to shape the cinematic canon itself. If Marker has now been welcomed into that canon and – thanks to the far greater availability of his work – into the mainstream of (primarily DVD -educated) cinephilia, it is rarely acknowledged how much of that work cheerfully undercuts many of the long-held assumptions and pieties upon which it is built.

In his review of Letter from Siberia (1957), Bazin placed Marker at right angles to cinema proper, describing the film’s “primary material” as intelligence – specifically a “verbal intelligence” – rather than image. He dubbed Marker’s method a “horizontal” montage, “as opposed to traditional montage that plays with the sense of duration through the relationship of shot to shot”.

Here, claimed Bazin, “a given image doesn’t refer to the one that preceded it or the one that will follow, but rather it refers laterally, in some way, to what is said.” Thus the very thing which makes Letter “extraordinary”, in Bazin’s estimation, is also what makes it not-cinema. Looking for a term to describe it, Bazin hit upon a prophetic turn of phrase, writing that Marker’s film is, “to borrow Jean Vigo’s formulation of À propos de Nice (‘a documentary point of view’), an essay documented by film. The important word is ‘essay’, understood in the same sense that it has in literature – an essay at once historical and political, written by a poet as well.”

Marker’s canonisation has proceeded apace with that of the form of which he has become the exemplar. Whether used as critical/curatorial shorthand in reviews and programme notes, employed as a model by filmmakers or examined in theoretical depth in major retrospectives (this summer’s BFI Southbank programme, for instance, follows upon Andréa Picard’s two-part series ‘The Way of the Termite’ at TIFF Cinémathèque in 2009-2010, which drew inspiration from Jean-Pierre Gorin ’s groundbreaking programme of the same title at Vienna Filmmuseum in 2007), the ‘essay film’ has attained in recent years widespread recognition as a particular, if perennially porous, mode of film practice. An appealingly simple formulation, the term has proved both taxonomically useful and remarkably elastic, allowing one to define a field of previously unassimilable objects while ranging far and wide throughout film history to claim other previously identified objects for this invented tradition.

It is crucial to note that the ‘essay film’ is not only a post-facto appellation for a kind of film practice that had not bothered to mark itself with a moniker, but also an invention and an intervention. While it has acquired its own set of canonical ‘texts’ that include the collected works of Marker, much of Godard – from the missive (the 52-minute Letter to Jane , 1972) to the massive ( Histoire(s) de cinéma , 1988-98) – Welles’s F for Fake (1973) and Thom Andersen’s Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003), it has also poached on the territory of other, ‘sovereign’ forms, expanding its purview in accordance with the whims of its missionaries.

From documentary especially, Vigo’s aforementioned À propos de Nice, Ivens’s Rain (1929), Buñuel’s sardonic Las Hurdes (1933), Resnais’s Night and Fog (1955), Rouch and Morin’s Chronicle of a Summer (1961); from the avant garde, Akerman’s Je, Tu, Il, Elle (1974), Straub/Huillet’s Trop tôt, trop tard (1982); from agitprop, Getino and Solanas’s The Hour of the Furnaces (1968), Portabella’s Informe general… (1976); and even from ‘pure’ fiction, for example Gorin’s provocative selection of Griffith’s A Corner in Wheat (1909).

Just as within itself the essay film presents, in the words of Gorin, “the meandering of an intelligence that tries to multiply the entries and the exits into the material it has elected (or by which it has been elected),” so, without, its scope expands exponentially through the industrious activity of its adherents, blithely cutting across definitional borders and – as per the Manny Farber ian concept which gave Gorin’s ‘Termite’ series its name – creating meaning precisely by eating away at its own boundaries. In the scope of its application and its association more with an (amorphous) sensibility as opposed to fixed rules, the essay film bears similarities to the most famous of all fabricated genres: film noir, which has been located both in its natural habitat of the crime thriller as well as in such disparate climates as melodramas, westerns and science fiction.

The essay film, however, has proved even more peripatetic: where noir was formulated from the films of a determinate historical period (no matter that the temporal goalposts are continually shifted), the essay film is resolutely unfixed in time; it has its choice of forebears. And while noir, despite its occasional shadings over into semi-documentary during the 1940s, remains bound to fictional narratives, the essay film moves blithely between the realms of fiction and non-fiction, complicating the terms of both.

“Here is a form that seems to accommodate the two sides of that divide at the same time, that can navigate from documentary to fiction and back, creating other polarities in the process between which it can operate,” writes Gorin. When Orson Welles , in the closing moments of his masterful meditation on authenticity and illusion F for Fake, chortles, “I did promise that for one hour, I’d tell you only the truth. For the past 17 minutes, I’ve been lying my head off,” he is expressing both the conjuror’s pleasure in a trick well played and the artist’s delight in a self-defined mode that is cheerfully impure in both form and, perhaps, intention.

Nevertheless, as the essay film merrily traipses through celluloid history it intersects with ‘pure cinema’ at many turns and its form as such owes much to one particularly prominent variety thereof.

The montage tradition

If the mystical strain described above represents the Dionysian side of pure cinema, Soviet montage was its Apollonian opposite: randomness, revelation and sensuous response countered by construction, forceful argumentation and didactic instruction.

No less than the mystics, however, the montagists were after essences. Eisenstein , Dziga Vertov and Pudovkin , along with their transnational associates and acolytes, sought to crystallise abstract concepts in the direct and purposeful juxtaposition of forceful, hard-edged images – the general made powerfully, viscerally immediate in the particular. Here, says Eisenstein, in the umbrella-wielding harpies who set upon the revolutionaries in October (1928), is bourgeois Reaction made manifest; here, in the serried ranks of soldiers proceeding as one down the Odessa Steps in Battleship Potemkin (1925), is Oppression undisguised; here, in the condemned Potemkin sailor who wins over his imminent executioners with a cry of “Brothers!” – a moment powerfully invoked by Marker at the beginning of his magnum opus A Grin Without a Cat (1977) – is Solidarity emergent and, from it, the seeds of Revolution.

The relentlessly unidirectional focus of classical Soviet montage puts it methodologically and temperamentally at odds with the ruminative, digressive and playful qualities we associate with the essay film. So, too, the former’s fierce ideological certainty and cadre spirit contrast with that free play of the mind, the Montaigne -inspired meanderings of individual intelligence, that so characterise our image of the latter.

Beyond Marker’s personal interest in and inheritance from the Soviet masters, classical montage laid the foundations of the essay film most pertinently in its foregrounding of the presence, within the fabric of the film, of a directing intelligence. Conducting their experiments in film not through ‘pure’ abstraction but through narrative, the montagists made manifest at least two operative levels within the film: the narrative itself and the arrangement of that narrative by which the deeper structures that move it are made legible. Against the seamless, immersive illusionism of commercial cinema, montage was a key for decrypting those social forces, both overt and hidden, that govern human society.

And as such it was method rather than material that was the pathway to truth. Fidelity to the authentic – whether the accurate representation of historical events or the documentary flavouring of Eisensteinian typage – was important only insomuch as it provided the filmmaker with another tool to reach a considerably higher plane of reality.

Midway on their Marxian mission to change the world rather than interpret it, the montagists actively made the world even as they revealed it. In doing so they powerfully expressed the dialectic between control and chaos that would come to be not only one of the chief motors of the essay film but the crux of modernity itself.

Vertov’s Man with a Movie Camera (1929), now claimed as the most venerable and venerated ancestor of the essay film (and this despite its prototypically purist claim to realise a ‘universal’ cinematic language “based on its complete separation from the language of literature and the theatre”) is the archetypal model of this high-modernist agon. While it is the turning of the movie projector itself and the penetrating gaze of Vertov’s kino-eye that sets the whirling dynamo of the city into motion, the recorder creating that which it records, that motion is also outside its control.

At the dawn of the cinematic century, the American writer Henry Adams saw in the dynamo both the expression of human mastery over nature and a conduit to mysterious, elemental powers beyond our comprehension. So, too, the modernist ambition expressed in literature, painting, architecture and cinema to capture a subject from all angles – to exhaust its wealth of surfaces, meanings, implications, resonances – collides with awe (or fear) before a plenitude that can never be encompassed.

Remove the high-modernist sense of mission and we can see this same dynamic as animating the essay film – recall that last, parenthetical term in Gorin’s formulation of the essay film, “multiply[ing] the entries and the exits into the material it has elected (or by which it has been elected)”. The nimble movements and multi-angled perspectives of the essay film are founded on this negotiation between active choice and passive possession; on the recognition that even the keenest insight pales in the face of an ultimate unknowability.

The other key inheritance the essay film received from the classical montage tradition, perhaps inevitably, was a progressive spirit, however variously defined. While Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will (1935) and Olympia (1938) amply and chillingly demonstrated that montage, like any instrumental apparatus, has no inherent ideological nature, hers were more the exceptions that proved the rule. (Though why, apart from ideological repulsiveness, should Riefenstahl’s plentifully fabricated ‘documentaries’ not be considered as essay films in their own right?)

The overwhelming fact remains that the great majority of those who drew upon the Soviet montagists for explicitly ideological ends (as opposed to Hollywood’s opportunistic swipings) resided on the left of the spectrum – and, in the montagists’ most notable successor in the period immediately following, retained their alignment with and inextricability from the state.

Progressive vs radical

The Grierson ian documentary movement in Britain neutered the political and aesthetic radicalism of its more dynamic model in favour of paternalistic progressivism founded on conformity, class complacency and snobbery towards its own medium. But if it offered a far paler antecedent to the essay film than the Soviet montage tradition, it nevertheless represents an important stage in the evolution of the essay-film form, for reasons not unrelated to some of those rather staid qualities.

The Soviet montagists had created a vision of modernity racing into the future at pace with the social and spiritual liberation of its proletarian pilot-passenger, an aggressively public ideology of group solidarity. The Grierson school, by contrast, offered a domesticated image of an efficient, rational and productive modern industrial society based on interconnected but separate public and private spheres, as per the ideological values of middle-class liberal individualism.

The Soviet montagists had looked to forge a universal, ‘pure’ cinematic language, at least before the oppressive dictates of Stalinist socialist realism shackled them. The Grierson school, evincing a middle-class disdain for the popular and ‘low’ arts, sought instead to purify the sullied medium of cinema by importing extra-cinematic prestige: most notably Night Mail (1936), with its Auden -penned, Britten -scored ode to the magic of the mail, or Humphrey Jennings’s salute to wartime solidarity A Diary for Timothy (1945), with its mildly sententious E.M. Forster narration.

What this domesticated dynamism and retrograde pursuit of high-cultural bona fides achieved, however, was to mingle a newfound cinematic language (montage) with a traditionally literary one (narration); and, despite the salutes to state-oriented communality, to re-introduce the individual, idiosyncratic voice as the vehicle of meaning – as the mediating intelligence that connects the viewer to the images viewed.

In Night Mail especially there is, in the whimsy of the Auden text and the film’s synchronisation of private time and public history, an intimation of the essay film’s musing, reflective voice as the chugging rhythm of the narration timed to the speeding wheels of the train gives way to a nocturnal vision of solitary dreamers bedevilled by spectral monsters, awakening in expectation of the postman’s knock with a “quickening of the heart/for who can bear to be forgot?”

It’s a curiously disquieting conclusion: this unsettling, anxious vision of disappearance that takes on an even darker shade with the looming spectre of war – one that rhymes, five decades on, with the wistful search of Marker’s narrator in Sans soleil, seeking those fleeting images which “quicken the heart” in a world where wars both past and present have been forgotten, subsumed in a modern society built upon the systematic banishment of memory.

It is, of course, with the seminal post-war collaborations between Marker and Alain Resnais that the essay film proper emerges. In contrast to the striving culture-snobbery of the Griersonian documentary, the Resnais-Marker collaborations (and the Resnais solo documentary shorts that preceded them) inaugurate a blithe, seemingly effortless dialogue between cinema and the other arts in both their subjects (painting, sculpture) and their assorted creative personnel (writers Paul Éluard , Jean Cayrol , Raymond Queneau , composers Darius Milhaud and Hanns Eisler ). This also marks the point where the revolutionary line of the Soviets and the soft, statist liberalism of the British documentarians give way to a more free-floating but staunchly oppositional leftism, one derived as much from a spirit of humanistic inquiry as from ideological affiliation.

Related to this was the form’s problems with official patronage. Originally conceived as commissions by various French government or government-affiliated bodies, the Resnais-Marker films famously ran into trouble from French censors: Les statues meurent aussi (1953) for its condemnation of French colonialism, Night and Fog for its shots of Vichy policemen guarding deportation camps; the former film would have its second half lopped off before being cleared for screening, the latter its offending shots removed.

Appropriately, it is at this moment that the emphasis of the essay film begins to shift away from tactile presence – the whirl of the city, the rhythm of the rain, the workings of industry – to felt absence. The montagists had marvelled at the workings of human creations which raced ahead irrespective of human efforts; here, the systems created by humanity to master the world write, in their very functioning, an epitaph for those things extinguished in the act of mastering them. The African masks preserved in the Musée de l’Homme in Les statues meurent aussi speak of a bloody legacy of vanquished and conquered civilisations; the labyrinthine archival complex of the Bibliothèque Nationale in the sardonically titled Toute la mémoire du monde (1956) sparks a disquisition on all that is forgotten in the act of cataloguing knowledge; the miracle of modern plastics saluted in the witty, industrially commissioned Le Chant du styrène (1958) regresses backwards to its homely beginnings; in Night and Fog an unprecedentedly enormous effort of human organisation marshals itself to actively produce a dreadful, previously unimaginable nullity.

To overstate the case, loss is the primary motor of the modern essay film: loss of belief in the image’s ability to faithfully reflect reality; loss of faith in the cinema’s ability to capture life as it is lived; loss of illusions about cinema’s ‘purity’, its autonomy from the other arts or, for that matter, the world.

“You never know what you may be filming,” notes one of Marker’s narrating surrogates in A Grin Without a Cat, as footage of the Chilean equestrian team at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics offers a glimpse of a future member of the Pinochet junta. The image and sound captured at the time of filming offer one facet of reality; it is only with this lateral move outside that reality that the future reality it conceals can speak.

What will distinguish the essay film, as Bazin noted, is not only its ability to make the image but also its ability to interrogate it, to dispel the illusion of its sovereignty and see it as part of a matrix of meaning that extends beyond the screen. No less than were the montagists, the film-essayists seek the motive forces of modern society not by crystallising eternal verities in powerful images but by investigating that ever-shifting, kaleidoscopic relationship between our regime of images and the realities it both reveals and occludes.

— Andrew Tracy

1. À propos de Nice

Jean Vigo, 1930

Few documentaries have achieved the cult status of the 22-minute A propos de Nice, co-directed by Jean Vigo and cameraman Boris Kaufman at the beginning of their careers. The film retains a spontaneous, apparently haphazard, quality yet its careful montage combines a strong realist drive, lyrical dashes – helped by Marc Perrone’s accordion music – and a clear political agenda.

In today’s era, in which the Côte d’Azur has become a byword for hedonistic consumption, it’s refreshing to see a film that systematically undermines its glossy surface. Using images sometimes ‘stolen’ with hidden cameras, A propos de Nice moves between the city’s main sites of pleasure: the Casino, the Promenade des Anglais, the Hotel Negresco and the carnival. Occasionally the filmmakers remind us of the sea, the birds, the wind in the trees but mostly they contrast people: the rich play tennis, the poor boules; the rich have tea, the poor gamble in the (then) squalid streets of the Old Town.

As often, women bear the brunt of any critique of bourgeois consumption: a rich old woman’s head is compared to an ostrich, others grin as they gaze up at phallic factory chimneys; young women dance frenetically, their crotch to the camera. In the film’s most famous image, an elegant woman is ‘stripped’ by the camera to reveal her naked body – not quite matched by a man’s shoes vanishing to display his naked feet to the shoe-shine.

An essay film avant la lettre , A propos de Nice ends on Soviet-style workers’ faces and burning furnaces. The message is clear, even if it has not been heeded by history.

— Ginette Vincendeau

2. A Diary for Timothy

Humphrey Jennings, 1945

A Diary for Timothy takes the form of a journal addressed to the eponymous Timothy James Jenkins, born on 3 September 1944, exactly five years after Britain’s entry into World War II . The narrator, Michael Redgrave , a benevolent offscreen presence, informs young Timothy about the momentous events since his birth and later advises that, even when the war is over, there will be “everyday danger”.

The subjectivity and speculative approach maintained throughout are more akin to the essay tradition than traditional propaganda in their rejection of mere glib conveyance of information or thunderous hectoring. Instead Jennings invites us quietly to observe the nuances of everyday life as Britain enters the final chapter of the war. Against the momentous political backdrop, otherwise routine, everyday activities are ascribed new profundity as the Welsh miner Geronwy, Alan the farmer, Bill the railway engineer and Peter the convalescent fighter pilot go about their daily business.

Within the confines of the Ministry of Information’s remit – to lift the spirits of a battle-weary nation – and the loose narrative framework of Timothy’s first six months, Jennings finds ample expression for the kind of formal experiment that sets his work apart from that of other contemporary documentarians. He worked across film, painting, photography, theatrical design, journalism and poetry; in Diary his protean spirit finds expression in a manner that transgresses the conventional parameters of wartime propaganda, stretching into film poem, philosophical reflection, social document, surrealistic ethnographic observation and impressionistic symphony. Managing to keep to the right side of sentimentality, it still makes for potent viewing.

— Catherine McGahan

3. Toute la mémoire du monde

Alain Resnais, 1956

In the opening credits of Toute la mémoire du monde, alongside the director’s name and that of producer Pierre Braunberger , one reads the mysterious designation “Groupe des XXX ”. This Group of Thirty was an assembly of filmmakers who mobilised in the early 1950s to defend the “style, quality and ambitious subject matter” of short films in post-war France; the signatories of its 1953 ‘Declaration’ included Resnais , Chris Marker and Agnès Varda. The success of the campaign contributed to a golden age of short filmmaking that would last a decade and form the crucible of the French essay film.

A 22-minute poetic documentary about the old French Bibliothèque Nationale, Toute la mémoire du monde is a key work in this strand of filmmaking and one which can also be seen as part of a loose ‘trilogy of memory’ in Resnais’s early documentaries. Les statues meurent aussi (co-directed with Chris Marker) explored cultural memory as embodied in African art and the depredations of colonialism; Night and Fog was a seminal reckoning with the historical memory of the Nazi death camps. While less politically controversial than these earlier works, Toute la mémoire du monde’s depiction of the Bibliothèque Nationale is still oddly suggestive of a prison, with its uniformed guards and endless corridors. In W.G. Sebald ’s 2001 novel Austerlitz, directly after a passage dedicated to Resnais’s film, the protagonist describes his uncertainty over whether, when using the library, he “was on the Islands of the Blest, or, on the contrary, in a penal colony”.

Resnais explores the workings of the library through the effective device of following a book from arrival and cataloguing to its delivery to a reader (the book itself being something of an in-joke: a mocked-up travel guide to Mars in the Petite Planète series Marker was then editing for Editions du Seuil). With Resnais’s probing, mobile camerawork and a commentary by French writer Remo Forlani, Toute la mémoire du monde transforms the library into a mysterious labyrinth, something between an edifice and an organism: part brain and part tomb.

— Chris Darke

4. The House is Black

(Khaneh siah ast) Forough Farrokhzad, 1963

Before the House of Makhmalbaf there was The House is Black. Called “the greatest of all Iranian films” by critic Jonathan Rosenbaum, who helped translate the subtitles from Farsi into English, this 20-minute black-and-white essay film by feminist poet Farrokhzad was shot in a leper colony near Tabriz in northern Iran and has been heralded as the touchstone of the Iranian New Wave.

The buildings of the Baba Baghi colony are brick and peeling whitewash but a student asked to write a sentence using the word ‘house’ offers Khaneh siah ast : the house is black. His hand, seen in close-up, is one of many in the film; rather than objects of medical curiosity, these hands – some fingerless, many distorted by the disease – are agents, always in movement, doing, making, exercising, praying. In putting white words on the blackboard, the student makes part of the film; in the next shots, the film’s credits appear, similarly handwritten on the same blackboard.

As they negotiate the camera’s gaze and provide the soundtrack by singing, stamping and wheeling a barrow, the lepers are co-authors of the film. Farrokhzad echoes their prayers, heard and seen on screen, with her voiceover, which collages religious texts, beginning with the passage from Psalm 55 famously set to music by Mendelssohn (“O for the wings of a dove”).

In the conjunctions between Farrokhzad’s poetic narration and diegetic sound, including tanbur-playing, an intense assonance arises. Its beat is provided by uniquely lyrical associative editing that would influence Abbas Kiarostami , who quotes Farrokhzad’s poem ‘The Wind Will Carry Us’ in his eponymous film . Repeated shots of familiar bodily movement, made musical, move the film insistently into the viewer’s body: it is infectious. Posing a question of aesthetics, The House Is Black uses the contagious gaze of cinema to dissolve the screen between Us and Them.

— Sophie Mayer

5. Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still

Jean-Luc Godard & Jean-Pierre Gorin, 1972

With its invocation of Brecht (“Uncle Bertolt”), rejection of visual pleasure (for 52 minutes we’re mostly looking at a single black-and-white still) and discussion of the role of intellectuals in “the revolution”, Letter to Jane is so much of its time as to appear untranslatable to the present except as a curio from a distant era of radical cinema. Between 1969 and 1971, Godard and Gorin made films collectively as part of the Dziga Vertov Group before they returned, in 1972, to the mainstream with Tout va bien , a big-budget film about the aftermath of May 1968 featuring leftist stars Yves Montand and Jane Fonda . It was to the latter that Godard and Gorin directed their Letter after seeing a news photograph of her on a solidarity visit to North Vietnam in August 1972.

Intended to accompany the US release of Tout va bien, Letter to Jane is ‘a letter’ only in as much as it is fairly conversational in tone, with Godard and Gorin delivering their voiceovers in English. It’s stylistically more akin to the ‘blackboard films’ of the time, with their combination of pedagogical instruction and stern auto-critique.

It’s also an inspired semiological reading of a media image and a reckoning with the contradictions of celebrity activism. Godard and Gorin examine the image’s framing and camera angle and ask why Fonda is the ‘star’ of the photograph while the Vietnamese themselves remain faceless or out of focus? And what of her expression of compassionate concern? This “expression of an expression” they trace back, via an elaboration of the Kuleshov effect , through other famous faces – Henry Fonda , John Wayne , Lillian Gish and Falconetti – concluding that it allows for “no reverse shot” and serves only to bolster Western “good conscience”.

Letter to Jane is ultimately concerned with the same question that troubled philosophers such as Levinas and Derrida : what’s at stake ethically when one claims to speak “in place of the other”? Any contemporary critique of celebrity activism – from Bono and Geldof to Angelina Jolie – should start here, with a pair of gauchiste trolls muttering darkly beneath a press shot of ‘Hanoi Jane’.

6. F for Fake

Orson Welles, 1973

Those who insist it was all downhill for Orson Welles after Citizen Kane would do well to take a close look at this film made more than three decades later, in its own idiosyncratic way a masterpiece just as innovative as his better-known feature debut.

Perhaps the film’s comparative and undeserved critical neglect is due to its predominantly playful tone, or perhaps it’s because it is a low-budget, hard-to-categorise, deeply personal work that mixes original material with plenty of footage filmed by others – most extensively taken from a documentary by François Reichenbach about Clifford Irving and his bogus biography of his friend Elmyr de Hory , an art forger who claimed to have painted pictures attributed to famous names and hung in the world’s most prestigious galleries.

If the film had simply offered an account of the hoaxes perpetrated by that disreputable duo, it would have been entertaining enough but, by means of some extremely inventive, innovative and inspired editing, Welles broadens his study of fakery to take in his own history as a ‘charlatan’ – not merely his lifelong penchant for magician’s tricks but also the 1938 radio broadcast of his news-report adaptation of H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds – as well as observations on Howard Hughes , Pablo Picasso and the anonymous builders of Chartres cathedral. So it is that Welles contrives to conjure up, behind a colourful cloak of consistently entertaining mischief, a rueful meditation on truth and falsehood, art and authorship – a subject presumably dear to his heart following Pauline Kael ’s then recent attempts to persuade the world that Herman J. Mankiewicz had been the real creative force behind Kane.

As a riposte to that thesis (albeit never framed as such), F for Fake is subtle, robust, supremely erudite and never once bitter; the darkest moment – as Welles contemplates the serene magnificence of Chartres – is at once an uncharacteristic but touchingly heartfelt display of humility and a poignant memento mori. And it is in this delicate balancing of the autobiographical with the universal, as well as in the dazzling deployment of cinematic form to illustrate and mirror content, that the film works its once unique, now highly influential magic.

— Geoff Andrew

7. How to Live in the German Federal Republic

(Leben – BRD ) Harun Farocki, 1990

Harun Farocki ’s portrait of West Germany in 32 simulations from training sessions has no commentary, just the actions themselves in all their surreal beauty, one after the other. The Bundesrepublik Deutschland is shown as a nation of people who can deal with everything because they have been prepared – taught how to react properly in every possible situation.

We know how birth works; how to behave in kindergarten; how to chat up girls, boys or whatever we fancy (for we’re liberal-minded, if only in principle); how to look for a job and maybe live without finding one; how to wiggle our arses in the hottest way possible when we pole-dance, or manage a hostage crisis without things getting (too) bloody. Whatever job we do, we know it by heart; we also know how to manage whatever kind of psychological breakdown we experience; and we are also prepared for the end, and even have an idea about how our burial will go. This is the nation: one of fearful people in dire need of control over their one chance of getting it right.

Viewed from the present, How to Live in the German Federal Republic is revealed as the archetype of many a Farocki film in the decades to follow, for example Die Umschulung (1994), Der Auftritt (1996) or Nicht ohne Risiko (2004), all of which document as dispassionately as possible different – not necessarily simulated – scenarios of social interactions related to labour and capital. For all their enlightening beauty, none of these ever came close to How to Live in the German Federal Republic which, depending on one’s mood, can play like an absurd comedy or the most gut-wrenching drama. Yet one disquieting thing is certain: How to Live in the German Federal Republic didn’t age – our lives still look the same.

— Olaf Möller

8. One Man’s War

(La Guerre d’un seul homme) Edgardo Cozarinsky , 1982

One Man’s War proves that an auteur film can be made without writing a line, recording a sound or shooting a single frame. It’s easy to point to the ‘extraordinary’ character of the film, given its combination of materials that were not made to cohabit; there couldn’t be a less plausible dialogue than the one Cozarinsky establishes between the newsreels shot during the Nazi occupation of Paris and the Parisian diaries of novelist and Nazi officer Ernst Jünger . There’s some truth to Pascal Bonitzer’s assertion in Cahiers du cinéma in 1982 that the principle of the documentary was inverted here, since it is the images that provide a commentary for the voice.

But that observation still doesn’t pin down the uniqueness of a work that forces history through a series of registers, styles and dimensions, wiping out the distance between reality and subjectivity, propaganda and literature, cinema and journalism, daily life and dream, and establishing the idea not so much of communicating vessels as of contaminating vessels.

To enquire about the essayistic dimension of One Man’s War is to submit it to a test of purity against which the film itself is rebelling. This is no ars combinatoria but systems of collision and harmony; organic in their temporal development and experimental in their procedural eagerness. It’s like a machine created to die instantly; neither Cozarinsky nor anyone else could repeat the trick, as is the case with all great avant-garde works.

By blurring the genre of his literary essays, his fictional films, his archival documentaries, his literary fictions, Cozarinsky showed he knew how to reinvent the erasure of borders. One Man’s War is not a film about the Occupation but a meditation on the different forms in which that Occupation can be represented.

—Sergio Wolf. Translated by Mar Diestro-Dópido

9. Sans soleil

Chris Marker, 1982

There are many moments to quicken the heart in Sans soleil but one in particular demonstrates the method at work in Marker’s peerless film. An unseen female narrator reads from letters sent to her by a globetrotting cameraman named Sandor Krasna (Marker’s nom de voyage), one of which muses on the 11th-century Japanese writer Sei Shōnagon .

As we hear of Shōnagon’s “list of elegant things, distressing things, even of things not worth doing”, we watch images of a missile being launched and a hovering bomber. What’s the connection? There is none. Nothing here fixes word and image in illustrative lockstep; it’s in the space between them that Sans soleil makes room for the spectator to drift, dream and think – to inimitable effect.

Sans soleil was Marker’s return to a personal mode of filmmaking after more than a decade in militant cinema. His reprise of the epistolary form looks back to earlier films such as Letter from Siberia (1958) but the ‘voice’ here is both intimate and removed. The narrator’s reading of Krasna’s letters flips the first person to the third, using ‘he’ instead of ‘I’. Distance and proximity in the words mirror, multiply and magnify both the distances travelled and the time spanned in the images, especially those of the 1960s and its lost dreams of revolutionary social change.

While it’s handy to define Sans soleil as an ‘essay film’, there’s something about the dry term that doesn’t do justice to the experience of watching it. After Marker’s death last year, when writing programme notes on the film, I came up with a line that captures something of what it’s like to watch Sans soleil: “a mesmerising, lucid and lovely river of film, which, like the river of the ancients, is never the same when one steps into it a second time”.

10. Handsworth Songs

Black Audio Film Collective, 1986

Made at the time of civil unrest in Birmingham, this key example of the essay film at its most complex remains relevant both formally and thematically. Handsworth Songs is no straightforward attempt to provide answers as to why the riots happened; instead, using archive film spliced with made and found footage of the events and the media and popular reaction to them, it creates a poetic sense of context.

The film is an example of counter-media in that it slows down the demand for either immediate explanation or blanket condemnation. Its stillness allows the history of immigration and the subsequent hostility of the media and the police to the black and Asian population to be told in careful detail.

One repeated scene shows a young black man running through a group of white policemen who surround him on all sides. He manages to break free several times before being wrestled to the ground; if only for one brief, utopian moment, an entirely different history of race in the UK is opened up.

The waves of post-war immigration are charted in the stories told both by a dominant (and frequently repressive) televisual narrative and, importantly, by migrants themselves. Interviews mingle with voiceover, music accompanies the machines that the Windrush generation work at. But there are no definitive answers here, only, as the Black Audio Film Collective memorably suggests, “the ghosts of songs”.

— Nina Power

11. Los Angeles Plays Itself

Thom Andersen, 2003

One of the attractions that drew early film pioneers out west, besides the sunlight and the industrial freedom, was the versatility of the southern Californian landscape: with sea, snowy mountains, desert, fruit groves, Spanish missions, an urban downtown and suburban boulevards all within a 100-mile radius, the Los Angeles basin quickly and famously became a kind of giant open-air film studio, available and pliant.

Of course, some people actually live there too. “Sometimes I think that gives me the right to criticise,” growls native Angeleno Andersen in his forensic three-hour prosecution of moving images of the movie city, whose mounting litany of complaints – couched in Encke King’s gravelly, near-parodically irritated voiceover, and sometimes organised, as Stuart Klawans wrote in The Nation, “in the manner of a saloon orator” – belies a sly humour leavening a radically serious intent.

Inspired in part by Mark Rappaport’s factual essay appropriations of screen fictions (Rock Hudson’s Home Movies, 1993; From the Journals of Jean Seberg , 1995), as well as Godard’s Histoire(s) de cinéma, this “city symphony in reverse” asserts public rights to our screen discourse through its magpie method as well as its argument. (Today you could rebrand it ‘Occupy Hollywood’.) Tinseltown malfeasance is evidenced across some 200 different film clips, from offences against geography and slurs against architecture to the overt historical mythologies of Chinatown (1974), Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) and L.A. Confidential (1997), in which the city’s class and cultural fault-lines are repainted “in crocodile tears” as doleful tragedies of conspiracy, promoting hopelessness in the face of injustice.

Andersen’s film by contrast spurs us to independent activism, starting with the reclamation of our gaze: “What if we watch with our voluntary attention, instead of letting the movies direct us?” he asks, peering beyond the foregrounding of character and story. And what if more movies were better and more useful, helping us see our world for what it is? Los Angeles Plays Itself grows most moving – and useful – extolling the Los Angeles neorealism Andersen has in mind: stories of “so many men unneeded, unwanted”, as he says over a scene from Billy Woodberry’s Bless Their Little Hearts (1983), “in a world in which there is so much to be done”.

— Nick Bradshaw

12. La Morte Rouge

Víctor Erice, 2006

The famously unprolific Spanish director Víctor Erice may remain best known for his full-length fiction feature The Spirit of the Beehive (1973), but his other films are no less rewarding. Having made a brilliant foray into the fertile territory located somewhere between ‘documentary’ and ‘fiction’ with The Quince Tree Sun (1992), in this half-hour film made for the ‘Correspondences’ exhibition exploring resemblances in the oeuvres of Erice and Kiarostami , the relationship between reality and artifice becomes his very subject.

A ‘small’ work, it comprises stills, archive footage, clips from an old Sherlock Holmes movie, a few brief new scenes – mostly without actors – and music by Mompou and (for once, superbly used) Arvo Pärt . If its tone – it’s introduced as a “soliloquy” – and scale are modest, its thematic range and philosophical sophistication are considerable.

The title is the name of the Québécois village that is the setting for The Scarlet Claw (1944), a wartime Holmes mystery starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce which was the first movie Erice ever saw, taken by his sister to the Kursaal cinema in San Sebastian.

For the five-year-old, the experience was a revelation: unable to distinguish the ‘reality’ of the newsreel from that of the nightmare world of Roy William Neill’s film, he not only learned that death and murder existed but noted that the adults in the audience, presumably privy to some secret knowledge denied him, were unaffected by the corpses on screen. Had this something to do with war? Why was La Morte Rouge not on any map? And what did it signify that postman Potts was not, in fact, Potts but the killer – and an actor (whatever that was) to boot?

From such personal reminiscences – evoked with wondrous intimacy in the immaculate Castillian of the writer-director’s own wry narration – Erice fashions a lyrical meditation on themes that have underpinned his work from Beehive to Broken Windows (2012): time and change, memory and identity, innocence and experience, war and death. And because he understands, intellectually and emotionally, that the time-based medium he himself works in can reveal unforgettably vivid realities that belong wholly to the realm of the imaginary, La Morte Rouge is a great film not only about the power of cinema but about life itself.

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COMMENTS

When Writing a Movie Title in an Essay: Expert Recommendations
1. Capitalize the first and last words of the movie title, as well as any other important words. For example, in the movie title "The Shawshank Redemption," capitalize "The," "Shawshank," and "Redemption.". 2. Capitalize all nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs within the movie title.
How Do You Write a Movie Title in an Essay? Complete Guide
To list a movie in an essay, you should italicize the movie title and include the release year to provide contextual information. For instance, The Great Gatsby (2013). This helps in distinguishing movies with similar titles and enhances the clarity of your essay. Always adhere to the specific formatting guidelines of the academic style you are ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay or Article
Refer to the relevant section, depending on the piece you are creating. The main things to know are: If you are writing a movie title in an article, the format you use is up to you (or the company you work for). Pick a format and stick to it. If you are writing a movie title in an essay, then you should follow your university's or employer's ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
For APA style (1): Uppercase all four-letter words and above. Uppercase the first and the last word of a movie title, even if they are short articles (a, the) or pronouns (in, at, etc.) Italicize the entire name. Bonus: APA Citation for the Bible. For MLA format (2):
How to Format Movie Titles in Writing: A Comprehensive Guide
1. Capitalization and punctuation: - In general, capitalize the principal words of the movie title. - Use italics to format movie titles, unless you're writing by hand or on a platform without italics capability. - Don't place a period at the end of a movie title, even when the title itself is a complete sentence. 2.
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay: Examples and Tips
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay with Tips. Write about the correct movie. Check the words of the title. Be careful with words like "a" and "the". Use capital letters in the movie's title. Use Italics in movie titles. Write the movie's release year.
When Writing the Title of a Movie in an Essay: Correct Format
When it comes to writing movie titles in essays, it's important to follow a set of key guidelines to ensure clarity and accuracy. Whether you're discussing a classic film or analyzing the latest blockbuster, here are some essential tips to consider when incorporating movie titles into your writing. 1. Capitalization is crucial: Movie titles ...
Movie Titles Examples & Style Guide
if they are the first word in the title. proper nouns must always be capitalized. For example: The 2012 Oscar for the best foreign-language film went to A Separation by Asghar Farhadi. Although a ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
The best way to get good at writing movie titles in essays is to practice. Write a few sentences or a short paragraph about your favorite movie and focus on correctly formatting the title. Here's an example to get you started: Inception is a mind-bending thriller that explores the concept of dreams within dreams. Directed by Christopher Nolan ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
All main parts of speech start with a capital letter in movie names. Exceptions: Determiners like definite and indefinite articles (the, a, an) Short prepositions and conjunctions (those shorter than four letters): of, on, in, and, etc. Use uppercase for the above only if a movie title begins or ends with the article or short prepositions.
How to write the title of a Movie in an Essay
The correct way to write a movie title on an MLA-style paper is to capitalize the first letter of the first word and all the principal words in the title, including the hyphenated words. These words include proper nouns, common nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, subordinating conjunctions, and verbs.
Learn How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay With Ease
To succeed in writing an essay about a movie, follow these core principles and rules: General rules. Discuss the movie background first; Share your own experience; Study the main ideas and topics, and discuss how they were disclosed in the movie; Tell what lessons it can teach. Basic grammar rules.
How to Write a Title of a Movie in a Paper
In AP style, movie titles are placed in quotes. Note that the normal rules for quotes within quotes still apply. Here are two examples: "Star Wars" broke box office records when it was first released. "I am excited to work on any film as complex as 'The Prestige,'" he said. AP style uses title case capitalization for movie titles.
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
To refer to a film in an essay, italicize the title if it is a full-length movie, for instance, Schindler's List. Mention the director and the release year in your text or citations. For example, you could write, "Spielberg's Schindler's List (1993) is a powerful film about the Holocaust.".
Your Guide to Writing a Movie Title in Essay
Movie Title in Writing. You will format your essays using APA, MLA, or Chicago styles. While these disagree on different issues, they agree on a few core components. For instance, these styles need you to capitalize all movie titles. They also require you to capitalize adverbs, nouns, verbs, and pronouns.
How To Write Movie Title In Essay
This article will provide you with a comprehensive guide on how to write movie titles in an essay, including different formatting styles, punctuation rules, and examples to help you navigate this aspect of writing. Formatting Movie Titles. The formatting of movie titles in essays depends on the citation style being used. The two most common ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay APA?
When it comes to writing a movie title in essays, choosing the right style is crucial, and uppercase is a common choice that brings a touch of formality to your writing. APA style, a prevalent choice in scholarly articles and academia, particularly in the behavioral and social sciences, provides specific guidelines for this. ...
How to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
Here are some general rules to follow: Start the movie title with a capital letter; Capitalize all the nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs; Do not capitalize propositions and articles ...
Best Ways to Write a Movie Title in an Essay
Here are some guidelines for formatting movie titles in APA style: Capitalization: to write a movie title in essay, capitalize the first word of the movie title and any subtitles. Capitalize all major words in the title as well. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or), or prepositions, unless they are the first or ...
Writing About Film
Writing About Film: Terminology and Starting Prompts. This resource describes the terminology used to write about common cinematic techniques and provides some ideas for how to write a film analysis. Written by Kylie Regan.
How to Write A Catchy Title For An Essay?
Think of it as if you are dealing with a book or movie title. While being creative is always good, academic writing requires being readable because of an explanatory tone. ... Do not forget about topic sentences, which also play an important role in the reflection of your essay title. — Write a single sentence that would sum up your paper.
The essay film
Looking for a term to describe it, Bazin hit upon a prophetic turn of phrase, writing that Marker's film is, "to borrow Jean Vigo's formulation of À propos de Nice ('a documentary point of view'), an essay documented by film. The important word is 'essay', understood in the same sense that it has in literature - an essay at ...

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Updated: Aug 06, 2024

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Examples of Correctly Formatted Movie Titles

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