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:
- Title case
- 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
| Style | Format | Example |
| APA | Title Case for Main Words | Fire in the Sky |
| MLA | Title Case for Main Words | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King |
| Chicago | Title Case for Main Words | Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb |
| Harvard | Title Case for Main Words | Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| AP | “Title Case for Main Words” | “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” |
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):
- 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
Bonus: How to Cite Songs in MLA
For Chicago style:
- Uppercase all main words
- Lowercase short conjunctions (below four letters) within the movie title
- Uppercase prepositions, regardless of their length
- Italicize
For AP citation style:
- Uppercase all main words
- 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
- Italicize the entire name
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:
| AP citation style | Chicago style |
| In “The Boy and the Heron,” a heartwarming tale unfolds as young Thomas befriends a majestic heron, forging an unbreakable bond. | In A Nightmare on Elm Street, a chilling horror film, Freddy Krueger haunts viewers, terrorizing teenagers in their dreams. |
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.
Bonus: TED Talk Citation in MLA and APA
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:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Colon is a part of the title, so it goes in italics)
"That Thing You Go!" (Exclamation is a part of the title, so it's inside quotation marks)
Writing Movie Titles in Reference Lists
| Style | Format | Example |
| APA | Director Last name, Initials. (Director). (Year). Movie Title [Film]. Studio. | Nolan, Ch. (Director). (2023). Oppenheimer [Film]. Syncopy Inc. |
| MLA | Movie Title. Directed by First name Last name, Performances by 3 main actors’ First name Last name, Studio, Year. | Oppenheimer. Directed by Christopher Nolan, Performances by Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, and Matt Damon, Syncopy Inc., 2023. |
| Chicago | Director Last name, First name, director. Movie Title. Production Company or Distributor, Year. Movie length. URL. | Nolan, Christopher, director. Oppenheimer. Universal Pictures, 2023. 181 min. https://www.netflix.com/watch/11819086. |
| Harvard | Movie Title. (Year). Directed by Full name. Place of production: Production company. | Oppenheimer. (2023). Directed by Christopher Nolan. USA: Syncopy Inc. |
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: