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Audiovisual Recordings and Other Multimedia

This resource explains how to cite film, television, and other audiovisual materials. Citations for such recorded media usually include some or all of the following information: name of the person primarily responsible for the content of the recording (composer, writer, performer, etc.), a title in quotation marks or italics, recording company or publisher’s name, identifying number, an indication of medium (DVD, videocassette, etc.), and a copyright and/or production or performance date. Entries for recorded material found online should also include a DOI or URL.

Note that the examples below are in the Notes and Bibliography (NB) format.

General Model for Citing Film, Television, and Other Recorded Mediums in Chicago Style

The order of the elements listed—and whether or not they will be included—depends not only on the nature of the source, but also whether a part or the whole source is cited, and whether a particular contributor is the focus of the citation.

Footnote or Endnote (N):

Entire Work:

1. Firstname Lastname, Title of Work, directed/performed by Firstname Lastname (Original release year; City: Studio/Distributor, Video release year), Medium.

Episode:

1. Title of Work, episode number, “Episode Title,” directed/written/performed by Firstname Lastname, aired Month day, year, on Network Name, URL. 

Corresponding Bibliographical Entry (B):

DVD

N:

B:

Musical Recordings  

General audiovisual guidelines apply to music recordings. If no date can be located, CMOS recommends consulting a library catalog or another source. Usually, musical citations without a date are unacceptable, but if they must be used, “n.d.” (for no date) can be substituted. Note that some musical recordings have writers who are not the primary performer(s) on the song, and that this affects the citation.

N:

B: