Resources in Film Studies

General Resources | Indexes and Bibliographies | Canadian Film Resources | Other Resources by Topic | Internet Film Databases | Film Criticism Guides

 
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General Resources


PN 1998.2 .T49 2002 Ref

Thomson, David. The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. 3rd ed.
Provides brief critical assessments of the careers of major actors and directors.

PN 1993.45 .C37 1997 Ref
Law, Jonathan, et al. Cassell Companion to Cinema. Revised and updated Edition.
Other Title: Brewer's Cinema. 
Covers all aspects of cinema life, language, and legend. Deals with the various stages of making a film, from preproduction to editing. Explains roles of key personnel and their equipment. Provides a

glossary from technical and critical, to slang and jargon.

PN1993.45 .E53 2005 Ref
Abel, Richard, ed. Encyclopedia of Early Cinema.'Early cinema' refers to the first twenty-five years of the cinema's emergence at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, from the early 1890s to the middle 1910s.

PN 1995.9 .S6 C465 2003 Stacks
Chapman, James. Cinemas of The World: Film and Society from 1895 to the Present.
Examines the relationship between film and society in the modern world. With a global perspective it covers all major cinemas from around the world.

PN 1993.45 .C5 Ref 1-2
Roud, Richard, ed. Cinema: A Critical Dictionary: The Major Film-makers.
Lengthy articles about various filmmakers and topics, such as American avant-garde cinema. Entries contain bibliographies of major works on chosen topics (although it only covers materials published before 1980).

PN1995 .C629 1999 Stacks
Stam, Robert and Toby Miller eds. A Companion to Film Theory.
Contains a critical essay on each of the major film theories. Each essaydiscusses the context of the theory's origin, its development, its shortcomings, its critics and its current applicability.

PN 1993.45 .K66 1997 Ref
Konigsberg, Ira. The Complete Film Dictionary. 2nd ed.
This guide to the art, technology, and industry of filmmaking defines some 4,000 terms used in film. In addition, there are studio surveys, the historical background of the Oscar, a discussion of genres, and descriptions of seminal film journals. Movie stills help illustrate a concept or style, and drawings clarify the design and working of equipment.

PN 1993.45 .C75 2001 Ref
Roberta E. Pearson and Philip Simpson. Critical Dictionary of Film and Television Theory.
A good source for people unfamiliar with the new terminology in the areas of media and cultural studies. It covers post-1960 film and television theory.

PN 1993.45 .J23 2003 Ref
Jackson, Kevin. The Language of Cinema.
2000 of the most important words associated with the technology, business and skills of film-making, from the A and B roll printing and the auteur theory to Z-movies.

Online Film Dictionary This dictionary is a resource for users to better understand movie-specific terms in foreign languages. The dictionary currently supports the following languages: English, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Serbian, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.

PN 1993.5 .A1 S555 2002 Ref
Abrams, Harry N. World History of Film.
Chronicles over 100 years of international cinema in one oversized volume. Sklar explains the rise and fall of various cinematic trends, documentaries and fiction films alike describing the most important films of each movement. He considerss output and trends from most major countries over the decades while providing a time line that describes other news and cultural events.

PN 1994.5 .P49 2005 Ref
Phillips, William H. Film: An Introduction.
Attempts to help readers to understand the film medium’s general characteristics, achievements and limitations.

TR 847 .B43 1994 Ref
Beaver, Frank. Dictionary of Film Terms: The Aesthetic Companion to Film Analysis.
Definitions of the techniques, concepts, genres and styles that have evolved as a part of cinematic expression and analysis.

PN 1997.8 .A76 2001 Ref
Armstrong, Richard B. Encyclopedia of Film Themes, Settings and Series.
Comprehensive list of  motion picture themes, plot elements, settings, character types, and series with examples of films under each heading. Includes movies linked by a recurring theme, setting or characters, released in theatres or television through 2000.

PN 1993.45 .K34 2005 Ref
Katz, Ephraim. The Film Encyclopedia. 5th ed.
Essays on the movements, theories, major films, directors, and actors in a volume that serves as one of the most respected single volume encyclopedia of film. The entries are not about specific films but about genres, study, significant persons and film history.

Canadian Film Encyclopedia
Online reference project from the Film Reference Library, a leading educator and research and information resource for Canadian film, containing almost 500 film titles, biographical and subject entries, and covering some of Canada's foremost historical and modern films and filmmakers.

PN 1994.9 .N69 1994 Ref
Nowlan, Robert A. and Gwendolyn W. Nowlan. Film quotations: 11,000 lines spoken on screen, arranged by subject, and indexed

PN 1993.45 .S56 2000 Ref
Singleton Ralph S. and James A. Conrad. Filmmaker's Dictionary.
Quick reference guide to current terminology used in filmmaking.

PN 1993.45 .H3 1997 Ref
Halliwell, Leslie. Halliwell’s Filmgoer’s Companion. 12th ed.
Features biographies of individual actors, directors, producers, etc., descriptions of films, and short discussions of selected films.

PN 1993.5 .A1C65 2004 Stacks
Cook, David A. A History of Narrative Film. 4th ed. 
This textbook traces the history of narrative film from its development to the present day. Details of different periods and styles are included.

PN 1997.8 .I58 1997 Ref 1-4
International Dictionary of Film and Filmmakers.
Four volumes - Films; Directors; Actors and Actresses; and Writers and Production Artists with encyclopedic and bibliographic information. International in scope. 680 entries in the Films volume with production information, a list of cast and crews, a bibliography on the film, and an essay by a specialist in that area.

PN 1995.9 .M56 W45 2005 Ref
Welsch Janice R. and J. Q. Adams. Multicultural Films: A Reference Guide.
Brief synopses and critiques of motion pictures that deal with issues of race/ethnicity in the United States. A thematic guide helps readers choose a single film or series of films that address specific topics.

PN 1995.75 .M33
Magill, Frank N. Magill's Survey of Cinema: Silent Films.

PN 1993.5 .A1O96 1995 Ref
Nowell-Smith, Geoffrey. The Oxford History of World Cinema.
Three sections -"The Silent Era, 1895-1930", "The Coming of Sound, 1930-1960" and "The Modern Cinema, 1960-1995". "Special features" on 150 people who influenced cinema, in front of the cameras or behind them. Essays on animation, on technical innovations, on censorship, film-music and on the documentary. Critical approaches, from Marxism and psychoanalysis to structuralism, semiotics and feminism.

PN 1993.5 .A1M39 1996 Stacks
Mast, Gerald. Short History of the Movies. 6th ed. 
Mast chronicles the historical development of the cinema. The organization of the book is loosely chronological but it is also geographic, based on technological advancement, and based on major cinematic movements. Illustrated throughout.

PN 1995 .B617 2004 Stacks
Bordwell, David and Kristin Thompson. Film Art: An Introduction.
The authors set out to survey the world of film aesthetics. There are extended discussions of Alfred Hitchcock, Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, Orson Welles, and other directors. The authors use these directors and their movies to illustrate larger points about the composition of a film. The authors also provide basic criteria that make a movie good.

PN 1995.75 .K57 1999 Ref
Klepper Robert K. Silent Films, 1877-1996: A Critical Guide to 646 Movies.
The work covers 119 years of film. Provides a comprehensive study of the topic. Offers brief plot summary and evaluation. Extensive bibliography of the works consulted and a comprehensive bibliography of films and people.

PN 1995.9 .S76 M85 2004 Ref
Muir, John Kenneth. The Encyclopedia of Superheroes on Film and Television.
Complete guide to over fifty years of superheroes on screen! Entries include a detailed history, cast and credits, episode and film descriptions, critical commentaries and data on arch-villains, gadgets, comic-book origins and super powers, while placing each production into its historical context. Four appendices list common conventions and clichés of superheroes on screen, incarnations, a sampling of memorable superhero ad-lines, and the best, worst, and most influential superhero productions from 1951 to 2003.

PN 1995 .C66 2001 Ref
Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film. 6 th ed. (5th ed., 2004, in the stacks)
An excellent guide to analyzing and writing about film.

PN 1996 .F447 Ref
Film Writers Guide. 5th ed.(1995)
Comprehensive reference to screenwriters and their work, including notable writers of the past.

PN1995.9 .F54 M39 2007 Ref Encyclopedia of Film Noir. Geoff Mayer and Brian McDonnell, Eds. Provides a scholary yet accessible, comprehensive account of film noir, both classical and neo-noir

PN 1998 .C323 1996 Ref

Case Christopher. The Ultimate Movie Thesaurus.
This volume is excellent for finding films with similar themes/characters. Two sections - films by title; and categories and genres - list over 8000 films and 1600 categories. The title entries list the year produced; rating; running time; production company; a synopsis of the plot; while the designation of a category index lists films with similar themes. Two appendices offer box office hits by year, and star ratings by year.

CB 245 .H45 1996 Ref
Heyman, Neil M. Western Civilization: A Critical Guide to Documentary Films.
Arranged alphabetically by title within eighteen broad chronological headings, beginning with Pre-History through the Post-World War II era. Entries include name of series (if part of one), duration in minutes, whether colour or black-and-white, producer, release date, one-sentence summary, a grade ranging from A to D, and a lucid, critical essay.

PN 1998.2 .W67 1987 Ref 1,2.
Wakeman, John, ed. World Film Directors.
An excellent introduction to the work and lives of about 400 of the world’s best known directors. International in scope, although Third World cinema receives limited attention. Volume I covers from 1890 to 1945, volume II from 1945 to 1985.

PN1995.9.D6 E53 2005

Aitken, Ian Ed. Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film.
With over 800 articles from scholars around the world, the Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film is a fully international reference work on the history of the documentary film from the Lumière brothers' Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory (1885) to Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911.

PN3448 .D4 C75 2008
Rollyson, Carl ed. Critical Survey of Mystery and Detective Fiction. (5vols.).
Contains articles about individual authors of mystery and dete
ctive fiction and a glossary. In addition there are overview essays and several appendixes

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Indexes and Bibliographies


Art Abstracts and Art Index

Provides comprehensive abstracting and indexing of 260 international art publications. These databases are critical resources for any type of art research. Indexes the leading film journals as well as articles on film published in non-film journals. Index coverage is from 1984; abstract coverage is from 1994.

British Humanities Index
Indexes articles from over 250 international humanities journals and newspapers published in the UK.

AI 3 .C242 VUPR 1938-47, 1948-59, 1960-1987 ; 1988-present online and on CD-ROM at the E.J. Pratt Library
Canadian Periodical Index.
Good for reviews of current and retrospective Canadian films. To find reviews in the print index, look under the heading Moving picture review from 1927 through 1986, and under the heading Movie reviews for 1987. For the electronic version, use the name of the film as a keyword, eliminating excessive irrelevant hits by adding 'and movie reviews' or the director's name to the search box. See the electronic help index for more.

PN 1997.85 .C65 1999 Ref
Goble, Alan ed. Complete Index to Literary Sources on Film.
From the silent era to obscure independent films produced in countries across the globe, entries index 27,890 titles inspired by any of 30,370 literary sources, including plays, novels, short stories and poems. Indexes by Film Title, Author Name, and Literary Source Title.

The Complete Index to World Film Since 1895
Attempts to index "every film, ever made, in any country, at any time." Enlarged from, and an update of, Alan Goble's two-volume printed work, The International Film Index, 1895-1990, it gives credits for directors, and includes filmographies for actors, cinematographers, and composers. The film titles section, which includes TV movies, miniseries, and shorts in addition to theatrically released features, has been updated to mid-1998. Each entry gives releasing/production companies, craft credits, literary source/author, and date/place.

Z 5781 .S16 1984 Ref
Salem, James M. A Guide to Critical Reviews.  
Part of a series, the two volumes which comprise Part IV: The Screenplay provide a bibliography of critical reviews of films and videos appearing in popular American and Canadian periodicals and the New York Times from 1928-1980.

Z 5784.M9 G47 Ref

The Critical Index: A Bibliography of Articles on Film in English, 1946-1973.
Indexes articles from over 20 American, British, and Canadian journals on directors, producers, actors, critics, screenwriters, cinematographers, specific films and the history of the film industry.

Z 5784 .M9B637 1994 Ref
Bowles, Stephen E. The Film Anthologies Index.
This work indexes thousands of articles, books and films about all aspects of cinema. One can find works published in compilations and contents of over 700 film anthologies through 1991, listed by author. Contains an "authors" index, title index, with cross-references by subject in the general index.

Z 5784 .M9 E44 Ref
The Film Book Bibliography 1940-1975.
A classified listing of books "published in English between 1940 and 1975 which deal with various aspects of the motion picture".

Z 5784 .M9 F513 1986 Ref #1,2
Hanson, Patricia King and Stephen L. Hanson (eds.). Film Review Index.
These two volumes present a retrospective bibliography of reviews, criticism and history of specific films which are known to be of special interest to researchers and students. There are two sections, with volume one covering 1882-1949 and volume two covering 1950-1985. They include an alphabetical listing of films, a directors index, a year-produced index and a country-produced index.

Z 5784 .M9 U55 1990 Ref
University of Toronto. Library. A Bibliography of Reference Works for Cinema Studies.

InfoTrac OneFile
OneFile provides coverage of scholarly and general-interest periodicals, including the full text of articles from selected film and film-related journals.  Enter the title of the film and 'reviews'.

International Index to the Performing Arts (IIPA)
Draws its current content from more than 225 international performing arts periodicals and also indexes performing arts related articles and obituaries appearing in The New York Times and The Washington Post. IIPA covers nearly all aspects of performing arts, from scholarly studies to snapshots of popular culture. Most records in the database include an abstract.

Z 5784 .M9 E47 2006 Ref

Emmons, Mark. Film and television: a Guide to the Reference Literature.

Z 5784 .M9 W37 Ref
Welch, Jeffrey. Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1909-1977.
and Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1978-1988. (Z 5784 .M9W375 1993 VUPR)
Lists and annotates all important books and articles published in North America and Great Britain dealing with the relationship between films and works of literature. Items in the bibliography are listed chronologically by year and alphabetically by author's name within the year.

MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
The MLA database is one of the fundamental research tools for the humanities. International in scope, it is especially useful for conducting research into films adapted from literary sources.

Z 5784 .M9R423 1982 Ref
Rehrauer, George. The Macmillan Film Bibliography.
This bibliography consists of two volumes, the first is the bibliography, the second the index. In volume one, books about film are mentioned, the greater part published between 1960 and 1980 in English. The books are arranged alphabetically by title. Most titles are annotated. Information about film and literature can be found in the index at the entry "Literature and Films". The second volume contains three indexes: a subject index, an author index and a script index.

Z 5784 .M9M29 1975 Ref
MacCann Richard Dyer. The New Film Index: A Bibliography of Magazine Articles in English: 1930-1970.
This is a continuation of The Film Index, and runs from 1930 to 1970. Only articles in film periodicals and in general periodicals are mentioned. For film and literature see especially under "General Subjects" the subheadings "Literature and the cinema" and "Adaptations".

Proquest
Lists reviews from 1600 periodicals. Full-text articles are included for some (but not all) periodicals.

AI 3 .R48 Ref
Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature.
Good source for reviews on current films published in general interest periodicals. To find reviews on films from 1925 to February 1977, look under the heading, 'Moving picture plays - Criticism, plots, etc'. For single works and for reviews from March 1977 onwards, see 'Motion pictures - Single works'.

Treasures from the Film Archives
Contains unique information about silent film holdings in international film archives. Included are silent shorts and features, fiction and non-fiction, from over 70 of the world's major film archives. International Index to Film Periodicals is included in this as well.

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Canadian Film Resources


PN 1998.2 .J32 1999 Ref
Jacques, Michel. 519 acteurs québecois de cinéma.   
Previously published under titles: 407 Acteurs Québécois de Cinéma. Québec: Éditions l'Escalier, [1991]; and, Dictionnaire Filmographique des Acteurs Québecois, c1994.

Canadian Business and Current Affairs
Provides access to many aspects of film production worldwide and is particularly helpful for finding reviews of Canadian films which appeared in Canadian newspapers and magazines.

PN 1998 .T87 1986 Ref
Turner D. John. Canadian Feature Film Index, 1913-1985.
An authoritative reference guide providing details of Canadian films' production information. Includes a name index, title-by-year index, title index and production companies index.

PN 1993.5 .C2C3 no. 6 [etc.] Ref 1-3
Morris, Peter. Canadian Feature Films: 1913-1969..
In three parts. Provides a synopsis of each film, plus a bibliography of reviews.

PN 1993.5 .C3C58 1987 Stacks
Clandfield, David. Canadian Film.

Z 5784 M9 L47 1997 Ref
Lerner, Loren R. Canadian Film and Video: A Bibliography and Guide to the Literature.
Provides access to the English and French literature on film and video in Canada during the twentieth century to 1989. 24,800 entries, nearly half of which are annotated. Abstracts are descriptive and detailed. Works cited include both Canadian and foreign popular and scholarly publications, books, newspapers, catalogs, government reports, theses, and newsletters.

AI 3 .C242 Ref 1938-47, 1948-59, 1960-1987 ; 1988-present online
Canadian Periodical Index.
Good for reviews of current and retrospective Canadian films. To find reviews in the print index, look under the heading Moving picture review from 1927 through 1986, and under the heading Movie reviews for 1987. For the electronic version, use the name of the film as a keyword, eliminating excessive irrelevant hits by adding 'and movie reviews' or the director's name to the search box. See the electronic help index for further searching hints.

PN 1993.5 .C3 P687 2003
Pratley, Gerald. Century of Canadian Cinema: Gerald Pratley's Feature Film Guide 1900 to the Present
More than 2,000 feature films have been made in this country. Gerald Pratley has, after 50 years of championing Canadian cinema, written a personal guide to the best and worst.

PN 1993.45 .D42 1991 Ref
Coulombe, Michel and Marcel Jean, et al. Le Dictionnaire du Cinéma Québécois.
A guide to the films and personalities associated with film production in Quebec.

PN 1993.5 .C2D62 1988 Stacks
Fetherling, Doug, ed. Documents in Canadian Film.

Eastern Eye: A Nova Scotia Filmography, 1899-1973.  
A WWW bibliography of film, video and selected television productions, created by, for or about Nova Scotians, 1899-1973. The file includes 'A Brief History of Film in Nova Scotia' and a database of 2500+ film descriptions and indexes.

Z 5784 .M9F42 Ref
Film/video Canadiana = Film/vidéo Canadiana. (1985/86-1987/88)

The national catalogue of Canadian-produced films and videos organizes entries by title; includes bilingual French and English subject indexes, producer and director indexes, etc. Updates Film Canadiana (1969/70-1983/84).

PN 1993.5 .C2M65 1984 Ref
Morris, Peter. The Film Companion
A comprehensive guide to Canadian films and filmmakers.

PN 1993.5 .C2G85 2001 Ref
Rist, Peter. Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada.
Selective entries on major films and notable figures in Canadian cinema. Contains a bibliography and suggested further reading for some entries.

PN 1993.5 .C2H2 1977 Stacks
Beattie, Eleanor. The Handbook of Canadian Film. 2nd ed. 
Primarily consists of short entries on individual filmmakers. Contains interesting, brief sections on film groups, native peoples and film, plus women in film.

PN 1993.5 .C2E83 1991 Stacks
Evans, Gary. In the National Interest: A Chronicle of the National Film Board of Canada from 1949 to 1989.

Z 692 .M9N3 Ref
National Film, Television and Sound Archives (Canada). Inventory of the Collections of the National Film, Television and Sound Archives.

PN 1993 .N363J65 Stacks
Jones, D. B. (David Barker). Movies and Memoranda: An Interpretative History of the National Film Board of Canada.

PN 1998 .N325 1991 Ref
National Film Board of Canada. Bidd, Donald, ed. The NFB Film Guide: The Productions of the National Film Board of Canada from 1939 to 1989.

National Film Board of Canada
NFB Internet site with a database of NFB films.

Canadian Film Encyclopedia
Online reference project from the Film Reference Library, a leading educator and research and information resource for Canadian film, containing almost 500 film titles, biographical and subject entries, and covering some of Canada's foremost historical and modern films and filmmakers.

PN 1993.5 .C2T6 1984 Ref
Topalovich, Maria. A Pictorial History of the Canadian Film Awards.

PN 1993.5 .C3T34 Ref 2001
Wise, Wyndham. Take One's Essential Guide to Canadian Film. 2nd ed.
Combines 700 reviews and biographical listings to provide a comprehensive list of Canadian films both famous and obscure. Provided are short blurbs about the movies and the actors, and directors or producers.

PN 1998 .A1W5 Ref 1999
Who's Who in Canadian Film and Television = Qui est qui au cinéma et à la télévision au Canada.

A look at the behind-the-camera talent in Canadian film and television.

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Other Resources by Topic

Adaptations

PN 1997.85 .T54 2005 Ref
Tibbetts, John C. Encyclopedia of Novels into Film. 2nd Ed.

PN 1997.85 .T544 2001 Ref
Tibbetts, John C. Encyclopedia of Stage Plays into Film.

Z 5784 .M9B385 2003 Ref
Baskin, Ellen. Enser’s Filmed Books and Plays: A List of Books and Plays from which Films Have Been Made, 1928-1991.

Z 5784 .M9W37 Ref
Welch, Jeffrey. Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1909-1977.
and Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1978-1988. (Z 5784 .M9W375 1993 Ref)
Lists and annotates all important books and articles published in North America and Great Britain dealing with the relationship between films and works of literature. Items in the bibliography are listed chronologically by year and alphabetically by author's name within the year.

PN 1995.9 .R45M5 1990 Ref
Milberg Doris. Repeat performances: A Guide to Hollywood Movie Remakes.

PN 1997.85 .V53 2000 Ref
Erskine, Thomas L. and James M. Welsh. Video Versions: Film Adaptations of Plays on Video.
Contains essays and other information on about 300 filmed adaptations of plays. It emphasizes plays written in or translated into English, especially the "classics" and those deemed to have literary or social merit. Entries include the year of release, director, screenplay adapter, cast, length, along with an essay and sources for further reading.

American Film

PN 1993.5 .U6 A59 2000 Ref
100 years of American Film.
An encyclopedic compendium of information regarding the American motion picture industry. Entries cover actors, producers, directors, films, genres, terms, organizations, and miscellaneous related topics.

PN 1993.5 .U6 S539 1990 Stacks
Slide, Anthony. The American Film Industry: A Historical Dictionary.
Contains explanations relating to American film studios and organizations, technological innovations and film series and genres. Short bibliographies.

PN 1993.5 .U6 C87 1998
Daniel Curran. Guide to American Cinema, 1965-1995.

American Film Institute Catalog 1883-1996
The AFI Catalog contains listings for every American film ever made- roughly 14,000 from 1893 to 1970 plus a special catalog of ethnic films. The online version contains the full text of the print version plus enhanced searching capabilities e.g., keyword, title, character name, director, cast, release date, etc. The list will continually be updated until it is all-inclusive.

PN 1995.9 .P6C66 1990 Stacks
Combs, James E. American political movies : an annotated filmography of feature films.

PN 1995.9 .N4B58 1988 Ref
Bogle, Donald. Blacks in American Films and Television: An Encyclopedia.
Gives profiles on actors as well as information about movies and television series.

PN 1995.9 .N4S2 1995 Ref
Sampson, Henry T. Blacks in Black and White : A Source Book on Black Film. 2nd Ed.
Details the history of the time when films featuring an all-black cast, produced and directed by blacks, were shown primarily to black audiences in theaters, many of which were owned and operated by blacks. Explores this black film industry from its start in 1910 to its demise in 1950, profiling filmmakers and performers who have been ignored by mainstream historians.

PN 1993.5 .U6F457 1994 Ref
Fetrow, Alan G. Feature Films, 1940-1949: A United States Filmography .
This filmography covers the second decade of "The Golden Age of Hollywood" (see Sound Films, 1927-1939...below for the 1st decade), and the films produced in the United States in that era. Much information is given about each film, including a brief synopsis.

PN 1993.5 .U6F6428 1999 Ref
Fetrow, Alan G. Feature Films, 1950-1959: A United States Filmography .
Third in a series following Sound Films, 1927-1939 and Feature Films, 1940-1949 this book contains 3,076 entries for all feature films made in the US during the 1950s.

PN 1995.9 .P6B66 1999 Ref
Booker, M. Keith. Film and the American Left: A Research Guide.
Provides an analysis of 260 films containing themes, issues, or the involvement of significant figures of the American left. Contains an extensive bibliography.

PN 1995.9 .N4K57 1997 Ref
Klotman, Phyllis Rauch and Gloria Gibson. Frame by Frame II: A Filmography of the African American Image 1978-1994.

and


PN 1995.9 .N4K57 1997 Ref
Klotman, Phyllis Rauch. Frame by Frame: A Black Filmography.
These two volumes are an alphabetical listing of films by and about Blacks in the United States. There are indexes to performers, writers, directors and producers indexes in addition to the alphabetical listing of films. This is not a critical filmography, but it attempts to include all known films relevant to the African American experience.

PN 1995.75 .M22 1999 Ref
McCaffrey, Donald W. Guide to the Silent Years of American Cinema.
Covers key films, actors, directors, and screenwriters from the beginnings of American film to the birth of sound.

PN 1995.9 .S6P67 1996 Stacks
Powers, Stephen. Hollywood's America.
This work is unique in its attempts to analyze social and political themes in motion pictures, produced over the last 4 decades from an empirical social science perspective.

PN 1998.2 .B368 1995  Ref
Barson, Michael. The Illustrated Who's Who of Hollywood Directors.
Hollywood's most famous directors, from Aldrich to Zimmermann.

PN 1993.5 .U6F46 1992 Ref
Fetrow, Alan G., Sound Films, 1927-1939: A United States Filmography.  
This book lists alphabetically by title feature films produced in the US from the beginning of the talkies in 1927 through 1939. Some listings have a plot description.

Australian Film

PN 1993.5 .A8O96 1999 Ref
The Oxford Companion to Australian Film.

Alphabetic listing of major figures, themes and films in Australian cinema.   

British Film

PN 1998 .G55 2001 Ref
Gifford, Denis. The British Film Catalogue.
In two volumes, covering fiction and non-fiction film, this catalogue provides a chronological listing of every film produced in Britain from 1896 to 1994.

PN 1993.5 .G7 M39 2003
Mayer, Geoff. Guide to British Cinema.

Censorship and Film

PN 1995.62 .S67 2001 Ref
Sova, Dawn B. Forbidden films: Censorship Histories of 125 Motion Pictures.
Includes an overview of the history of censorship of films in the United States and examines the censorship of 125 films (American and International) within the United States. Includes an extensive bibliography.

Chinese Film

PN 1993.5 .C4Z53 1998 Ref
Zhang, Yingjin and Zhiwei Xiao, eds. Encyclopedia of Chinese Film.

Eastern European and Russian Film

PN 1993.5 .E82B45 2000 Ref
Taylor, Richard, ed. The BFI companion to Eastern European and Russian cinema.
Provides entries on persons, genres, film schools and organizations, country history material, and topics (e.g., "Women in Eastern European Cinema"), each followed by a brief bibliography.

Film Noir

PN1995.9 .F54 K43 2003
Keaney, Michael F. Film Noir Guide.
Over 700 film noirs from the classic period of the genre (1940-1959) are presented in this reference book. For each film, the following information is provided: the title, release date, the performers, the screenwriter, the director, the type of noir, the film's thematic content and a rating.

PN 1995.9 .F54P36 1994 Stacks
Palmer, R. Barton. Hollywood's Dark Cinema: The American Film Noir.
Includes filmography, bibliographical references, and index.

PN 1993.5 .U6F5 1992 Ref
Silver Alain & Elizabeth Ward. Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style.
A beautifully illustrated volume, Film Noir provides an alphabetical listing of Noir and neo-Noir films as well as five subject specific appendices. The editors assert that, like the western, Noir is a self-contained filmic art form that neither borrows from nor interprets a literary or other artistic media tradition. The themes delineate the style of post-W.W.II American film.

FILM NOIR
Explores the "style of American films that evolved in the 1940s, and lasted in a classic period until about 1960." Includes information on the first films noir and examples of noirs featuring femmes fatale, documentary-style footage, prison settings, children, corruption, crime, and Raymond Chandler's fictional detective, Philip Marlowe.

Gays and Lesbians and Film

PN 1995.9 .H55P37 1993 Ref
Parish, James Robert. Gays and Lesbians in Mainstream Cinema: Plots, Critiques, Casts and Credits for 272 Theatrical and MadeForTelevision Hollywood Releases.
Provides an overview of gay and lesbian themes and characters in 272 American films. A concise essay accompanies the entry for each film. An index is included.

PN 1995.9 .H55U5 1996 Ref
Olson, Jenni. Ultimate Guide to Lesbian & Gay Film.
Provides brief synopses of lesbian and gay film and video. There are several indexes, providing access by theme (e.g. gay, lesbian, transgender, etc.) and by subject (e.g. coming out, body issues, etc.).

German Film

PN 1993.5 .G3B485 1999 Ref
The BFI Companion to German Cinema.
Contains enties for major films, movements, and figures in German cinema. Contains a brief bibliography.

Middle Eastern and African Film

PN 1993.5 .A65C66 2001 Ref
Leaman, Oliver (ed.). Companion Encyclopedia of Middle Eastern and North African Film.
This encyclopedia is broken into section by geographical region, each including an overview of the histories and major issues of film in that area. Each section includes filmographies and biographical sketches of directors and actors, along with suggested further reading.

PN 1993.5 .A35R87 1998 Ref
Russell, Sharon, A. Guide to African Cinema.
Selective entries on major films and figures in African cinema.

PN 1993.5 .I86 K75
Kronish Amy and Costel Safirman. Israeli Film: A Reference Guide.

Semiotics

P 87.5 .D36 2000
Danesi, Marcel. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Semiotics, Media, and Communications.

Specific Genres

PN 1995.9 .H6M3245 1997 Ref
Maxford, Howard. The A-Z of horror films.
Comprehensive in scope. Concise reviews cover the range of horror cinema, from contemporary slasher films to classic Hollywood movies. Biographies accompany the film reviews.

PN 1995.9 .W4B45 1990 Ref
Buscombe, Edward (ed.). The BFI Companion to the Western.
Divided into five major sections, this encyclopedia gives an overview of the history of the Western, provides an overview of the themes, charactes and events which figure prominently in the Western, provides short entries on 300 notable Westerns, provides entries and filmographies of major figures in the genre, and gives a history of the Western on television. Illustrated throughout.

PN 1995.9 .F36S46 1992 Ref
Senn, Bryan. Fantastic Cinema Subject Guide: A Topical Index to 2500 Horror, Science Fiction, and Fantasy Films.
Comprehensive guide with an alphabetized listing of 81 subjects. Under each is a thorough list of genre films dealing with that particular subject, from the silent era into the nineties.

PN 1995.9 .C55 K5 2002
King Geoff. Film Comedy.

PN1995.9 .M86 H57 2001
Hischak, Thomas S. Film it with Music: an Encyclopedic Guide to the American Movie Musical.

PN 1998 .L63 1993 Ref
López, Daniel. Films by Genre: 775 Categories, Styles, Trends, and Movements Defined, with a Filmography for Each.

PN 1993.5 .U6H335 1988 Ref
Gehring, Wes D., ed. Handbook of American Film Genres.
This work defines five major genres, and within these multiple sub-genres. Genres like Comedy or the Musical are much more broadly defined than genres in which a time and place are set, as in the Gangster film or Western. The essays aim to locate the genres in an historical context and include film theory along with selected filmographies and bibliographies.

PN 1995.9 .M86F48 1993 Stacks
Feuer, Jane. The Hollywood Musical. 2nd ed. 
Hirschorn provides a comprehensive resource to musical films. Illustrated in full colour, this book lists films chronologically from the twenties through 1980 emphasizing the songs each film produced. There are five additional indexes, which give access to; film titles, song and music titles, performers, composers and lyricists, and other creative personnel.

PN 1995.9 .S26O93 1994 Ref
Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Science Fiction.

International in scope, this encyclopedia is arranged chronologically and alphabetically within each year. A short critical synopsis of the film is given along with film stills where possible. Includes film credits, including running time and country of origin.

PN 1995.9 .W4 O8 1994 Ref
Overlook Film Encyclopedia: The Western.
This book is arranged chronologically, with each decade from the 1930s to the 1980s comprising a chapter. Within each chapter, short synopses are given for Western films produced, including basic production information. Several appendices chart the most popular films within the genre, and provide the literary sources upon which many of the films are based. Illustrated throughout.

PN 1995.9 .S26L46 1983 Ref 1-2
Lentz, Harris M.,comp. Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film and Television Credits: Over 10,000 Actors, Actresses, Directors, Producers, Screenwriters, Cinematographers, Art Directors. (+ 2 supplements covering through 1987 and through 1993 in VUPR))

PN 1998.2 .H625 2008a Ref vols. 1,2
Hoffmann, Henryk."A" Western Filmmakers: A Biographical Dictionary of Writers, Directors, Cinematographers, Composers, Actors and Actresses.

Women and Film

PN 1995.9 .W6S65 1998 Stacks
Smelik, Anneke. And the Mirror Cracked: Feminist Cinema and Film Theory.
Evaluates the politics and enjoyment of contemporary feminist cinema. The author outlines the ways in which feminist directors create alternative film forms, emphasizes issues which are fundamental to feminist films: authorship, point of view, metaphor, montage and the powerful image. Explains how these cinematic techniques are used to represent female subjectivity positively.

PN 1998.2 .A24 1991 Ref
Acker, Ally. Reel Women: Pioneers of the Cinema, 1896 to the Present.
This is a biographic source for the subject of women in film, covering the early and later directors, well-known as well as more obscure. Also covers  film producers, writers, editors, animators, stunt women, foreign women of cinema. The Notes and Photo Credits provide pointers to other sources for further study.

Z 5784 .M9K68 Ref
Kowalski, Rosemary Ribich. Women and Film: A Bibliography.
Divided into four major sections: Women as performers; women as film makers; images of women presented on the screen; and women as columnists and critics. Includes a subject index.

PN 1998.2 .F67 1995 Ref
Foster, Gwendolyn Audrey. Women Film Directors: An International Bio-critical Dictionary.  
This important work compiles a significant amount of otherwise difficult-to-find information on women filmmakers working in all countries and all contexts, whether mainstream, independent, or experimental/ avante-garde. Alphabetical entries of over 200 bibliographic references to interviews and filmographies.

PN 1998.2 .W66 1998 Ref
Unterburger, Amy L., Ed. Women Filmmakers & Their Films.
Comprehensive coverage of women directors and their films as well as producers, writers and production artists. An essay about the filmmaker or a film is followed, where applicable, by detailed biography, filmography, comprehensive credits, production information, awards and bibliography.

PN 1995.9 .W6W657 1991 Ref
Kuhn, Annette and Susannah Radstone. Women in Film: An International Guide.
Written by scholars in the field, this book provides entries on a wide range of topics concerning women in film, including major figures, movements, genres, and themes. International in scope, it brings a feminist perspective to the role of women in the history of film. Included are two indexes, one of films directed, written or produced by women, another providing general subject access.

PN 1993.45 .W6 1994 Ref
Kuhn, Annette and Susannah Radstone. The Wome
n's Companion to International Film.
Contains short entries on a wide range of subjects.

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Internet Film Databases


Black Film Center/Archive

A repository of films by and about African Americans, including films which have African Americans as writers, actors, producers, directors, musicians, and consultants, as well as those which depict some aspect of Black experience.

British Film Institute
Committed to encourage the development of the arts of film, television and the moving image throughout the UK, to promote access to and appreciation of British and world cinema.

Bubl Link Catalogue of Selected Internet Resources: Film Studies

Cinema Studies Research Guide
Innis Library, University of Toronto

Cinemedia
Film and Media Directory with over 25,000 links

Classic Film Site
Serious classic film site. Some rare images and audio clips, articles, a comprehensive bibliography, and links to some of the best classic film sites on the Web

Directory of International Film and Video Festivals On-line
Lists more than 500 international film, television, and video festivals. Browsable by country and searchable by country, town, festival title, category, or month of the year.

FILM NOIR
Explores the "style of American films that evolved in the 1940s, and lasted in a classic period until about 1960." Includes information on the first films noir and examples of noirs featuring femmes fatale, documentary-style footage, prison settings, children, corruption, crime, and Raymond Chandler's fictional detective, Philip Marlowe.

Film Studies Association of Canada
Organization of film scholars, teachers and film makers. Provides many links.

The Internet Movie Database
An excellent resource for films of all genres, with information on actors, directors, crew, lists, statistics, and more.

Masters of Cinema
This scholarly site offers news and information on World Cinema with links to tribute pages for selected filmmakers.

Movie Review Query Engine
A searchable database of archived movie reviews.

National Film Board of Canada
Includes a database of NFB films

Reel Classics
Comprehensive site dedicated exclusively to Classic Movies. Includes individual pages for films, stars, directors and producers. Includes commentary and reviews.

Silent Era
Contains information on festivals and conventions; profiles and filmographies of selected actors, actresses, and directors; a Film List of sound films and stereoscopic films of the silent era; an annotated list of films presumed to be lost; reviews of DVD and video releases; and recommended  books.                
                                                                                      
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Film Criticism Guides

PN 81 .B35 1997 Reference; 1992 Stacks
Barnet, Sylvan. A Short Guide to Writing About Literature. 1st Canadian ed.
Promotes critical reading as well as how to write essays about fiction, poetry, drama and film.

PN 1995 .C66 2007 Reference; 2004 Stacks
Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing About Film. 6th ed.
Fills the gap between writing manuals and film studies texts with writing lessons as they apply specifically to film criticism. The emphasis is on the analytical writing done in most film courses.

Miliken University. Miliken Review. "How to Write a Movie Review"

The University of Chicago Web page. "How to Write a Movie Review" 

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created by Gabbi Zaldin.
last updated May 2010.