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Modern Language Association (MLA) Guide: Audio, Visual, and Multimedia Sources

A guide to the Modern Language Association of America or the Modern Language Association (MLA), which is the true professional association in the U.S. for scholars of language and literature.

Audio, Visual, and Multimedia Sources 

 

Podcast

Film

Generally, begin the entry with the title, followed by the director and the lead performers, as in the first example. If your paper emphasizes one or more people involved with the film, you may begin with those names, as in the second example.

Supplementary Material Accompanying a Film

Begin with the title of the supplementary material, in quotation marks, and the names of any important contributors, as for a film. End with information about the film, as in the Film entry, and about the location of the supplementary material.

Video or Audio from the Web

Cite video or audio that you accessed on the web as you would a work from a website (see Work from a Website entry), with the title of the video or audio in quotation marks.

Video Game

List the developer or the author of the game (if any); the title, italicized; the version, if there is one; and the distributor and the date of publication. If the game can be played on the web, add information as for a work from a website (see Work form a Website entry).

Computer Software or App

Cite as a video game (see Video Game entry), giving whatever information is available about the version, distributor, and date.

Television or Radio Episode or Program

If you are citing an episode or a program, begin with the title of the episode, in quotation marks. Then give the title of the program, italicized; relevant information about the program, such as the writer, director, performers, or narrator; the episode number (if any); the network; and the date of broadcast. If you are citing an entire program (not an episode or a segment) or an episode has no title, begin you entry with the title of the program, italicized.

For a program, you access of the web, after the information about the program give the network, the original broadcast date, and the URL. Of you are citing an entire program (not an episode or a segment) or an episode that has no title, begin your entry with the title of the program, italicized.

Transcript

Cite the source (interview, radio or television program, video, and so on), and add the label "Transcript" at the end of the entry.

Live Performance

Begin with the title of the work performed, italicized (unless it is named by form, number, and key). Then give the author or composer of the work; relevant information such as the director, the choreographer, the conductor, or the major performers; the theater, ballet, or opera company, if any; theater and location; and the date of the performance.

Lecture or Public Address

Begin with the speaker's name, the title of the lecture, the sponsoring organization, location, and date. If you viewed the lecture on the web, cite as you would a work from a website (see Work from a Website entry). Add the label "Address" or "Lecture" at the end of its not clear from the title.

Musical Score

Begin with the composer's name; the title of the work, italicized (unless it is named by form, number, and key); and the date of the composition. For a print source, give the publisher and date. For an online source, give the title of the website; the publisher; the date; and the URL.

Sound Recording

Begin with the name of the person you want to emphasize: the composer, conductor, or performer. For a long work, give the title, italicized (unless its named by form, number, and key); the names of the pertinent artists; and the orchestra and the conductor. End with the manufacturer and the date.

Artwork, Photograph, or Other Visual Art

Begin with the artist and the title of the work, italicized. If you viewed the original work, give the date of composition followed by a comma and the location. of you viewed online, give the date of composition followed by a period and the website title, publisher (if any), and the URL. If you viewed the work reproduced in a book, cite as a work from an anthology or a collection (see One Selection from an Anthology or a Collection entry), giving the date of the composition after the title. If the medium of the composition is not apparent or in important for your work, you may include it at the end (as in the second example).

Visual such as a Table, a Chart, or Another Graphic

Cite a visual as you would a short work within a longer work. Add descriptive label at the end if the type of visual is not clear from the title or if it is important for your work.

Cartoon

Give the cartoonist's name, the title of the cartoon, if it has one, in quotation marks, or the label "Cartoon" with quotation marks in the place of the title; and publication information. Add the label "Cartoon" at the end if it is not clear from the title. Cite an online cartoon as a Work From a Website.

Advertisement

Name the product or company being advertised and publication information for the source in which the advertisement appears. Add the label "Advertisement" at the end if it is not clear from the title.

Map

Cite a map as you would a short work within a longer work. If the map is published on it own, cite it as a book or longer work. Use the label "Map" at the end if it is not clear from the title or source information.

Work Cited

Hacker, Diana. A Writer's Reference. Tenth edition. Boston ; New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2021. Print.