Library Guides: Film Theory: Home

Physical Reference Materials

Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film by Barry Keith Grant
This encyclopedia serves as a comprehensive overview of film studies.
The Film Studies Dictionary by Steve Blandford; Barry Keith Grant; Jim Hillier
This resource contains a cross-section of theoretical film definitions and technical filmmaking terminology.
Directory of World Cinema: American Independent 3 by John Berra (Editor)
This directory serves as a “who’s who” of contemporary independent filmmakers.
The Oxford Companion to Australian Film by Brian McFarlane (Editor); Geoff Mayer (Editor); Ina Bertrand (Editor)
This geographical resource contains over 1,000 articles delving into landscape of Australian cinema.
The New Biographical Dictionary of Film by David Thomson
This reference book contains over 1,300 entries about key figures in film history.

Online Reference Sources

International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF)
Hosted on the OVID platform, the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) indexes film and television literature.
JSTOR
JSTOR is an online database that houses academic journals, books, and primary sources focused on social sciences and the humanities.
Art Full Text
Art Full Text is an art research database containing 151 art journals covering topics such as commercial, fine, and decorative art, as well as film, photography, and architecture.
Project Muse
Project Muse is a database of peer-reviewed journals and books centered on the arts, social sciences, and humanities.
Communication & Mass Media Complete
This is a scholarly database focusing on mass media and communications research.
Lantern/Media History Digital Library
Lantern serves as the search platform for the collections of the Media History Digital Library. This open access platform contains digitized collections of public domain class media periodicals.
Movie Review Query Engine
The Movie Review Query Engine is an online database of movie reviews, providing a searchable index of interviews, news, reviews, and other content related to specific movies.
AFI Catalog
The American Film Institute (AFI) Catalog is a comprehensive national filmography documenting the history of film in the U.S.
Library of Congress National Film Registry
The National Film Registry listing contains films selected by the United States National Film Preservation Board (NFPB) for their cultural significance, with new entries added every year.

AFI Catalog Video Tutorial

Industry and Trade Publications

Filmmaker Magazine
Filmmaker Magazine is an online and print publication that offers extensive coverage of independent film news.
IndieWire
IndieWire is an online publication covering film and television industry news. Despite its name, IndieWire also covers mainstream Hollywood in addition to independent film news.
The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter is a print and digital magazine covering film, television, and theater news, reviews, and analysis.
Variety
Variety is an industry trade publication offering news, box office results, and reviews.

Librarian

Majiyebo Yacim