Citing Sources: Videos, Films and TV

Who to Credit - Film

Many people can be involved in the production of a video and not all need to be listed in the citation. Typically the director, producer and/or writer are the names that are used. To clarify what role the person has in the production, their job title such as Director is put after their name in round brackets if the job title is known.

Who to Credit - Streaming Video from a Website

For videos from websites such as YouTube or Vimeo, credit the person who posted the content. If a real name is provided, use that followed by the person's user name in square brackets. If the real name of the person who posted the content is not known, just use their user name without brackets.

Director/Producer/Writer's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if given. (Role(s) in Production e.g. Director, Producer, Writer). (Year film was produced). Title of Film [Film]. Production Company.

Note: It is not necessary to specify how you viewed the film (e.g. on DVD, streaming, in the cinema) unless you wish to specify the version used, e.g. director's cut, DVD with special features. In that case, include a brief description within the square brackets.

Title of film [Film]. (Year film was Produced). Production Company.

Note: When the Director, Producer and/or Writer is not known, start the citation with the film title. 

Writer's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if given. (Job Title), Director's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if given. (Job Title). (Year the episode was originally aired, Month Day). Title of episode (Season No., Episode No.) [TV series episode]. In Executive Producer's First Initial. Last Name (Executive Producer), Television series name. Production Company.

Note:  Include writer(s) and director(s) of the episode, with contributor roles in parentheses after each contributor's names. If the writer and director are the same person, name them only once and include both roles in parentheses.

Last Name of person who posted the video, First Initial. Second Initial if given. [Screen name]. (Year video was posted, Month Day). Title of video [Video]. Name of streaming website. URL

Note:

• According to APA, for citing purposes the person who posted the video is credited as the author, even if they did not create the work. 
• If the screen name is the same as the author's name, omit it from the citation. 
• The same format applies for other streaming sites with user-generated content, e.g. Vimeo, TikTok, etc. For streaming videos from library databases such as Kanopy, or streaming TV services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime, cite the video as you would cite a film or TV series.

Username that posted the video. (Year video was posted, Month Day). Title of video [Video]. Name of streaming website. URL

Note: According to APA, for citing purposes the person who posted the video is credited as the author, even if they did not create the work.

The same format applies for other streaming sites with user-generated content, e.g. Vimeo, TikTok, etc. For streaming videos from library databases such as Kanopy, or streaming TV services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime, cite the video as you would cite a film or TV series.

Username that posted the Video. (Year video was posted, Month Date). Title of video [Video]. YouTube. URL

Note: When the TED Talk is on YouTube, list the owner of the YouTube account (TED) as the author. Provide as specific a date as possible; include the year, month and date if available. Credit YouTube as the publisher of the Ted Talk.

The speaker's name can be integrated into the text of your assignment when quoting or paraphrasing. Ex: Mullins shares six tips on being a successful entrepreneur, including saying yes to customer requests that lie outside of regularly offered services (TED, 2024).