How to Cite a Film Script

How to Cite a Film Script.

Since scripts aren't official publications, they technically fall in the category of "manuscript" or "typescript" (a typed reproduction of a handwritten document). To cite one, you need to give the author, the title, the form of the text ("ms." for manuscript, "shooting script," or "film script draft"), any date of creation if available, any number that might be used to catalogue the document if available, and the location of the institution that has the document.

Here's an example from the MLA Style Manual:

Smith, Sonia. "Shakespeare's Dark Lady Revisited." Unpublished essay, 1998.

It gets trickier when the script is online. Here's how we'd cite one a script of Alien taken from the web:

Hill, Walter and David Giler. Alien. Revised Final Script. June 1978. The Daily Script. 3

Mar. 2008. .