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To cite a film in APA in-text, put the director’s surname and the release year in parentheses: (Mann, 2024). If the director’s name is part of your sentence, give the year in parentheses straight after it: Mann (2024). This page, written for APA 7th edition, shows how the in-text form is built from the film’s reference-list entry, so the two always match in a manuscript or thesis.
How to cite a film in APA in-text
An APA in-text citation points the reader to an entry in your reference list, and the in-text form is built from the first elements of that entry. APA’s In-Text Citation Checklist gives the two basic forms: parenthetical, “(Author, year)”, with a comma between author and year, and narrative, “Author (year)”. A film’s entry starts with the director, so the director is the “author” in both forms.
- Parenthetical: The film is analysed in the next section (Mann, 2024).
- Narrative: Mann (2024) is the film examined in this chapter.
Both examples use the film in APA’s own reference-list sample, Inside out 2, directed by K. Mann (2024). The sentences around the citations are our illustration of the form, not quotations from APA.
How to APA cite a movie in text: the format
Because the in-text citation is derived from the reference entry, start with the entry. APA’s Common Reference Examples handout (section 10.12, “Film or Video”) shows this film entry, from which the pattern below is derived:
Director, A. (Director). (Year). Title of film [Film]. Studio.
Each element has a job:
- Director, A. surname first, then initial, followed by “(Director)” in parentheses. This is the element your in-text citation uses.
- (Year). the release year in parentheses, followed by a period. This is the second element of the in-text citation.
- Title of film [Film]. the title, then the description “[Film]” in square brackets. In APA’s example the title is capitalised like a sentence, so only the first word is capitalised: “Inside out 2”.
- Studio. the production studio, which is the last element and does not appear in the in-text citation.
Examples
The official example
APA’s handout, last updated March 3, 2026, gives this reference entry:
Mann, K. (Director). (2024). Inside out 2 [Film]. Pixar Animation Studios.
The matching in-text forms are (Mann, 2024) and Mann (2024).
Fictitious examples (invented for illustration)
The two examples below use an invented film and an invented director. They are not real works or people; they only show how the pattern is filled in.
| Part | Illustrative example |
|---|---|
| Reference entry | Smith, J. (Director). (2024). Example story [Film]. Example Studios. |
| Parenthetical in-text | (Smith, 2024) |
| Narrative in-text | Smith (2024) |
In-text citation version
Parenthetical or narrative
Use the parenthetical form when the film supports a point you are making, and the narrative form when the director is the subject of your sentence. In both, the year follows the director’s surname, and in the parenthetical form a comma separates them.
Quoting a film
APA’s checklist says a direct quotation needs the “author, year, and page number (or alternative)”, for example “(Author, year, p. 20)”. A film has no pages, so the page element is the one to settle before you quote dialogue. Check what your instructor, department or target journal expects as the alternative locator, and use it consistently. A quotation under 40 words goes in double quotation marks; one of 40 words or more is set as a block quotation without quotation marks, indented 0.5 in. and double-spaced.
Matching the reference list
Every film cited in the text needs a reference-list entry that begins with the same director surname and year. If you change the entry, change the in-text citation too. For a thesis, this match is easy to check before submission by comparing the two lists side by side; our guide to the APA reference page covers the list itself. The MLA equivalent is covered in how to cite a film in MLA.
Common errors
- Using the title instead of the director. The template starts with the director, so the in-text citation is (Mann, 2024), not (Inside out 2, 2024).
- Using the studio as the author. The studio is the final element of the entry, not the lead element, so it does not go in the in-text citation.
- Dropping the “[Film]” description. The square-bracket label is part of the pattern in APA’s example.
- Leaving out the “(Director)” role. The role label in parentheses follows the director’s initial in the reference entry.
- Missing the comma. The parenthetical form is “(Author, year)”, with a comma between the two; the narrative form puts only the year in parentheses.
- Quoting without a locator. A direct quotation needs the author, year and a page number or alternative; a bare (Mann, 2024) after a quoted line falls short of the checklist.
Other source types follow the same author-year logic; see the guides on multiple authors in APA in-text citations, citing in APA when there is no author and citing a YouTube video in APA.
Style-guide edition
This page follows the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition (2020). The official APA Style handouts used here were checked on 2026-10-29, and the Common Reference Examples handout is labelled “Last updated March 3, 2026”. APA’s 7th edition is the current edition. If your department or journal sets a house variation, follow it; the guide to writing a research paper in APA style and the guide to citing a dissertation in APA cover the wider manuscript and thesis context.
FAQ
How do you cite a film in APA in-text?
Use the director’s surname and the release year: (Mann, 2024) in parentheses, or Mann (2024) when the director is named in the sentence. Add the full entry, beginning with the same surname and year, to your reference list.
How do you APA cite a movie in text?
Cite a movie exactly as you would any film: the in-text citation is built from the first two elements of its reference entry, the director and the year. “Movie” and “film” take the same entry pattern and the same “[Film]” description.
Does the in-text citation include the studio?
No. The studio appears only at the end of the reference-list entry.
Do I need a page number for a film?
Only when you quote directly. APA’s checklist asks for a page number “or alternative” for direct quotations; since films have no pages, follow your instructor’s or journal’s guidance on the alternative locator.
Sources
- American Psychological Association. APA Style Common Reference Examples (section 10.12, Film or Video; last updated March 3, 2026). Checked 2026-10-29.
- American Psychological Association. In-Text Citation Checklist, 7th edition. Checked 2026-10-29.
