In text citation mla for a video

Q: How do you cite an online video in MLA?

Format: Author(s). Title of Video.” Website Title in Italics, Website Publisher (if different than title), uploaded by Name of User, Date of Upload, URL. YouTube: Example: Biology: Cell Structure.” YouTube, uploaded by Nucleus Medical Media, 18 Mar.

MLA style gives authors several ways to cite YouTube videos.

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MLA in-text citation of a YouToube video
How do you do a in
How do you cite an online video in MLA?

If you are citing a video in which the primary creator or author is clear, you can list that creator in the Author element. The following provides an example of a citation for the music video of Beyoncé’s song “Pretty Hurts”:

Beyoncé. “Beyoncé – Pretty Hurts (Video).” YouTube, 24 Apr. 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXXQLa-5n5w.

The title of the video is copied exactly as it appears on YouTube. The container is YouTube, followed by the date listed below the video and the Location element (the URL of the video).

If it’s not clear who the primary creator or author of a video is, you could omit the Author element and begin the citation with the title of the video:

“Capybara Eat Huge Pumpkin.” YouTube, uploaded by Alex Smith, 12 Jan. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YNwxZnABzA.

In this example, the video’s creator is not specified. The name of the account that uploaded the video is provided in the Contributor element, after the title of the container, YouTube. Even if it’s clear who the author or creator of a video is, you might opt to include the name of the account that uploaded the video in the Contributor element if it provides helpful information.

If you are citing an entire work uploaded to YouTube, such as a film, use what you see on YouTube to cite the work in MLA style. Here is an example citation for a film:

Moby Dick. Directed by John Huston, MGM, 1956. YouTube, 8 Jan. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1Yc8KPH-X0.

Details about the film’s original publication are found in the YouTube description below the video and so are provided in the citation. Here Moby Dick is a self-contained work, and so its title is listed as the first container. It is followed by the Contributor, Publisher, and Date elements. YouTube is the title of the second container, followed by the Date and Location elements.

For more on how to cite YouTube videos in MLA style, see our posts on citing TV episodes on YouTube and interviews on YouTube, as well as our related posts on citing online videos and formatting titles of uploaded videos,

To cite a YouTube video in a reference entry in MLA style 8th edition include the following elements:

Give the last name and name as presented in the source (e. g. Watson, John). For two authors, reverse only the first name, followed by ‘and’ and the second name in normal order (e. g. Watson, John, and John Watson). For three or more authors, list the first name followed by et al. (e. g. Watson, John, et al.)
Video title: Titles are italicized when independent. If part of a larger source add quotation marks and do not italize.
Date of publication: Give the day, month and year of publication. All months, excluding June and July, are abbreviated as three letters (e.g. 9 Aug. 2019.)
URL: Copy URL in full from your browser, include http:// or https:// and do not list URLs created by shortening services.

Here is the basic format for a reference list entry of a YouTube video in MLA style 8th edition:

Author(s) or screen name. "Video title." YouTube, Date of publication, URL.

Take a look at our works cited examples that demonstrate the MLA style guidelines in action:

Examples

A YouTube video where the creator's real name is not provided

AsapSCIENCE. "How to learn faster." YouTube, 28 Sep. 2017, youtube.com/watch?v=B9SptdjpJBQ.

Note: The creator's real name is not available, the user name is used instead.

A YouTube video where the creator's real name is available

Bialik, Mayim. "The Life Changing Magic of Detective Pikachu." YouTube, 13 June 2019, youtube.com/watch?v=97KJhK-9yvc.

A YouTube video uploaded by a user

"Modern Family Funny Moments." YouTube, uploaded by MIke Arasa, 26 Jan. 2019, youtube.com/watch?v=b9LsHST4E78.

Note: Video uploaded by a user, not by the creator of the video.

MLA in-text citation of a YouToube video

Audio-visual material uses the specific time of the audio/video for in-text citations.

(Last name time) or (Short form of title time).

Examples

A YouTube video where the creator's real name is available

The following scene exemplifies the performers intellectual abilities (Bialik 00:15:43-00:20:07).

A YouTube video without an author

The video clip found on YouTube seems to be one of the most popular throughout the internet (Modern 00:03:40).

This citation style guide is based on the MLA Handbook (9th edition).

How do you do a in

The title is written in sentence case and italicized, followed by the label “Film” in square brackets. The in-text citation includes the last name of the director, and the year. If you are referring to a specific quote or scene from the movie, add a timestamp to direct the reader to the relevant part.

How do you cite an online video in MLA?

Format: Author(s). “Title of Video.” Website Title in Italics, Website Publisher (if different than title), uploaded by Name of User, Date of Upload, URL. YouTube: Example: “Biology: Cell Structure.” YouTube, uploaded by Nucleus Medical Media, 18 Mar.