Bibliography of encyclopedias: film, radio, television and mass communications

This is a list of reference works involves encyclopedias and encyclopedic dictionaries of any language published on the subject of film/cinema, radio, television, and mass communications, including related biographical dictionaries of actors, directors, etc.

Entries are in the English language except where noted.

Animation

 * Clements, Jonathan; McCarthy, Helen (2001). The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917. US: Stone Bridge Press.
 * McCarthy, Helen (1996). The Anime Movie Guide: Japanese Animation since 1983. London: Titan. ISBN 1-85286-631-4
 * Kapkov, Sergey (2007). Encyclopedia of Domestic Animation (in Russian). Russia: Algorithm-kniga.
 * Lenburg, Jeff (1991). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Facts on File.
 * Stuckmann, Chris (2018). Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation. Mango Media. ISBN 1633537323.
 * Anime News Network [online database]
 * The Big Cartoon DataBase [online database]
 * The Big Cartoon DataBase [online database]

Film

 * Bawden, Liz-Anne, ed. (1976). The Oxford Companion to Film. New York: Oxford University Press..
 * Branigan, Edward; Buckland, Warren (eds.) (2015). The Routledge Encyclopedia of Film Theory. Routledge. ISBN 9781138849150.
 * Brown, Gene, ed. (1984). The New York Times Encyclopedia of Film. Times Books.
 * Microsoft Corporation (1992–97). Microsoft Cinemania [digital database].
 * Craggs, Stewart R. (1998). Soundtracks: An international dictionary of composers for film. Ashgate. ISBN 1859281893.
 * Fernett, Gene (1988). American Film Studios: An Historical Encyclopedia. McFarland.
 * Halliwell, Leslie (1977). Halliwell's Film Guide. HarperCollins.
 * —— (1993). Halliwell's Filmgoer's Companion (10th ed.). HarperCollins.
 * Herbert, Stephen; McKernan, Luke (1996). Who's Who of Victorian Cinema. British Film Institute.
 * Maltin, Leonard (1969–2014). Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide. New American Library.
 * Magill, Frank N. Magill's American Film Guide. Salem Press.
 * —— (1980–85). Magill's Survey of Cinema. Salem Press.
 * Monaco, James (1991). The Encyclopedia of Film. Perigee Books. ISBN 0399516042.
 * Nash, Jay Robert; Ross, Stanley R. (1985–87). The Motion Picture Guide. CineBooks.
 * The New York Times (1913–74). The New York Times Film Reviews. The New York Times and Arno Press..
 * Thomas, Nicholas; Vinson, James (1990–93). The International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers (2nd ed.)/ St. James Press.
 * Thomson, David (1975). A Biographical Dictionary of Cinema. Secker & Warburg.
 * —— (2014). The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 9780375711848.
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * Monaco, James (1991). The Encyclopedia of Film. Perigee Books. ISBN 0399516042.
 * Nash, Jay Robert; Ross, Stanley R. (1985–87). The Motion Picture Guide. CineBooks.
 * The New York Times (1913–74). The New York Times Film Reviews. The New York Times and Arno Press..
 * Thomas, Nicholas; Vinson, James (1990–93). The International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers (2nd ed.)/ St. James Press.
 * Thomson, David (1975). A Biographical Dictionary of Cinema. Secker & Warburg.
 * —— (2014). The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 9780375711848.
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * Thomas, Nicholas; Vinson, James (1990–93). The International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers (2nd ed.)/ St. James Press.
 * Thomson, David (1975). A Biographical Dictionary of Cinema. Secker & Warburg.
 * —— (2014). The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 9780375711848.
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * Thomson, David (1975). A Biographical Dictionary of Cinema. Secker & Warburg.
 * —— (2014). The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 9780375711848.
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * AllMovie [online database].
 * AllMovie [online database].

Specific to genre/film subject

 * Hardy, Phil (1983–98). The Aurum Film Encyclopedia, 4 vols. UK: Aurum Press.
 * 1983. Volume 1: The Western (ISBN 978-0-7064-2555-0; Google Books)
 * 1984. Volume 2: Science Fiction (ISBN 978-0-7064-2557-4; Google Books)
 * 1984. Volume 3: Horror
 * 1998. Volume 4: The Gangster Film.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * 1984. Volume 3: Horror
 * 1998. Volume 4: The Gangster Film.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.

Action / war


 * Lentz, Robert J. (2003). Korean War Filmography: 91 English Language Features Through 2000. McFarland. ISBN 0786410469.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.
 * Picart, Caroline Joan (2004). The Holocaust Film Sourcebook. Praeger. ISBN 0275978508.

Musicals
 * Green, Stanley (1981). Encyclopedia of the Musical Film. Oxford University Press.
 * Hirschhorn, Clive. (1981). Hollywood Musical. Crown.

Specific to culture

 * Slide, Anthony (1986). International Film Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.

American / Hollywood


 * Allon, Yoram; Cullen, Del; Patterson, Hannah (2002). Contemporary North American film directors: A Wallflower critical guide. Wallflower. ISBN 9781903364529.
 * Siegel, Scott; Siegel, Barbara (1990). Encyclopedia of Hollywood. Facts on File.
 * Slide, Anthony (1986). The American Film Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.
 * Siegel, Scott; Siegel, Barbara (1990). Encyclopedia of Hollywood. Facts on File.
 * Slide, Anthony (1986). The American Film Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.
 * Slide, Anthony (1986). The American Film Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.

Asian


 * McCarthy, Helen (1996). The Anime Movie Guide: Japanese Animation since 1983. London: Titan. ISBN 1-85286-631-4
 * Stuckmann, Chris (2018). Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation. Mango Media. ISBN 1633537323.
 * Volume 1: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films (ISBN 1889288519)
 * Volume 2: The Sex Films (ISBN 1889288527)
 * Volume 1: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films (ISBN 1889288519)
 * Volume 2: The Sex Films (ISBN 1889288527)

European


 * Allon, Yoram; Cullen, Del; Patterson, Hannah (2001). Contemporary British and Irish film directors: A Wallflower Critical Guide. Wallflower. ISBN 9781903364222.
 * Burton, Alan; Chibnall, Steve (2013). Historical Dictionary of British Cinema. Scarecrow. ISBN 9780810867949.
 * Kapkov, Sergey (2007). Encyclopedia of Domestic Animation (in Russian). Russia: Algorithm-kniga.
 * Kapkov, Sergey (2007). Encyclopedia of Domestic Animation (in Russian). Russia: Algorithm-kniga.

Latin & Hispanic


 * Keller, Gary D.; Keller, Estela (1997). A Biographical Handbook of Hispanics and United States Film. Bilingual Press/Editorial Bilingüe. ISBN 0927534568.
 * Osuna, Alfonso J. García (2003). The Cuban Filmography, 1897 Through 2001. McFarland. ISBN 0786412755.
 * Osuna, Alfonso J. García (2003). The Cuban Filmography, 1897 Through 2001. McFarland. ISBN 0786412755.

Online film databases

 * AFI Catalog of Feature Films
 * AllMovie
 * Complete Index to World Film
 * Filmweb (in Polish)
 * IMDb (crowd-sourced)

Specialized


 * Art of the Title — title sequences
 * Box Office Mojo — box-office revenue
 * The Big Cartoon DataBase — animation
 * FindAnyFilm — film availability
 * Internet Movie Cars Database — motor vehicles in film
 * Internet Movie Firearms Database — firearms in film
 * Little Golden Guy — Academy Awards stats
 * Lumiere — film admissions in Europe
 * Metacritic — aggregated reviews
 * Moviemistakes.com — production mistakes
 * The Numbers — box-office revenue
 * Movie Review Query Engine — review index
 * Rotten Tomatoes — aggregated reviews

Culture-specific


 * AlloCiné — French cinema
 * Animator.ru — Russian and Soviet cinema
 * Anime News Network — Japanese animation
 * BFI Film & TV Database — British cinema
 * Box Office India — Indian cinema
 * Christian Film Database — Christian cinema
 * Ciné-Ressources — French film archives
 * Cinenacional.com — Argentine cinema
 * Czech Movie Heaven — Czech and Slovak cinema
 * Danish Film Database — Danish cinema
 * Elonet — Finnish cinema
 * Filmarchives online — European film archives
 * Filmfront — Norwegian cinema
 * Filmportal.de — German cinema
 * Filmweb — Polish cinema (and world cinema)
 * HanCinema — Korean cinema
 * Hong Kong Cinemagic — Chinese-language cinema from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan
 * Hong Kong Movie DataBase — Hong Kong cinema
 * Japanese Movie Database — Japanese cinema
 * KinoPoisk — Russian cinema
 * Korean Movie Database — Korean cinema
 * Nollywood Reinvented — Nigerian cinema
 * PORT.hu — Central European cinema
 * Stopklatka.pl — Polish cinema
 * Svensk mediedatabas — search engine for audiovisual works by the National Library of Sweden
 * Swedish Film Database — Swedish cinema

Adult films


 * Adult Film Database
 * Internet Adult Film Database

Media, entertainment, communications

 * Abercrombie, Nicholas, and Brian Longhurst. 2007. The Penguin Dictionary of Media Studies. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780141014272.
 * Barnouw, Eric. 1989. International Encyclopedia of Communications. Oxford University Press.
 * Damesi, Marcel. 2000. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Semiotics, Media, and Communications. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 0802047831.
 * Hartley, John. 2002. Communication, cultural and media studies: the key concepts. Routledge. ISBN 0415268885.
 * Schement, Jorge Reina. 2002. Encyclopedia of Communication and Information. Macmillan Reference USA. ISBN 0028653866.
 * Marquis Who's Who. 1985–. Who's Who in Media & Communications.
 * —— 1989–99. Who’s Who in Entertainment.
 * Monaco, James. 1971. The Dictionary of New Media: The New Digital World of Video, Audio, and Print. Preview.
 * Studio System by Gracenote [online entertainment database]
 * Variety Insight [online entertainment database]

Media companies and franchises

 * Shields, Brian, and Kevin Sullivan. 2008. WWE Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to World Wrestling Entertainment. Dorling Kindersley.
 * Smith, Dave. 1996. Disney A to Z: The Official Encyclopedia (1st ed.). New York: Hyperion. ISBN 0-7868-6223-8.
 * Velasco, Raymond L. 1984. A Guide to the Star Wars Universe (1st ed.). Del Rey.
 * List of Star Trek reference books
 * Trimble, Bjo. 1976. Star Trek Concordance (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books.

Mass media

 * Downing, John. 2011. Encyclopedia of Social Movement Media. SAGE Publishing. ISBN 9780761926887.
 * Hixson, Richard. 1989. Mass Media and the Constitution: An Encyclopedia of Supreme Court Cases. Garland.
 * Hudson, Robert V. 1987. Mass Media: A Chronological Encyclopedia of Television, Radio, Motion Pictures, Magazines, Newspapers, and Books in the United States. Garland.

Radio

 * Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh. 1979. The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present. US: Ballantine Books.
 * Dunning, John. 1976. Tune In Yesterday: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Old Radio, 1925-76. Prentice-Hall.
 * —— 1998. On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (1st ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195076788.
 * Terrace, Vincent. 1981. Radio's Golden Years: The Encyclopedia of Radio Programs, 1930–60. San Diego: A. S. Barnes..
 * Swartz, Jon, and Robert Reinert. 1993. Handbook of Old-Time Radio: A Comprehensive Guide to Golden Age Radio Listening and Collecting. Scarecrow Press.

Theatre and performing arts

 * Banham, Martin. 1989. The Cambridge Guide to World Theatre. Cambridge University Press.
 * Benson, Eugene, and L. W. Conolly. 1989. The Oxford Companion to Canadian Theatre. Oxford University Press.
 * Dumur, Guy. 1965. Encyclopédie de la Pléiade 19: Histoire des spectacles (in French). Éditions Gallimard. Google Books.
 * Esslin, Martin. 1977. Encyclopedia of World Theater. Scribner's.
 * Gänzl, Kurt, and Andrew Lamb. 1989. Gänzl's Book of the Musical Theatre. Schirmer.
 * Gelli, Piero 1978. Encyclopedia of Performing Arts (in Italian). Garzanti.
 * Green, Stanley. 1976. Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre. Dodd, Mead.
 * Hartnoll, Phyllis. 1983. Oxford Companion to the Theatre. Oxford University Press.
 * Hartnoll, Phyllis, and Peter Found. 1992. Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. Oxford Univ. Press.
 * Lounsbury, Warren C., and Norman Boulanger. 1989. Theatre Backstage from A to Z. University of Washington Press.
 * —— 1992. Theatre Lighting from A to Z. University of Washington Press.
 * Packard, William. 1988. Facts on File Dictionary of the Theatre. Facts on File.
 * Thurston, James. 1992. The What, Where, When of Theater Props: An Illustrated Chronology from Arrowheads to Video Games. Betterway Books.
 * Vince, Ronald W. 1989. A Companion to the Medieval Theatre. Greenwood.
 * Zylbercweig, Zalmen, ed. 1931–69. Lexicon of Yiddish Theatre.
 * Enciclopédia Itaú Cultural de Teatro [online database]. Brazil: Ministerio da Cultura, Government of Brazil. 2001–present.
 * Zylbercweig, Zalmen, ed. 1931–69. Lexicon of Yiddish Theatre.
 * Enciclopédia Itaú Cultural de Teatro [online database]. Brazil: Ministerio da Cultura, Government of Brazil. 2001–present.
 * Enciclopédia Itaú Cultural de Teatro [online database]. Brazil: Ministerio da Cultura, Government of Brazil. 2001–present.

American theatre

 * Boardman, Gerald. 1984. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Oxford University Press.
 * —— 1987. Concise Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Oxford University Press.
 * Bronner, Edwin. 1979. Encyclopedia of the American Theatre, 1900–1975. A. S. Barnes.
 * Navarro, Jerónimo Herrera. 1993. Catálogo de autores teatrales del siglo XVIII (in Spanish). Spain: Fundación Universitaria Española. ISBN 8473923367.
 * Sampson, Henry T. 1988. The Ghost Walks: A Chronological History of Blacks in Show Business, 1865–1910. Scarecrow Press.
 * Wilmeth, Don B., and Tice L. Miller. 1993. The Cambridge Guide to American Theatre. Cambridge University Press.
 * Woll, Allen. 1983. Dictionary of the Black Theatre: Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Selected Harlem Theatre. Greenwood.

American musical theatre

 * Bloom, Ken. American Song: The Complete Musical Theatre Companion. Facts on File, 1985.
 * Boardman, Gerald. 1981. American Operetta. Oxford University Press.
 * —— 1982. American Musical Comedy. Oxford UP.
 * —— 1985. American Musical Revue. Oxford UP.
 * —— 1992. The American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle. Oxford UP.
 * Hischak, Thomas S. 1993. Stage It with Music: An Encyclopedic Guide to the American Musical Theatre. Greenwood.
 * —— 2008. The Oxford Companion to the American Musical: Theatre, Film, and Television. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-533533-0.
 * Lewine, Richard, and Alfred Simon. 1984. Songs of the Theater. H. W. Wilson.
 * Lewine, Richard, and Alfred Simon. 1984. Songs of the Theater. H. W. Wilson.

New York / Broadway

 * Bloom, Ken. 1991. Broadway: An Encyclopedic Guide to the History, People, and Places of Times Square. Facts on File.
 * Hischak, Thomas S. 2006. Enter the playmakers: Directors and choreographers on the New York stage. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0810857472.
 * Leiter, Samuel L. 1985. The Encyclopedia of the New York Stage, 1920–1930. Greenwood.
 * —— 1989. The Encyclopedia of the New York Stage, 1930–1940. Greenwood.
 * —— 1992. The Encyclopedia of the New York Stage, 1940–1950. Greenwood.

Asian theatre

 * Brandon, James R. 1993. Cambridge Guide to Asian Theatre. Cambridge University Press.
 * Leiter, Samuel L. 1979. Art of Kabuki: Famous Plays in Performance. University of California Press.
 * —— 1979. Kabuki Encyclopedia: An English-Language Adaptation of Kabuki Jiten. Greenwood.

Ballet

 * Balanchine, George, and Francis Mason. 1989. 101 Stories of the Great Ballets. Doubleday.
 * Bremser, Martha. 1993. International Dictionary of Ballet. St. James Press.
 * Clarke, Mary, and Clement Crisp. 1981. Ballet Goer's Guide. Knopf.
 * Koegler, Horst. 1982. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Ballet. Oxford University Press.

European theatre

 * Cooper, Barbara T. 1998. French Dramatists, 1789–1914. Gale Research. ISBN 0787618470.
 * Demastes, William W. 1996. British Playwrights, 1956–1995: A Research and Production Sourcebook. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313287597.
 * Kosch, Wilhelm, and Ingrid Bigler-Marschall. 1953–2012. Deutsches Theater-Lexikon. Germany: De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-028755-4.
 * Navarro, Jerónimo Herrera. 1993. Catálogo de autores teatrales del siglo XVIII. Fundación Universitaria Española. ISBN 8473923367.
 * O'Neil, Mary Anne. 2006. Twentieth-century French Dramatists. Thomson Gale. ISBN 9780787681395.
 * Parker, Mary. 1998. Spanish dramatists of the Golden Age: A bio-bibliographical sourcebook. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313288933.
 * —— 2002. Modern Spanish dramatists: A bio-bibliographical sourcebook. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313305781.
 * Richel, Veronica C. 1988. The German Stage, 1767-1890: A directory of playwrights and plays. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313249903.
 * Theaterlexikon der Schweiz (online database). Institute for Theater Studies, University of Bern
 * Print edition: (French edition: Dictionnaire du théâtre en Suisse; Italian: Dizionario Teatrale Svizzero; Romansh: Lexicon da teater svizzer)

Television

 * Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle (1992). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–present (5th ed.). Ballantine.
 * Brown, Les (1992). Les Brown's Encyclopedia of Television (3rd ed.). Gale Research.
 * Clements, Jonathan; Tamamuro, Motoko (2003). The Dorama Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese TV Drama Since 1953.
 * Langman, Larry; Molinari, Joseph A. (1990). The New Video Encyclopedia. New York: Garland. ISBN 0824082443.
 * Maltin, Leonard (1969–2014). Leonard Maltin's TV Movies and Video Guide. New American Library.
 * The first edition is freely available online.
 * Schemering, Christopher (1985). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. Ballantine Books.
 * Slide, Anthony (1991). The Television Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.
 * Stuckmann, Chris (2018). Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation. Mango Media. ISBN 1633537323.
 * Terrace, Vincent (1985–86). The Encyclopedia of Television: Series, Pilots, and Specials. Rev. ed., New York Zoetrope.
 * Waggett, Gerard J. (1997). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. HarperPaperbacks.
 * Langman, Larry; Molinari, Joseph A. (1990). The New Video Encyclopedia. New York: Garland. ISBN 0824082443.
 * Maltin, Leonard (1969–2014). Leonard Maltin's TV Movies and Video Guide. New American Library.
 * The first edition is freely available online.
 * Schemering, Christopher (1985). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. Ballantine Books.
 * Slide, Anthony (1991). The Television Industry: A Historical Dictionary. Greenwood.
 * Stuckmann, Chris (2018). Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation. Mango Media. ISBN 1633537323.
 * Terrace, Vincent (1985–86). The Encyclopedia of Television: Series, Pilots, and Specials. Rev. ed., New York Zoetrope.
 * Waggett, Gerard J. (1997). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. HarperPaperbacks.
 * Waggett, Gerard J. (1997). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. HarperPaperbacks.
 * Waggett, Gerard J. (1997). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. HarperPaperbacks.
 * Waggett, Gerard J. (1997). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. HarperPaperbacks.

Online TV databases

 * Anime News Network — Japanese animation
 * Art of the Title — title sequences
 * The Big Cartoon DataBase — animation
 * Filmfront — Norwegian TV and film
 * HanCinema — Korean TV and film
 * IMDb
 * Internet Movie Firearms Database — firearms in TV and film
 * KinoPoisk — Russian TV and film
 * Metacritic — aggregated reviews
 * Moviemistakes.com — production mistakes
 * PORT.hu — Central European TV and film
 * Rotten Tomatoes — aggregated reviews
 * Stopklatka.pl — Polish TV and film

Biography

 * Contemporary Theatre, Film & Television. Cengage Gale. 1984–..
 * Morsberger, Robert Eustis, Stephen O. Lessek, and Randall Clark. 1984. American screenwriters. Gale Research. ISBN 0810309173.

Film directors

 * IFILM (1984–). Film directors: A complete guide. Lone Eagle..
 * IFILM (1984–). Film directors: A complete guide. Lone Eagle..
 * IFILM (1984–). Film directors: A complete guide. Lone Eagle..
 * IFILM (1984–). Film directors: A complete guide. Lone Eagle..
 * IFILM (1984–). Film directors: A complete guide. Lone Eagle..