Outline of this guide: Reference Works Books & Videos Articles Web Sites

Other useful links: Course Reserves/E-Reserves for this class Film Review Sources RefWorks: A Guide Research Log Research Planner

• Biographical Information
  • Biography Reference Bank. H.W. Wilson, 2003- .
  • Cinegraph: Lexikon zum Deutschsprachigen Film. Ed. Hans-Michael Bock. 6 vols. München: 1984- .
    Reference R 791.43 C5741
  • Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1984- .
    Reference R 927.9 C761
  • Dictionary of German Biography (DGB). Ed. Walther Killy and Rudolf Vierhaus. Trans. Christiane Banerji et al. 10 vols. München: K.G. Saur, 2001-2006.
    Reference R 920.043 D485-T
  • International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers. Ed. Tom Pendergast and Sara Pendergast. 4th ed. 4 vols. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.
    Reference R 791.43 I611 2000
• Film
  • The BFI Companion to German Cinema. Ed. Thomas Elsaesser. London: British Film Institute, 1999.
    Reference R 791.43 B862g
  • Chronik des Deutschen Films, 1895-1994. Hans Helmut Prinzler. Stuttgart: Metzler, 1995.
    Reference R 791.43 P9571c
  • The Complete Film Dictionary. Ira Konigsberg. 2nd ed. New York: Penguin, 1998.
    Reference R 791.43 K82c2
  • Film Indexes Online
  (for more details about this database, see below)
  • The Film Studies Dictionary. Steve Blandford et al. London: Oxford Univ. Press, 2001.
    Reference R 791.43 B642f
  • International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers. Ed. Tom Pendergast and Sara Pendergast. 4th ed. 4 vols. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.
    Reference R 791.43 I611 2000
  • International Film Guide. New York: A.S. Barnes, 1966-1989.
    Library has 1966 to 1989
    Reference R 791.43 I61
  • The Language of Cinema. Kevin Jackson. New York: Routledge, 1998.
    Reference R 791.43 J13L
  • Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1909-1977. Jeffrey Egan Welch. New York: Garland, 1981.
    Reference R 016.791 W439L
  • Literature and Film: An Annotated Bibliography, 1978-1988. Jeffrey Egan Welch. New York: Garland, 1993.
    Reference R 016.791 W439L 1978-88
  • The Motion Picture Guide. Chicago, IL: Cinebooks, 1985-1999.
    Library has: 1988-1999.
    Reference R 791.43 N251m
  • New York Times Encyclopedia of Film. Ed. Gene Brown. 13 vols. New York: Times Books, 1984.
    Reference R 791.43 N532
  • The Oxford Companion to Film. Ed. Liz-Anne Bawden. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1976.
    Reference R 791.43 O98
  • Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film. Ed. Barry Grant. 4 vols. New York: Schirmer Reference, 2007.
  • Variety International Film Guide. London: Andre Deutsch, 1990-1996.
    Reference R 791.43 V299
  • Variety International Film Guide. London: Andre Deutsch, 1990-1996.
    Reference R 791.43 V299
• Social Issues & Historical Background
  • Cold War Culture: Media and the Arts, 1945-1990. Richard A. Schwartz. New York: Facts on File, 1998.
    Reference R 973.92 S399c
  • Deutsche Geschichte im 20. Jahrhundert: ein Lexikon. Axel Schildt. München: C.H. Beck, 2005.
    Reference R 943 D486
  • Dictionary of German History, 1806-1945. Wilfried Fest. New York: St. Martin's, 1978.
    Reference R 943 F418d
  • Encyclopedia of the Third Reich. Ed. Christian Zentner and Friedemann Bedürftig. Trans. Amy Hackett. 2 vols. New York: Macmillan, 1991.
    Reference R 943.086 G878-T
  • Gale Virtual Reference Library
    A collection of over 120 scholarly reference books in all subject areas. Includes:
    • Encyclopedia of Modern Europe: Europe 1789-1914. Ed. John Merriman and Jay Winter. 5 vols. Detroit, MI: Scribner's, 2006.
    • Encyclopedia of Modern Europe: Europe since 1914. Ed. John Merriman and Jay Winter. 5 vols. Detroit, MI: Scribner's, 2006.
  • German Culture and Society: The Essential Glossary. Ed. Holger Briel. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2002.
    Reference R 943.08 G373
  • A Historical Dictionary of Germany's Weimar Republic, 1918-1933. Ed. C. Paul Vincent. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1997.
    Reference R 943.085 V773h
  • Imperial Germany: A Historiographical Companion. Ed. Roger Chickering. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1996.
    Reference R 943.08 I342
  • Modern German: An Encyclopedia of History, People, and Culture, 1871-1990. Ed. Dieter K. Buse and Juergen C. Doerr. 2 vols. New York: Garland, 1998.
    Reference R 943.08 M689

• Library Catalog
  Includes information about books, government documents, and journals, magazines, and newspapers in the Library.
  • To locate German-language videos, do a keyword search, limit your search by the format "video materials (VHS/DVD)," and then limit by language.
    To see a list of all of the library's German-language videos, use the word "videorecording" and then apply the limits listed above.
  • To locate works about a person, do a subject search for the person's name (last name first).
  • To locate bibliographies on a person or topic, do a keyword search and add the following: su bibliography.
  • To locate appropriate Library of Congress Subject Headings, start with a keyword search and then browse records.
    The subject headings will be in English; useful ones include:
    • Motion pictures Germany
    • Motion pictures Germany history
  Search Syntax:
  • Truncation: use a dollar sign $
  • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
  • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
• WorldCat
  Indexes books, videos, periodicals, and other materials held by libraries around the world. Search WorldCat to identify additional books on your topic and then order the books on interlibrary loan.
  Note: It can be helpful to identify relevant Library of Congress Subject Headings in the Library Catalog first; you can then do a subject search in WorldCat to find additional items with these subject headings.
  Search Syntax:
  • Truncation: use an asterisk *
  • Phrase searching: insert a "w" between the words in a phrase (for example, "cold w war")
  • Wildcard: use a question mark ?

• Starting Points
  • Academic Search Premier
    (1975 to present) Indexes popular and scholarly articles in a broad range of subject areas; also includes citations to book reviews and citations to articles in several national newspapers.
    Search Syntax:
    • Truncation: use an asterisk *
    • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
    • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
  • LexisNexis Academic
    (Approx. 1980 to present) Includes the full text of articles from local, national, and international newspapers -- including some German-language news sources -- magazines, and trade journals.
    Search Syntax:
    • Truncation: use an exclamation point
    • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
    • Wildcard: use an asterisk *
  • Library PressDisplay
    Contains full-page, full-color images of over 400 national and international newspapers, including many foreign-language newspapers; includes the current day's papers as well as a 60-day archive.
    Note: Up to three people can search this database at any one time; if you are unable to login because this limit has been reached, please wait a few minutes and try again.
  • OmniFile Full Text Mega
    (1982 to present) Indexes articles from over 3,000 scholarly and popular periodicals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences; also includes the full text of selected articles from over 1,650 of these periodicals.
    Search Syntax:
    • Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *
    • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
    • Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?
  • Readers' Guide Abstracts
    (1890 to present) Indexes articles in popular U.S. periodicals; also includes citations to book and film reviews.
    Search Syntax:
    • Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *
    • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
    • Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?
  • Westlaw Campus Research
    Includes the full text of news articles from national and international newspapers; also includes some German-language publications.
    Note: you will need to accept the terms of the Westlaw "Agreement" before you can search Westlaw Campus Research.
    Search Syntax (for "Terms and Connectors" searches):
    • Truncation: use an exclamation point !
    • Phrase searching: use double quotations marks " "
    • Wildcard: use an asterisk *
• Subject-Specific Databases
  Be sure to consult the indexes & databases pages too!
  Film | Historical, Political, & Social Issues
  • Film
    See also the guide for Film Review Sources.
    • Film & Television Literature Index
      (c. 1937 to present) Indexes articles, film reviews, and book reviews from over 300 film and television periodicals; international in scope..
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • Film Indexes Online
      (1893 to present) Contains both Film Index International (FII) and The American Film Institute Catalog (AFI). Includes full production and cast information for films from over 170 countries as well as plot summaries, production notes, and citations to reviews, criticism, and articles on film and film personalities.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: automatic
    • Humanities Abstracts
      (1907 to present). Indexes articles in over 500 English-language journals in the fields of archaeology, art, classics, communication, film, folklore, history, languages and literatures, music, philosophy, religion, and theatre. Also includes citations for book, theatre, and film reviews as well as interviews, obituaries, and some original creative works. Includes the full text of selected articles from 1995 to the present.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
      • Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?
    • MLA International Bibliography
      (1926 to present). Indexes journal articles, books, and doctoral dissertations in the fields of English, American, European, Asian, African, and Latin American linguistics, modern languages and literatures, film studies, and folklore.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
  • Historical, Political, & Social Issues
    • ATLA Religion Database
      (1949 to present) Indexes book reviews on all aspects of religion and theology.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: automatic
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • Contemporary Women's Issues
      (1992 to present) Indexes popular articles, scholarly articles, books, newsletters, and reports on all aspects of women's studies, including gender, sociology, education, political science, and health.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: automatic
      • Phrase searching: automatic
    • Historical Abstracts
      (Time period covered: 1450 to present. Publication coverage: 1954 to present). Indexes journal articles, book chapters, doctoral dissertations, and book reviews.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • JSTOR
      Includes pdf copies of scholarly articles from a core collection of journals; also includes book reviews. Note:JSTOR does not contain articles from the most recent 3-5 years.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use a plus sign +
      • Phrase searching: automatic
    • Project Muse
      Contains full-text articles from journals published by university and scholarly presses.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
    • ProQuest Religion
      (1986 to present) Indexes articles from more than 90 religion periodicals.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • Social Sciences Abstracts
      (1907 to present) Indexes journal articles and some book reviews on all social sciences subjects, including history, political science, international relations, law, economics, area studies, gender studies, anthropology, psychology, and sociology.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks ""
      • Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?
    • Sociological Abstracts
      (1963 to present) indexes journal articles in sociology and related fields, including anthropology, economics, education, philosophy, political science, and social psychology.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: automatic
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • Web of Knowledge
      (c. 1900 to present) A multidisciplinary resource that provides citations to articles in thousands of journals in the social sciences, humanities, and sciences.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: use double quotations marks " "
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • World News Connection
      (1995 to present) Contains full-text, English-language summaries and translations of foreign news reports, conference proceedings, radio and television broadcasts, periodicals, non-classified technical reports, and other local media sources from around the world. Covers political, scientific, socioeconomic, technical, and environmental issues and events. These materials are provided by the Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) to the National Technical Information Service (NTIS).
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use a question mark ?
      • Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " "
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?
    • Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
      (1975 to present) Indexes articles on a broad array of political science and international relations topics; international in scope.
      Search Syntax:
      • Truncation: use an asterisk *
      • Phrase searching: automatic
      • Wildcard: use a question mark ?

• Deutsche Filmpreis
• German Cinema: A Selected Bibliography of Materials in the UC Berkeley Library, from Gary Handman, Head, Media Resources Center, Moffitt Library, Univ. of California, Berkeley
• German Films
• Goethe Institut: Literatur zum deutschen Film