11.5 Titles and structuring of series/serials

The guidelines and principles laid out in this section can be applicable across all the categories of Works, Variants, Manifestations and Items (WVMI).

For monographic Works that are an episode within a series or serial¹, and have their own individual title, the individual episode title may be used as the preferred title for the Work or Variant, or the title proper for the Manifestation and Item. However, the series/serial title should also be indicated.

The series/serial title may be indicated within (i) the title field itself, or (ii) reflected in a linked hierarchical relationship with an individual Serial Work level record, i.e. a Work assigned the Description Type “Serial²; or (iii) added as a Title Type; or (iv) a combination. Individual institutions should select which is most appropriate for their own systems and for clarity of identification and retrieval.

Example

Work (Serial) – Mary Tyler Moore show

Work (Monographic) – Chuckles bites the dust

Manifestation – Chuckles bites the dust

Item – Chuckles bites the dust

OR

Example

Work (Serial) – Mary Tyler Moore show

Work (Monographic) – Mary Tyler Moore show. Chuckles bites the dust

Manifestation – Mary Tyler Moore show. Chuckles bites the dust

Item – Mary Tyler Moore show. Chuckles bites the dust

OR

Example

Work (Monographic) – Chuckles bites the dust (Preferred title)

Mary Tyler Moore show (Series title)

Manifestation – Chuckles bites the dust

Item – Chuckles bites the dust

11.5.1 Numbered episodes of a series/serial

With series/serials that contain episode or part numbers and individual episode titles the same principles apply. The preferred title/title proper of the WVMI may incorporate all these for clarity and retrieval purposes, or an institution’s systems may allow for use of the episode title combined with separate specific Part field(s) for parts and numbers, or both. Alternatively, an institution may choose to use one form for Work/Variants and another for Manifestation and/or Items. With television series additional numbered season details may also be required as well as episode/part numbers.

Any or either of the forms may be used in combination as an institution chooses, although this should be within the context of an institution establishing a clear standard in-house practice rather than individual cataloguer preference and choice.³

It is worth bearing in mind that serials are always intended to be viewed in a specified order. Therefore serial title, episode numbers, and episode titles are usually included on the Item itself or in secondary sources, and should be reflected in the record to aid in discovery and identification.

Example

Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars. Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

Work (Serial) – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars

Work (Monographic) – Ming the Merciless

Manifestation – Ming the Merciless

Item – Ming the Merciless

[with “Chapter 12” element being added to a separate relevant Part field]

OR

Example

Work (Serial) – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars

Work (Monographic) – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars.

Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

Manifestation – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars.

Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

Item – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars.

Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

OR

Example

Work (Serial) – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars

Work (Monographic) – Ming the Merciless

Manifestation – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars.

Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

Item – Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars.

Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless

The same principle can be applied to episodes of a series/serial that do not have their own individual titles but have numbered parts.

Example

Work (Serial) – Pride and prejudice

Work (Monographic) – Pride and prejudice. Part One

Manifestation – Pride and prejudice. Part One

Item – Pride and prejudice. Part One

Reflect the Part term used in any source of information, for example, “part,” “chapter,” “episode,” etc. Equally, if the number is in numerals then use those, and if alphabetical, i.e. One, Two, Three, etc., use those.

Newsreel/cinemagazine companies often had their own official titling for issues/episodes, using numbers or number/letter combinations, e.g.

• The March of Time 1st Year No.2
• Pathé News No. 62
• Filmske Novosti. Broj 43. 1972
• Actualités Françaises 1957 N.10
• The USSR Today Nr 53(9) 1960 Moscow
• Australian Diary No. 56
• DDR Magazin 13/69

These often feature on the opening titles of an item, or are listed in official catalogues of the newsreel/cinemagazine companies, and should be replicated and used as the preferred title for the Item and its linked Manifestation, and Work.

As with the other previous serials/series examples, the Work for the individual newsreel issue can also further be linked to a Work record for the newsreel Series, either via a hierarchical

or related record linking, depending on your system

Where the issue number cannot be identified, then use a date or year, if discernible, within a partially devised title, for example:

• British Paramount News. 1939
• British Paramount News. November 1939
• British Paramount News. 1939-11-05
• British Paramount News [05/11/1939]
• British Paramount News. c.1939

11.5.2 Episodes of a series/serial with no individual title or numbered parts

For episodes of a series/serial that have neither individual episode titles nor numbered parts, a date can be added to the title field, with the option of utilising square brackets for clarity. It is recommended to use the release/production/transmission date of the Manifestation to which the Item or Work/Variant pertains.

If a repeat broadcast of a television programme with no individual title or numbered parts has been acquired, then a new Manifestation and Item should be created with the repeat broadcast date appended to their titles. Within the hierarchical structure this new Manifestation would link to the Work that may incorporate an earlier original broadcast date within its preferred title.

The new Manifestation/Item title could be added to the Work level as an Alternative title type.

In the above example the Manifestations “Panorama [2011-01-24] and “Panorama [2011-01-30]” both link hierarchically to the same Work, entitled “Panorama [2011-01-24]” as they are broadcasts on different dates of exactly the same programme.

The original broadcast date can be entered in the Date field for the Work, and the repeat broadcast date can be entered in a Date field for the Manifestation/Item, should one exist, or in a Notes field for the Manifestation/Item.

Alternatively, if an institution prefers, a fully devised/supplied title could be used, or one taken from secondary sources. Television listings magazines or publicity often use such titles even though there is no actual title on-screen.

Thus, Panorama [2011-01-24] could also have had the preferred title of “Stop stalking me”, or “Panorama. Series 59. Episode 3”. It is often preferable to use these more descriptive partially or fully supplied/devised titles, both for greater clarity and identification and because it can be less confusing in terms of titling where repeat broadcasts may also be acquired. If using fully devised/supplied or other source titles, however, it is important to note on the catalogued record that they are not on-screen titles and cite the source used.

11.5.3 Analytics/Components of identified newsreels/cinemagazines

Where a complete newsreel issue has been acquired and the newsreel series has been identified, then titling follows the same principles and guidelines above.

Newsreels and cinemagazines can often be acquired as incomplete. The incomplete Items acquired may have a different title than the Manifestation and Work to which they are related. Such Items should be linked to a Work/Manifestation reflecting the whole issue, (see “British Paramount News” examples given below).

Newsreels and cinemagazines⁴ usually consisted of several separate reports that were all analytics/components of a particular issue, and also usually had inter-title headings within the newsreel itself.

If an institution acquires only a part of a newsreel issue, then any inter-title heading that is on the acquired print may be used as the title of the Item, particularly in cases where the title of the newsreel issue as a whole (i.e. the Work/Manifestation) is unknown.

For example,British Paramount news No. 856 contains the inter-titled headed segments President Roosevelt opens World Fair;70th birthday of US coast to coast railway; and, Princesses play with baby pandas.

Should an institution only acquire a reel of the segment President Roosevelt opens World Fair, then this can be designated as the title of the Item.

Where it is known with which particular newsreel issue or series the acquired segment belongs then there is also the option to incorporate the newsreel series/issue title within the title assigned to the segment, for example:

Example

British Paramount news No. 856. President Roosevelt opens World Fair

OR

Example

British Paramount news. President Roosevelt opens World Fair

Within a hierarchical structure, the Item President Roosevelt opens World Fair would be linked as “part of” the Theatrical Manifestation British Paramount news No. 856, i.e. the whole newsreel issue, which in turn would be linked to the Work record for the whole issue also with the title British Paramount news No. 856.

OR

At the Work level each of the titled analytics/components making up the whole, i.e. the separate news reports, can be added as additional alternative titles.

Alternatively, the component titles can be listed in a Summary or Description field for the Work.

Should the Item acquired incorporate more than one inter-titled component, for example only reel 2 of a 2 reel Item is acquired that includes both 70th birthday of US coast to coast railway and Princesses play with baby pandas, then a different approach may be taken. This would involve using the title of the appropriate Manifestation pertaining to the whole newsreel issue and adding qualifying details, optionally in square brackets, as a second element of the title to create a title for the Item.

Example

British Paramount news No. 856. [Reel 2]

British Paramount news No.856. (Reel 2)

British Paramount news No.856. Reel 2

OR

Example

British Paramount news No.856. [Incomplete]

British Paramount news No.856. (Incomplete)

British Paramount news No.856. Incomplete

With any inter-title designations on the print then added as alternative type titles.

Example

Preferred Title: British Paramount news No. 856. [Reel 2]

Alternative Title : 70th birthday of US coast to coast railway

Alternative Title : Princesses play with baby pandas

Alternatively, the titles of each analytic/component may be included in a notes and/or contents field.

Square brackets may be used within titles for encasing necessary extra qualifying or clarification elements that are not on the actual print.

Use the form of titling that fits with the practice of your institution. An institution may acquire both a whole copy of the newsreel/cinemagazine issue and a part of it. An Item record should be made for each, e.g.

Or it may be that only parts of a newsreel/cinemagazine episode are acquired at different times. As these will be in different cans/containers and are separate acquisitions, then they are separate Items. Again, the inter-title on the part can be used to create the title of the Item:

As mentioned previously, if preferred, then the newsreel series title can be incorporated within the episode title along with the inter-title heading:

Where a story element from a newsreel/cinemagazine issue has been acquired (but the issue it is from has not yet been identified, while the newsreel/cinemagazine series it is from is known) then the inter-title heading on the film itself should be used as the title for the Work, Manifestation and Item. The Work would constitute an Analytic Work and can be linked directly to the newsreel/cinemagazine Serial Work record.

If the full episode/issue is subsequently identified, then the Item can either be

• re-linked to a pre-existing Work/Manifestation record for the whole issue, and the Analytic Work and its Manifestation deleted/removed

or

• the Analytic Work record and its Manifestation can be revised and made into the Monographic Work episode and whole issue released Manifestation

The Item then becomes a simple partial acquisition of the whole, retaining the story element title

With some institutions, rather than a Serial – Monographic Work structure, the nature of the material they hold may mean they only ever need a Serial – Analytic Work structure. For example, an archive with a large collection of the individual story elements of multiple local regional news television programmes held on videotapes, rather than whole individual programmes – especially where the precise episode they are from is unclear or less relevant for that institution. These can be catalogued under their individual story element title, and linked to a Serial Work record for the local news series. As component parts of a whole issue the individual story elements constitute “Analytic” types.

In some collections of local news programmes only the Analytic story elements and their dates of filming are catalogued rather than the whole issues/episodes in which they featured and the broadcast date of those. If the Work/Item represents the unedited footage that was shot rather than the exact edit that was used or shown in a particular broadcast news programme, then it should have a linked Pre-Release type of Manifestation

Where such individual story elements may have been aggragated together into compilations reels, tapes, or files then see [LINK TO AGGREGATES CHAPTER AND RELEVANT SECTION] If deemed necessary or helpful for the purposes of discovery, the alternative titles added to Items should also be added to the Work level record.

11.5.4 Further enhanced structuring possibilities with analytic/component parts and identified newsreels/cinemagazines

There may also be instances, particularly with news and newsreel collections where a Serial-Monographic-Analytic Works construction, in a grandparent-parent-child hierarchical structure could be considered and used in certain databases that have an EN 15907 structure.

This is not a structuring or architecture that is covered within the EN 15907 Standard itself, but it is one which exploits and extends the EN 15907 basic structure model further in conjunction with Work/Variant Description types (ADD LINK TO SECTION ON THESE – WAS D.1 BUT NOW MOVED IN GITHUB DEVELOP DOCUMENT). This could suit institutions with huge newsreel collections, particularly where the individual story elements are what are searched on by users, and use of this type of structuring is also starting to evolve in some institutions in very particular scenarios.

One such is where there may be instances of the Analytic individual story elements having their own later publication, or “manifestation”, and there is a need or preference by an institution for keeping all the records together in a vertical hierarchy. It may also suit institutions with huge newsreel collections, particularly where the individual story elements of issues are what are searched on and accessed by users.

For example: Topical Budget was a British silent newsreel that ran c.1911-1931. Each episode or issue of the weekly newsreel contained 4-5 short separate news story elements.

In the early 21st century individual story elements from each newsreel issue were digitised and streamed by an institution. One Analytic component from an issue, rather than the whole issue itself, now had a new “release” Internet Manifestation in its own right using the component story element title.

For practical and efficiency reasons, as well as systems workflows, an institution may find it necessary and preferable to be able to keep everything in a hierarchy together under the Serial Work, particularly in systems where a hierarchy is visible and accessible for navigation into all linked records.

This type of 3-tier Works structuring is a logical extension of the 2-tier Serial-Monographic parent-child linked hierarchical structures used already in many institutions.[ADD THE FOLLOWING FOOTNOTE HERE This also corresponds with structures in UNESCO CCF/B (Common Communications Format / Bibliographic, UNESCO PGI-92/WS/9, Paris, 1992,(INSERT LINK) relating to vertical structuring and Series-Monograph-Component types (which are the basis for EN 15907 Description levels aka Work/Variant Description Types).]

This would then ultimately have the following record structure:

as well as additional “Other relationships” between some of these, i.e. an associative contains/contained in relationship between the Mongographic and Analytic Work and a source item/derived item relationship between the two Items.

Under existing EN 15907, usual structuring would be to create new Analytic Works (with their own new Manifestations and Items) and relate those Works to the original whole newsreel issue in which they featured, in an associative “Other Relationship”. In a system where Serial and Monographic Works usually sit in a horizontal Other Relationships structure then this can be followed, i.e.

11.5.5 Further enhanced structuring possibilities with large newsreel/cinemagazine or television series/serials

A further, and similar, enhanced hierarchical structuring of different types of Works records has also started to be used by some institutions in order to cope with systems response issues to accessing very large or long-running series/serials where hundreds, or even thousands, of Monographic Works (or Mongraphic and Analytic Works) are all child records of the same Serial Work. This involves the further subdividing of the Serial Work into multiple further child Serial Works by date year or decades and linking the relevant Monographic Works to these.

For example, a collection of all the UK daily morning news and magazine programme Good Morning Britain:

While not actually stipulated or covered in the EN 15907 standard model, the inherent flexibility of that model and structure does potentially enable possible stretching of the standard, and it could be argued that it is logically acceptable structuring within EN 15907.

Whilst system work-arounds that impact on data standards are not to be advocated and avoided if possible, it is recognised that this may sometimes be unavoidable and have to be done by an institution for pragmatic and purely practical reasons, particularly where there may be impacts on accessibility for both internal and external users.

In some instances, this concept could even lead to a Great Grandparent-Grandparent-Parent-Child Work hierarchical relationship structure:

11.5.6 Analytics/components of unidentified newsreels/ cinemagazines

Where only an analytic/component of a copy pertaining to a whole Work has been acquired as an Item, and the Serial Work to which it belongs is unable to be identified (i.e., the Item acquired is clearly a section of newsreel but the newsreel series has not been identified), then the title assigned to that Item should also be used to create the title for the Manifestation and Work records, which will then be related to each other hierarchically.

The Item title is assigned in accordance with Title and Supplied/Devised Titles (i.e. Creating titles for untitled/unidentified entities or production material).

The following paragraphs relate to Archive systems that are using the CEN structure:

Work level titles created in this way would be described as having the CEN attribute of “Analytic” and indication that the title is a supplied/devised title type. Further clarifications could then be put into synopsis/description or notes fields areas of the Work.

Should the whole Work of which the Item is a part subsequently be identified, then the Analytic record can be either modified or deleted and the Item linked via a “part of” relationship to a whole issue Theatrical Manifestation, which is in turn “part of” a whole Work, or Monographic Work.⁵

11.5.7 Titles and structuring of Variant newsreel/cinemagazine episodes

With some newsreels/cinemagazines, versions were made for showing in different countries, either with a different commentator voicing it or varying differences in the stories or elements making up an issue.

For example, the cinemagazine series London Line was made in the United Kingdom but was aimed at audiences in Commonwealth countries such as Nigeria, Australia, Canada, Kenya, and Ghana, etc. as well. Each issue of the cinemagazine had a different version, i.e. one aimed at West African audiences, another East African version, another a Canadian version, etc. These versions all had component stories in common but also contained other stories/elements with a subject matter more specifically related to each geographical area. The different presenters for each version also reflected the latter.

In cases of potentially different versions of a newsreel/cinemagazine episode, there are different cataloguing options depending on varying factors.

For Item(s) that have not yet been viewed, then if the film header, can, accompanying paperwork, legacy records, etc. indicate that an item acquired is a particular version of a newsreel/cinemagazine episode, then the Item can be created and linked to the original episode Work and Manifestation. By having a partially devised title for the Item(s) the version distinctions could be indicated, e.g.

This could be a temporary measure prior to viewing, checking, and fuller cataloguing. For example, after further researches and viewing it could be established that the Work/Variant and Manifestations for what was designated “East African Version” was more specifically that released in Kenya, so titling can subsequently be revised to London Line Greets ’69 [Kenyan Version] for the Item and its linked Manifestation, and Work/Variant.

In the case of versions it is important to decide whether the content of the episode remains largely the same.

If the episode has the same content, the commentary is the same (just perhaps a direct translation in a different language with a different commentator/presenter) then the Item simply represents a Variant and/or Manifestation of the original Work.

If, for example, London Line No. 373 simply had different presenters for one version but the same commentary – or the level of difference was not yet known from researches – then the following data structures can be used:

Or if you institution does not use Variants:

The above diagrams also illustrate the structure that could be used where there is an additional separate acquisition of one of the component elements of one of the versions.

However, always create a new Work if:

• any of the content is different, e.g. two of the stories in the newsreel/cinemagazine episode are identical across all versions, but the third is different
• the stories remain the same but there are new different interconnecting segments with different presenters
• the stories/footage remains the same but the wording of the commentary is changed, e.g. to give a different slant, emphasis, or impression

Content descriptions (e.g. synopses and/or shotlists), Subjects, Cast, Credits, etc. relevant to each can then be added to the Variant or Work record accordingly. The Item which matches with these can then be linked with this Work/Variant, via a relevant specific Manifestation.

If preferred, then partially devised titles can be used for easy identification across the new Works/ Variants, Manifestations, and Items, as in the examples featured. Use whichever practice or stylistic is preferred by your institution for these, e.g. square brackets, punctuation system within the titling itself, or a corresponding title type, etc.

And if variations are minor and Variants are used, then structure would look like this:

---

1. Serial = something which is a continuing story, for which it is necessary to have seen previous episodes to follow the story line, e.g. Pride and Prejudice, Heimat, Brideshead Revisited. Series = something which contains programmes or episodes which are complete in themselves (although they may have characters in common) for which it is not essential to have seen previous episodes in order to understand the story line/content, e.g. Cadfael. Midsomer Murders, World in Action.. BFI SIFT Inputting Manual. ↩

2. See Appendix Work/Variant Description Types for EN 15907/BFI definitions of Serial as Description Type. ↩

3. The 1991 FIAF rules stipulated that such titles should have a comma separator between the part element and individual title components of the Title, e.g., Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars, Chapter 12, Ming the Merciless. However, the trend seems to be to distinguish the different elements of such component types of titles with a full stop separator, e.g., Flash Gordon’s trip to Mars. Chapter 12. Ming the Merciless. ↩

4. BFI definitions: Newsreels = Films dating from 1910 to 1979, which report on local and international events and which were regularly screened at cinemas, e.g. Pathé News 1910-1970; Warwick Bioscope Chronicle 1910-1915; Topical Budget 1911-1931; Newsreel Flying Machine Compilation 1910. Cinemagazines = Short magazine film including more than two interest items, e.g. Aussie Oddities (1948), This Week in Britain (1950-1980) ↩

5. See Value Lists for CEN categories and definitions used by BFI ↩

6. See Supplied/Devised Titles (i.e. Creating titles for untitled/unidentified entities or production material) and examples of titling ↩