From Newsgroup: alt.english.usage

Hello,

I've been told that movie titles should be based on a mixed case depending
on to which group of words a single word belongs. For example, the little article 'a' should be lowercase, unless it comes first in the title, or
(less likely) last, or after some punctuation, such as a colon.

(https://www.creativewriting-prompts.com/writing/how-to-format-movie- titles-in-writing-a-comprehensive-guide/ #8211_Capitalization_Rules_for_Movie_Titles <<< warning, stupid popup)

Relevant "rules" are (according to that site and other places I've
checked):

"""
rCo Always capitalize the first and last word of the title, regardless of their parts of speech. For example, rCLThe Lord of the RingsrCY and rCLGone with
the Wind.rCY
rCo Capitalize all principal words in the title, including nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Skip articles (a, an, the), conjunctions
(and, but, or), and prepositions (in, on, at) unless they are the first or last word in the title. For instance, rCLSinginrCO in the RainrCY and rCLTo All
the Boys IrCOve Loved Before.rCY
rCo Capitalize any other words that are typically capitalized, such as
proper nouns and proper adjectives. Notable examples include names of
specific people, places, or brands within the title. For example, rCLHarry Potter and the PhilosopherrCOs StonerCY and rCLSpider-Man: Into the Spider- Verse.rCY
"""

Example:

Title Mayhem: But also a Silly Example

'but also' is a conjunction (https://www.grammarly.com/blog/parts-of- speech/correlative-conjunctions/ <<< warning, stupid popup), as well as
'not only', so they should be all lowercase (according to the general
"rule"). But since it comes directly after a colon, the other "rule" says
that it should begin with an uppercase letter. But how should one write
that? Like my example, or should both words begin with an uppercase
letter?

What about when it comes last in the title?

Example:

1. Title Mayhem: But Also a Cat and That Is Not Only

2. Title Mayhem: But also a Cat and That Is not Only

Any suggestions?


Thanks.

Q.
--
Post scriptum
In case you wonder, I'm writing a script to make movie titles. Python's builtin string.title() method isn't correct for this.
--q.
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From Newsgroup: alt.english.usage

On 2025-07-30 17:29:55 +0000, Qruqs said:

Hello,

I've been told that movie titles should be based on a mixed case depending
on to which group of words a single word belongs. For example, the little article 'a' should be lowercase, unless it comes first in the title, or
(less likely) last, or after some punctuation, such as a colon.

(https://www.creativewriting-prompts.com/writing/how-to-format-movie- titles-in-writing-a-comprehensive-guide/ #8211_Capitalization_Rules_for_Movie_Titles <<< warning, stupid popup)

Relevant "rules" are (according to that site and other places I've
checked):

"""
rCo Always capitalize the first and last word of the title, regardless of their parts of speech. For example, rCLThe Lord of the RingsrCY and
rCLGone with
the Wind.rCY
rCo Capitalize all principal words in the title, including nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Skip articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, or), and prepositions (in, on, at) unless they are the first or last word in the title. For instance, rCLSinginrCO in the RainrCY and rCLTo All
the Boys IrCOve Loved Before.rCY
rCo Capitalize any other words that are typically capitalized, such as
proper nouns and proper adjectives. Notable examples include names of specific people, places, or brands within the title. For example, rCLHarry Potter and the PhilosopherrCOs StonerCY and rCLSpider-Man: Into the Spider- Verse.rCY
"""

Example:

Title Mayhem: But also a Silly Example

'but also' is a conjunction (https://www.grammarly.com/blog/parts-of- speech/correlative-conjunctions/ <<< warning, stupid popup), as well as
'not only', so they should be all lowercase (according to the general "rule"). But since it comes directly after a colon, the other "rule" says that it should begin with an uppercase letter. But how should one write
that? Like my example, or should both words begin with an uppercase
letter?

What about when it comes last in the title?

Example:

1. Title Mayhem: But Also a Cat and That Is Not Only

2. Title Mayhem: But also a Cat and That Is not Only

Any suggestions?

Conventions have evolved over the years, and there are still acceptable variations. The most important thing is to follow a consistent policy
if you need to refer to more than one. If you are writing for a
publisher you need to follow the publisher's style, whatever it is.
I've never heard of a rule requiring the last word to be capitalized,
and it makes little sense to me. Otherwise, the practice I follow is as follows:

1. Capital initials for the the first word, whatever it is, nouns,
"important" verbs (not ones like "is"), and proper names. For a long
title with a full stop (period), capital initial for the next word.

2. Personally I don't put a capital initial after a colon, whether in
text or in a title, but some publishers, espcially in the USA, require
it. No capital initial after a semicolon or a dash.

3. No capital initials for articles, prepositions, pronouns (other than
I), adjectives, interjections, unless first word.

4. Capital initials for words judged as "important".

Some publishers want capital initials only for the first word and
proper names. That is much more common today than it was 60 years ago.
--
Athel -- French and British, living in Marseilles for 38 years; mainly
in England until 1987.

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From Newsgroup: alt.english.usage


Thanks for your input. My reply below.

On Wed, 30 Jul 2025 21:38:32 +0200, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:

Conventions have evolved over the years, and there are still acceptable variations. The most important thing is to follow a consistent policy if
you need to refer to more than one. If you are writing for a publisher

I am not. I am writing for me, nobody else. However, I want to be precise.
Or rather, as precise I can be, given the information I have found.

you need to follow the publisher's style, whatever it is. I've never
heard of a rule requiring the last word to be capitalized, and it makes little sense to me.

Maybe. But if you check out some titles on IMDb, they usually follow this norm. Granted, it's an American site (owned by Amazon), so I suppose it's rather biased towards the variant of English they use over there and, of course, the "rules" about movie titles as well.

Otherwise, the practice I follow is as follows:

1. Capital initials for the the first word, whatever it is, nouns, "important" verbs (not ones like "is"), and proper names. For a long
title with a full stop (period), capital initial for the next word.

The "rules" I have found do not make this distinction concerning the word "is", IMDb, for instance, usually spells it "Is" in a title. My script
will also do this. But it is easily changed.

2. Personally I don't put a capital initial after a colon, whether in
text or in a title, but some publishers, espcially in the USA, require
it. No capital initial after a semicolon or a dash.

There is some info here: https://titlecaseconverter.com/blog/capitalization-after-a-colon/

In my native tongue it also depends, whether what follows the colon is a complete sentence or not, or some kind of quote.

I don't consider any of this really a "rule" to be enforced, like, for instance, grammar and/or spelling. It's more of a convention.


Q.
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