Some guidelines that can be used:

• Use keyword searches for broad topics
• When looking for films by a known director, producer, or actor use an Author Search.
• When looking for something about a person do a Subject Search, (e.g.Capra, Frank, or Thornton, Billy Bob)
• Use the term film for resources that are the films themselves (e.g.feature films or silent films)
•  In general use  motion picture, moving picture, movie, or cinema to identify materials about film.Some samples of subject headings include: Motion picture producers and directors, African American Motion Picture Actors and Actresses
• When you identify a title in the catalog, expand the display to find the relevant subject heading and use it to browse all titles indexed under this heading.