How to Add Data to IMDb

What content can I provide?

IMDb is made up of many, many different content types - the majority of which can be added by our 'contributors'. It's not just additions to the database we accept though, sometimes our customers spot a little mistake that should be corrected, some phrasing that could be improved and sometimes there are occasions where something may be wrong on the site, and may need to be removed.

A list of all the individual content sections that can be updated is listed here ->

Where on earth do I start?

Firstly, you need to have something you want to share with IMDb's 150 million unique monthly visitors. Yikes, you may think, that's a lot of people that will see something that I send in to IMDb.

That's true, and it can be scary, it can also be super-cool. Sometimes you need to start small, as we've said, you don't have to start with just adding something new. That niggly bit of bad grammar on a Trivia item you just read on your favorite episode of Breaking Bad you just want to correct - start there! A plot keyword that is relevant and should be added to that newly released Star Trek movie, that's cool to submit too.

But, what if I make a mistake?

Well, we all make mistakes, as hard as we try not to. What's unique about IMDb is that all of the submissions of content to the database are vetted by our swat team of data editors. This team verifies the relevancy of all the content that is submitted to IMDb. In addition, our submissions system runs a lot of checks for you before you send us the content, we pick up a lot of things there that you can correct.

OK, I've found something I want to share, what do I do?

Firstly, you need to become a Registered User. You can either do that directly from this link, or you will be prompted to as you enter our submissions system.

Secondly, you need to navigate to the Name Page (Example) or Title Page (Example) you want to update or correct. You can use the search box at the top of every page on IMDb to search for cast and crew or the titles themselves.

Thirdly, when you are on the relevant IMDb page for the person or title you want to provide the content for, you need to edit the page. Yikes, how do I do that? Well, there are a few different ways. The easiest is to scroll to the bottom of the page, and hit the button. It's right at the bottom, in a section entitled "Contribute to This Page". Clicking this button will take you into our "Submissions System" for all of our content types. We also have many links throughout the page, usually one in each component. Clicking on any of these will take you into our "Submissions System" for the content types in that component.

OK, I'm on a page that is asking me for a bunch of stuff, what do I do?

Firstly, DON'T PANIC! Seriously, you don't submit anything to IMDb until you hit a button at the end of the process to do so. Our submissions system works on a per 'data type' basis, but you can choose to add different things at the same time. Again, start simple, choose the type of content you want to add, correct or delete and hit the button.

OK, I'm on a page with a lot of boxes and things, what do I do?

Again, DON'T PANIC! You are on a page that looks a little 'Retro', but it does work really well. At the top of each page, there will be a link to the data submission guides. Each one of these guides include information on the relevant policies and formatting guides for our data types. For example, if you want to add a plot summary, take a look at the Plot Summaries submission guide to see what you need to do.

• If you're ADDING Cast Members, you'll have a NAME and CHARACTER box to fill out. (Example). Simply enter the data (in this case, the name of the actor, and the character played), and click CHECK THESE UPDATES (Example)
• If you're CORRECTING existing data, you will find a drop-down list on the left side of the page with three options: KEEP, CORRECT and DELETE. If you're CORRECTING existing data, again, choose the relevant option, then click CHECK THESE UPDATES.
• If you're DELETING data, you'll arrive on the delete page, where you will need to enter a reason why the credit is being deleted, after which you click CHECK THESE UPDATES (Example)
• If you're CORRECTING data you'll have boxes to fill out for the relevant corrections, after which you click CHECK THESE UPDATES (Example)

OK, I hit the button, what now?

One of two things will happen when you click the button, whether you are adding, correcting or deleting content:-

1. If your update so far doesn't trigger any warnings, the box with the data you have submitted will turn GREEN.
2. If you've made any formatting or policy mistakes (and let's face it, it happens to us all), you'll receive a warning which will outline what you need to fix (Example). You just need to make the changes that are suggested and click the button. If you fixed all the warnings, all the data you submitted will turn GREEN.

OK, Everything is Green on the page, what now?

That's it! You have a submission that is ready to be submitted to IMDb! All you need to do now is click the button (Example)

You'll then receive an email notification of the content you've submitted, and it will then go through to our Data Managers for processing.

Hey, I didn't want to add something to a Title, I wanted to add a Title that you don't have, what do I do?

Great! If there is a title missing from IMDb, we want it. We have a separate handy guide to assist with this process: How to add a new title

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