<![CDATA[Methodological integration has become a defining characteristic of contemporary film research as scholars increasingly combine perspectives from the humanities, social sciences, creative practice, and screen production. Widespread use of the terms multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary, however, has not been accompanied by consistent methodological criteria, making comparisons across studies increasingly difficult. Clarifying these distinctions is essential for improving methodological reporting and strengthening research design in film studies. A metadata-assisted bibliographic scoping review was conducted to examine methodological patterns in Scopus-indexed film research published between 2015 and 29 July 2026. Review procedures followed the Joanna Briggs Institute guidance and the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). Methodological coding relied on bibliographic metadata, including titles, abstracts, author keywords, DOI information, and journal records, because comprehensive access to publisher full texts was not consistently available. Eligibility screening reduced 714 records to a final corpus of 202 articles. Methodological classification identified 177 interdisciplinary studies (87.6%), 21 transdisciplinary studies (10.4%), and four multidisciplinary studies (2.0%). Interdisciplinary research dominated the literature, whereas transdisciplinary approaches appeared primarily in participatory documentary, community-based audiovisual production, and collaborative creative practice. Multidisciplinary research accounted for only a small proportion because disciplinary perspectives generally became integrated during the research process rather than remaining parallel. An evidence-based methodological classification framework emerges from the review and offers practical guidance for distinguishing multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary research in film studies. Greater conceptual consistency may improve methodological reporting, support future evidence syntheses, and strengthen the design of film and audiovisual research.]]>
