Film 210: Week 7

Special Sluglines & Designations

This lesson covers:

Flashbacks and dream sequences
Time designations (CONTINUOUS, LATER)
O.S. and V.O. designations
Secondary sluglines/French scenes

Time of Day

The primary options are DAY and NIGHT. They give crew members essential information about when a scene takes place.

However, some scripts will have other notations like MORNING, EVENING, and NOON. Still, unless specific information exists in the scene (for example, the sun rises), it is most likely irrelevant.

Two other options are:

LATER - used when time has passed in the exact location
CONTINUOUS - used when one scene leads immediately into the next. Think of a one-shot scene like the club in Goodfellas or the entire film of the military drama 1917.

If you are writing a scene in space, you don’t need to include the time of day.

⚠️

As a student in my class, I want only DAY, NIGHT, LATER, or CONTINUOUS.

Dream Sequences

These will look like:

SARAH’S DREAM
INT. HOUSE - DAY - SARAH’S DREAM
INT. HOUSE - DAY (SARAH’S DREAM)

Flashbacks

There are many ways to do flashbacks (all of which are listed in the book). However, some preferred notations are:

EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY (FLASHBACK)
EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY - FLASHBACK
FLASHBACK - EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY

After using the flashback, indicate the return to the present day:

EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY (BACK TO PRESENT DAY)
EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY - BACK TO PRESENT DAY
BACK TO PRESENT DAY - EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY

It is vital to remain consistent. Use the same format for both versions.

Finally, there is a special notation for flashbacks that hop around many different periods:

EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY (5 YEARS AGO)
EXT. BUDAPEST - DAY - 5 YEARS AGO

Again, remain consistent as you return to the present storyline or another time.

Vehicles

When dealing with a vehicle, consider where the action occurs (Is it inside the vehicle or outside?).

If there is one character outside speaking with another inside, then where is the focus? (I’d most likely lean toward the exterior.)

As well, if the vehicle is travelling, then you can use a slugline like:

INT. CAR - DAY - TRAVELLING

French Scenes (Secondary Sluglines)

These are used when focusing on several smaller locations in a large area.

To write a French scene:

Use an opening master slug-line (INT. RICK’S CAFE - DAY) to establish the location. Include narrative description.
Once you’ve introduced the space, move to the next piece of action with a French scene.

For example, if you are filming in a nightclub, you could introduce the space as INT. RICK’S CAFE, but once inside, you could use AT THE BAR, GAMING ROOM, or RICK’S TABLE.

Notice that you don’t need to add interior or time once you use the French scene.

You can also create French scenes that focus on characters: