ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

6 years, 7 months ago - Tony Franks

Hi Buppha, I'm not familiar with the term either, but I'll make a guess - It could be the section of screentime/soundtrack when the viewer knows the narrative of the film is finished, but the screen credits have yet to start. So maybe a chance to digest the story. The sunset shot, or a person walking away down a long road, or even just a fade out to black screen??

6 years, 7 months ago - Buppha Wittaya-Amponpunt

Thanks Tony! I think that, too, but I'm not so sure :)

6 years, 7 months ago - Glyn Carter

Like Tony, it's not a phrase I've come across, and I've read a few screenwriting books. Maybe it was in the last chapter and my attention strayed...

But one thing they all say is that the writer doesn't need to specify where and when the beginning or end credits etc go.

So just write your closing scene, be it John Wayne walking into the setting sun (in the east, as in Green Berets), or Cary Grant lifting Eva Marie Saint off the cliff and onto the bunk bed (and the train going into the tunnel - oo-er!) as in North by Northwest. Then FADE TO BLACK is acceptable, to show the reader the story really has ended and they aren't missing pages.