We’ve talked about writing to the cut before, but I wanted to dig in on one especially useful tool – the prelap. Prelaps get noted similar to (V.O.) or (O.S.) at the end of a character’s name in dialogue. And like those, it signifies someone speaking who is not visible.
But unlike the other examples, prelap specifically signifies the audience hearing dialogue from the next scene. After the cut, the dialogue continues but now in-scene. Continuing the example from above:
The prelap segues the audience into the next scene, while also raising questions. If done well, it can make them interested to get context for the dialogue they’ve just heard. So the next time you’re writing to the cut, don’t forget about the prelap as one of your tools.