The Ultimate Screenplay Format Reference

Master Scene Headings

<Camera Location>. <Scene Location> - [<Time of Day> - [<Clarification>] ]

or

<Camera Location>. <Scene Location> - [<Time of Day>] [(<Clarification>)]

Items in [ ] are optional.

<Camera Location>:

• EXT. for outside
• INT. for inside
• EXT./INT. and INT./EXT. are reserved for cars. If you think you need them elsewhere consider Secondary Scene Headings.

<Scene Location>:

• This must be a location (not an event)

[<Time of Day>]:

• Stick to DAY or NIGHT
• Occasionally you might use CONTINUOUS

[<Clarification>]:

• This can be anything. For example, a specific date, a time of day etc. - if it is really important to the plot.

Here a few valid examples:
 

EXT. SHERWOOD FOREST - DAY

EXT. SHERWOOD FOREST - DAY (DREAM)

EXT. SHERWOOD FOREST - DAY (JULY 1788)

INT. BOILER ROOM

INT. ROOM 101 (FLASHBACK)

INT. MARY’S KITCHEN - DAY

EXT. SIBERIAN TAIGA - DAY (JULY 30, 1908, 7:00 AM)

Remarks:
Scene Headings are also called sluglines or slugs. Master scene headings are often referred to as primary slugs, secondary headings as secondary slugs.

Secondary Scene Headings

<location>:

• this must be a location - it’s really as simple as that
• they have to use the same camera direction as the corresponding master scene heading - the cannot move from EXT. to INT. or vice versa.

The interesting part is how and when to use them:

• If you used a master scene heading to establish a location, you can use secondary headings to move around within the area defined by the master scene heading.     Secondary headings thus break up a potentially large scene into smaller scenes.
  
  Example:

INT. ANDY’S HOUSE - DAY

KITCHEN

Action or dialog in the kitchen
...

LIVING ROOM

Action or dialog in the living room
...

HALLWAY

etc. ...
 

• The Screenwriter’s Bible mentions ways of breaking these rules that you might get away with:
  
  If it improves the flow of the scene you can alternate between INT. and EXT. locations.
  
  Example:

INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT

Through the window Jake notices light flickering in the tool shed across the lawn.

He steps into the hallway.

HALLWAY

He walks to the backdoor. Sweat appears on his forehead.

Beside the exit stands a baseball bat. He takes it. Hesitantly he opens the door.

LAWN

Careful to not cause any noise he walks to the shed.

TOOL SHED

He listens at the window. Inside he can hear faint rhythmic sounds.

He sneaks to the entrance, opens the door, enters.

INSIDE THE TOOL SHED

etc.
 

• That said, you can also break the rules by using names as secondary slugs.
  
  Here an example from Kill Bill, Volume 1 (imdb link), written by Quentin Tarantino:

They land hard on the floor covered in broken glass, locked
in grapple, each trying to get the best of the other one,...
When The Housewife headbutts The Bride in the nose

THE HOUSEWIFE

hops off The Bride, runs into the kitchen, opens a drawer
and comes out with a huge butcher knife.

THE BRIDE

rises from the floor, and whips out a knife in a sheath
hanging from her belt.

The Bride backs up into the mess of the now totally
demolished living room.

Note: The original text contains elements that are not recommended for spec scripts (author’s intrusions, liberal use of capitals etc.) which have been modified to match the recommendations in the Screenwriter’s Bible.
 

• LATER
  
  Another possibility of breaking the rules and getting away with it is the proper use of LATER. For example, INT. HANK’S KITCHEN - LATER could be condensed into a simple secondary heading LATER, if what happens ‘later’ happens in the same place.