This one’s easy, right? Not so fast.
Everyone knows that when you use INT. in a scene heading, it means “interior” and when you use EXT. in a scene heading, it means “exterior.” That much is straightforward.
But what happens when you want the subject matter to be inside (e.g. a family eating dinner), but you want to suggest a shot from outside the house (e.g. watching the family through their kitchen window)? Is that INT. or EXT.?
Or what if you wanted to show that someone is inside (e.g. a third-floor apartment), and they’re spying on someone outside (e.g. on the street below)? Is that INT. or EXT.?
Or how about this one: Suppose you wanted to show a truck driving along a highway and indicate we’re also seeing shots that are inside the vehicle. Would this scene heading be okay? INT./EXT. HIGHWAY – DAY
Here’s the trick
Brace yourselves, this tip may be a revelation.
INT. and EXT. don’t indicate where the characters are; they indicate where the camera is.
Boom! Did that just hurt your brain (in a good way)?
So in our first example with the family eating dinner while someone watches from outside, the scene heading would be:
EXT. SMITH FAMILY HOUSE - NIGHT An unknown viewer watches Vic, Tim and the rest of the family through the kitchen window as they blissfully eat dinner. Unaware.
You could also write something like:
We watch Vic, Tim and the rest of the family through the kitchen window as they blissfully eat dinner, safe on the inside. For now.
NOTE: Don’t believe it when people say you should never write: “we watch” or “we see.” It’s great as a general rule (i.e. everything on screen is something we see, so it’s usually redundant), but sometimes it’s unavoidable without a great deal of awkward writing gymnastics. And screenwriting is all about efficiency and clarity.
Let’s look at our second example.
INT. CLARA'S APARTMENT - DAY Clara carefully pulls apart her window blinds. Just enough to see -- An UNUSUALLY TALL WOMAN loping toward her apartment building on the street, three floors below.
See how I’ve broken the above action lines into two paragraphs. That’s because one paragraph should equate to one shot.
I do hate using the less active verb tense though (i.e. “loping” vs. “lope”), even though it’s an acceptable use because it continues the preceding sentence. So I’d probably rewrite things as follows:
Clara carefully pulls apart her window blinds. Just enough to see -- An UNUSUALLY TALL WOMAN. She lopes toward Clara's apartment building on the street, three floors below.
And now for the final example.
We would NOT write: INT./EXT. HIGHWAY – DAY. How can you be inside a highway? Instead write something like:
INT./EXT. BARRY'S TRUCK - DAY
Save the fact that they’re on a highway, or wherever, for the action lines:
The rusty pickup truck barrels along a highway. Inside, Barry and Mary Sue sing along with an old folk tune playing on the radio.
NOTE: Even if you don’t plan on showing anything outside of the truck, it’s always a good idea to use INT./EXT. versus just INT. for driving scenes. Remember, you’re suggesting where the camera is. It’s entirely possible the director would like a shot of the characters through the windshield, for example, which means the camera would be outside of the truck.
INT./EXT. Bonus Round
There’s one other scenario that trips up a lot of writers. What happens if you’re inside a building but outside a character’s apartment, like in a hallway? Would that be INT. or EXT.?
Here’s where semantics get in the way. EXT. doesn’t mean outside of something. It means it’s an exterior shot, as in outdoors.
So you would write such a scene as follows. Let’s revisit Clara:
INT. CLARA'S APARTMENT BUILDING - HALLWAY - DAY Clara cracks open the door to her apartment. Slowly looks both ways as she peers into the hallway. She lurches out of her apartment, slamming the door behind her. Dashes to the emergency stairwell. Throws open the door to find -- The Unusually Tall Woman. She towers over Clara, blocking any chance of escape.
The above scene heading could also be written as follows:
INT. OUTSIDE CLARA'S APARTMENT - HALLWAY - DAY
Does that all make sense, or does your brain now hurt in a bad way? Let me know!
Unfortunately, I disagree with most of what you are saying here. For me, the most successful script is the one that eliminates the presence of the writer. Good screenwriting, just like good fiction writing should allow the reader to get lost in the story. If you keep using terms like…’we can see’ or ‘we watch’ because it reminds me that there is a writer sitting on my shoulder giving me direction. It completely takes me out of the story and breaks the ‘story telling spell’ for me.
Hey David,
Thanks for the feedback. I totally hear what you’re saying about the “we see” usage. As I mentioned in the article, there’s a good reason to avoid it. But I’ve found that there are some situations where it just makes sense. Having said that, if you find yourself using it more than once per script or two, you’re probably doing something wrong.
You mentioned you disagree with most of what I’ve said. I’d be curious to hear what your other criticisms are.
Cheers!
Very useful tips, thanks!
Hey. I’ve got a question. I’m about to write a scene where it starts off outside of a house and then the character goes inside of the house. Would I use INT./EXT. in that context as well?
Hi Jaiden, great question!
It all depends on how you craft the scene in your mind. Remember, the INT. or EXT. is simply where the camera is. So if you picture having the camera inside the house, you could write:
INT. JOHN’S HOUSE – DAY
Through the living room window, we see John amble up the walkway toward the front door.
The front door opens and John enters.
—
Or if you picture the camera outside, you would write something like:
EXT. JOHN’S HOUSE – DAY
John exits his car, heads to the front door. He unlocks it, enters, and disappears inside.
—
Or if you simply want to indicate a conversation that takes place at the front door, you could write:
INT./EXT. JOHN’S HOUSE – DAY
The DOORBELL RINGS. John leaps off his sofa and heads to the front door. He opens it to see —
Sally stands on his doorstep, holding his dead cat.
John stares at her, tears welling in his eyes.
Etc.
Hope that helps!
Thank you for the article Trevor. I’ve a question. What if a script takes place entirely inside a space station, or in an underground complex? Would the entire script be INT., or would rooms be INT. and hallways EXT. ?
Hi Dan, great question! Yes, everything would be INT. unless we’re watching the action from outside the parking garage or looking into the spaceship through a window from the outside.
Hallways are always INT. because they’re indoors. You could have a scene heading:
INT. HALLWAY OUTSIDE DAN’S ROOM – DAY
But it’s still considered inside (INT.) because it’s indoors.
Cheers!
Hello, I’m writing a room scene, I’m having activity going on inside the room and outside the room. Jeff and Mary are talking in the room .the door bell rings, Jeff opens and meet Sam. They talk..
Would this be ext int?
That’s an easy one. It would all be INT. because at no point does the camera need to go outside.
INT. JEFF AND MARY’S HOUSE – DAY
The young couple canoodles on the couch.
DING DONG.
Jeff heads for the front door. Opens it to find Sam staring at him, drenched with sweat.
JEFF
What the hell? You said you’d call
when you needed me to pick you up.
SAM
I walked all the way here.
JEFF
From the bus station?
SAM
From New Hampshire.
Etc.
je suis entrain d’écrire une scène qui se déroule dans une école en matin mais sur la cour de récréation deux personnes parles. Serait-ce Ext. Ou INT.
Comme le dit l’article, cela dépend de l’endroit où se trouve la caméra. Si nous regardons les gens parler de l’intérieur de l’école, alors INT. est correct. Si nous sautons dehors pour être juste à côté d’eux, alors EXT. est correct.
Great tips Trevor!
Here’s a tricky one I’ve been struggling with today. The scene takes place in a large metal see-through cage that sits outside. Should the scene heading be EXT. or INT. ?
Hey Raph, that’s indeed a tricky one. Love it!
If the camera’s inside the cage with the occupant, I’d use: INT.
However, I’m imagining there will be conversations between the occupant and their captor, etc., so to save yourself grief in those instances, I’d use: INT./EXT. CAGE – DAY
It’s similar to a car scene in that respect. It lets the camera jump around without an over abundance of scene headings.
Cheers!
Hi, this guide is very helpful! So, this is probably a silly question, but should INT/EXT indicate where the camera is *in-universe*, or in reality? For instance, if it’s meant to be “outside” in the story but is intended to be shot in a studio, do you still use EXT?
Hi Lorelei,
What an excellent question. You’re definitely referencing the universe versus the real-life camera location. So yes, you would still use EXT.
Cheers!
Hey Trevor,
I’m working on a scene where the POV is from inside a tunnel, with a character approaching from the outside. Would this be INT or EXT? Can you be INT with a tunnel that’s open to the elements?
Love the site! X
Hey Tom,
Great question! I would definitely use INT. for a tunnel. It’s still more enclosed than not (two walls and a roof).
Glad you’re enjoying the site. Cheers!
Hey. Trevor
Thanks for the tips they’re really helping me.
My question is since I imagine my character in the passenger seat siton the driveway opposite her her old family house contemplating to go and knock at the door or not and just wait to see who’s going to step out…. “This is in attempt to face her fears”.
Hi Michael,
It all depends where the camera is in your mind. Are we watching her from outside the car? If so, it’s an EXT. shot.
Are we inside the car with her? If so, it’s an INT. shot.
Do we spend a substantial amount of time on this scene (where the camera might jump around)? Or do we go from being inside the car to her exiting the car and walking away from it? In either case, you may be best served by using: INT./EXT.
Hope that helps!
Hi Trevor! What if you have a three-second exterior establishing shot of a building followed by an interior scene in the building? Do I type an EXT. scene heading immediately followed by an INT. scene heading? Or must every scene heading be followed by a description, even if it’s just for a three-second shot? Or is there another way to do it? Thank you.
Hi Alex, great question!
Yes, you can simply have an EXT. scene heading without any action lines below it…
But —- you need to add ESTABLISHING in parentheses after your scene heading. For example:
EXT. LEGION OF DOOM – NIGHT (ESTABLISHING)
INT. LEGION OF DOOM – NIGHT
Honestly though, you’re better off giving a little flavor to the scene, especially the first time we see the location:
EXT. LEGION OF DOOM – NIGHT
A leering, dome-shaped, metal fortress glows ominously in the moonlight.
Would a chasm in the Earth where people are trapped be written as EXT?
The above would mean they can look up and see the distant sky.
EXT. CHASM – DAY
Yes, you nailed it. Definitely an EXT. shot.
Cheers!
What if you have a scene that’s neither INT nor EXT? For example, an animated sequence of random images with a solid color as a background?
Hey Hill,
I would simply use as a scene heading:
ANIMATED SEQUENCE – RANDOM IMAGES
No need to include the INT./EXT. in the heading. Then below the heading, give a brief explanation of what we’re seeing. You can also swap out “RANDOM IMAGES” for something that indicates what the sequence is about (similar to what you would do for a montage).
For example:
ANIMATED SEQUENCE – JACOB’S VISION
This might be an obvious question, but if the characters are outside is that EXT?
Hi Bob, as per the article, it depends where we’re seeing the characters from. If we’re watching them from inside, it’s INT. If we’re outside with them (which is most common), it’s EXT.
Hi! I’m a student in a film class and I’m working on a script for the very first time, so this article helped me out, but I’m a little confused. What is the difference between just writing INT. and writing INT./EXT.? What does it mean when there is both in the heading, or are you just referring to either or?
Hi Sonora, great question! I take it for granted sometimes that people will be familiar with these arcane screenwriting conventions. You would use INT./EXT. when you know that the filmmaker (or the movie in your head) will be cutting between an interior and an exterior shot. It saves you from having to create a new scene header each time for accuracy. And saving space in a script is always a good thing. So it’s kind of an acceptable cheat. Hope that answers your question.
Hello !
I wrote an INT. scene where *bam bam bam*, someone knocks at a window. The character open the window and talk to the bambambamer. OK, all INT.
But yesterday, the set builder told me that this window will be built and useable on set, when we will shoot this building outdoors. I now can have my camera behind the bambambamer pointing at the guy indoor (shot day A) and have a dialog scene with camera jumping in and out on ext set (shot (day B). How do I change the script, as I don’t want it to exactly indicate editing points for in and out ?
Hi Alex, congrats on your production. There’s a simple solution to your problem. Just change INT. to INT./EXT.
That allows the camera to jump back and forth as need be.
Depending on the context, like if you’ve already specified a secondary location, such as a BEDROOM, you could use:
Charlie opens his window to see an OLD MAN in ripped clothes, standing on his flowerbed, staring daggers at him.
INTERCUT WITH:
EXT. CHARLIE’S HOME – DAY
The Old Man rips out a Gardenia, hurls it at Charlie’s head.
Cheers!
Thanks, Trevor.
Does it mean that all int/ext labels have to be shot twice, in the case int is in studio and ext is on location ?
Not at all. When the second A.D. creates the call sheet from the shooting script, they’ll just use INT. or EXT. as needed.
Also, refresh the comments as I edited my initial response to be more comprehensive and helpful.
Thank you very much !
Trevor thanks so much for all the detailed insights and tips. My question is simple. How does this apply for playwriting? Of course there’s no camera.
So when should it be INT and when should it be EXT?
Thanks in advance man!
Stay creative,
Tim