Screenplay format guide
How to Write a Pre Lap in a Screenplay
A pre lap is sound or dialogue from the next scene that starts before the cut, while we still see the current scene. In a screenplay, write the speaker’s name with (PRE-LAP) as an extension, put the line at the end of the outgoing scene, then start the new scene heading. It bridges scenes and time jumps smoothly.
Written and reviewed by ScriptLix Editorial
INT. TOM'S CAR - NIGHT
Tom sits in the dark, engine off, staring at the police lights in his mirror.
He wipes his hands on his jeans. They won't stop shaking.
JUDGE HALVERSEN (PRE-LAP)
Mr. Reyes, do you understand the charges?
INT. COURTROOM - DAY
Tom stands in a borrowed suit, three months later, hands still.
TOM
Yes, Your Honor.
Write your own
Type in plain text. A name in caps right above a line becomes dialogue, and lines starting INT. or EXT. become scene headings.
INT. TOM'S CAR - NIGHT
Tom sits in the dark, engine off, staring at the police lights in his mirror.
He wipes his hands on his jeans. They won't stop shaking.
JUDGE HALVERSEN (PRE-LAP)
Mr. Reyes, do you understand the charges?
INT. COURTROOM - DAY
Tom stands in a borrowed suit, three months later, hands still.
TOM
Yes, Your Honor.
How to use it
- 1
Finish the outgoing scene, then add the cue for whoever speaks next, with (PRE-LAP) after the name.
- 2
Write the line as normal dialogue under that cue.
- 3
Start the new scene heading right after, where that speaker is seen.
What is a pre lap in a screenplay?
Pre lap is short for pre lap dialogue or a pre lapping sound: audio from the next scene arriving early, over the last image of the current one. Editors call it a sound bridge or a J cut. It pulls the audience forward, links two scenes by idea, and makes big jumps in time or place feel smooth.
In the example, a judge’s question lands over a frightened man in a car. Before we see the courtroom, we know where his night ended up.
How do you format a pre lap?
Write the speaker’s cue with the extension in brackets on the same line, like JUDGE HALVERSEN (PRE-LAP). Put the dialogue under it as usual, at the end of the outgoing scene. The next scene heading follows immediately.
For a sound rather than a line, write it as action in the outgoing scene: The shriek of a referee’s whistle pre laps. Some writers add PRE-LAP as a parenthetical under the cue instead of an extension. Both are understood; pick one and use it the whole way through.
When does a pre lap help, and when does it hurt?
It helps when the line comments on the image we are leaving, or when you want to skip the boring part of getting somewhere. It hurts when it is used on every scene, because then it stops meaning anything, or when the reader cannot tell which scene the voice belongs to. Make sure the next scene shows the speaker quickly.
More from the format guide
- How to Write a Montage in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Flashback in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Phone Call in a Screenplay
- How to Write Text Messages in a Screenplay
- Dual Dialogue in a Screenplay
- Voice Over in a Screenplay: V.O. Narration
- Screenplay Transitions: CUT TO, DISSOLVE TO
- How to Introduce a Character in a Screenplay
- How to Use Parentheticals in a Screenplay
- How to Write an Intercut in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Title Card in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Series of Shots in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Flash Forward in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Dream Sequence in a Screenplay
- Smash Cut: What It Is and How to Write One
- O.S. in a Screenplay: Meaning and Format
- Subtitles in a Screenplay: Foreign Dialogue
- How to Write a Split Screen in a Screenplay
- How to Write Slow Motion in a Screenplay
- How to Write a Freeze Frame in a Screenplay
- How to Write Song Lyrics in a Screenplay
Questions writers ask
What does PRE-LAP mean in a script?
It means the line or sound from the next scene starts before the cut, heard over the end of the current scene.
Where do you put PRE-LAP?
As an extension next to the character name, like ANNA (PRE-LAP), with the dialogue at the end of the outgoing scene.
Is a pre lap the same as V.O.?
No. V.O. is a voice not in the scene at all, like narration. A pre lap voice belongs to the next scene and arrives early.
Can a sound effect pre lap?
Yes. Describe it in the action line at the end of the outgoing scene and say that it pre laps, then start the next scene.