Screenplay format guide
How to Write a Split Screen in a Screenplay
To write a split screen in a screenplay, put SPLIT SCREEN: on its own line, then a scene heading that names both locations, joined with a slash. Describe what each side shows, write the dialogue as usual, and close with END SPLIT SCREEN. Use it when seeing both places at once means something.
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SPLIT SCREEN:
INT. PRIYA'S APARTMENT - NIGHT / INT. MARCO'S APARTMENT - NIGHT
Two bedrooms, two cities. Priya lies on her left side. Marco lies on his right. They face each other across the line down the middle of the frame.
PRIYA
(into phone)
Are you still there?
MARCO
(into phone)
I'm right here.
Both of them reach for the empty pillow beside them at the same moment.
END SPLIT SCREEN.
INT. AIRPORT - ARRIVALS - DAY
Priya scans the crowd, holding a cardboard sign that says MARCO.
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.
SPLIT SCREEN:
INT. PRIYA'S APARTMENT - NIGHT / INT. MARCO'S APARTMENT - NIGHT
Two bedrooms, two cities. Priya lies on her left side. Marco lies on his right. They face each other across the line down the middle of the frame.
PRIYA
(into phone)
Are you still there?
MARCO
(into phone)
I'm right here.
Both of them reach for the empty pillow beside them at the same moment.
END SPLIT SCREEN.
INT. AIRPORT - ARRIVALS - DAY
Priya scans the crowd, holding a cardboard sign that says MARCO.
How to use it
- 1
Write SPLIT SCREEN: in capitals on its own line.
- 2
Give a heading that names each side, like INT. HER FLAT - NIGHT / INT. HIS FLAT - NIGHT.
- 3
Make clear which side each action belongs to, then close with END SPLIT SCREEN.
What is a split screen?
A split screen divides the frame so the audience sees two or more images at once, usually two places at the same moment. It is a visual effect, not just a way to cut between places, so the comparison itself has to matter: two people mirroring each other, a plan and its result, a race against the clock.
How do you format a split screen in a script?
Open with SPLIT SCREEN: on its own line. Follow it with a scene heading that names both sides, or give each side its own heading right after the opener. Then describe what we see, naming the character or the place whenever it could be unclear which half a line belongs to.
Dialogue is formatted normally. When the effect ends, write END SPLIT SCREEN. or simply start a new scene heading, which closes it too.
Split screen or intercut?
An intercut cuts back and forth between two places, one full frame at a time. A split screen shows both at once. Most phone calls should be intercuts, because the reader only needs to know the film will cut between the callers. Ask for a split screen only when seeing both halves together tells the audience something a cut cannot, like two lovers reaching for the same empty pillow.
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
- How to Write a Pre Lap in a Screenplay
- Subtitles in a Screenplay: Foreign Dialogue
- 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
How do you write a split screen in a screenplay?
Write SPLIT SCREEN: on its own line, give a heading naming both places, describe each side clearly, then close with END SPLIT SCREEN or a new scene heading.
Is split screen a camera direction?
It is a visual effect the reader needs to know about, so it is fine in a spec when the effect carries meaning. Use it once or twice, not as a habit.
Should a phone call use a split screen?
Usually not. An intercut is the standard for phone calls. Use a split screen only when seeing both people at once adds something.
Can a split screen have more than two sides?
Yes. Name every location in the heading or give each its own heading after SPLIT SCREEN:, and label which panel each action line belongs to.