Fade Out
Image to black. Use it as punctuation. Don't overuse it as periods - every paragraph has one, but not every sentence.
- COINED
- 1900s
- TAXONOMY
- EDITING
- RELATED
- 4
- TEMPLATES
- 0
A fade-out goes from image to black. It says: ending. Period. Sometimes question mark.
Use it as punctuation. End-of-film fades are obvious; end-of-act fades are more interesting. Two TV episodes ago, your character entered an act break, the show faded to black, you went to commercial, you came back. That's all earned by the fade.
Don't use them as filler. The fade is heavy - every one costs the audience a beat of "is this it?" Save them for moments that genuinely close something.
End of a film. End of an act. End of a major emotional unit.
Between paragraphs of one continuous sequence. In short-form social content where every second counts.
Terms next to this one.
Black to image. The first thing the audience sees should earn the silence before it.
One shot fades into another. Says: time passed. Or: these things are connected.
Frame closes to a circle, then to black. Silent-era throwback. Looney Tunes' favorite.
Final image or beat that closes a scene. Sit on it half a second longer than feels right.