Slugline: Meaning & Definition in Film

The Scene’s Technical Address

A slugline is a crucial piece of technical formatting in a screenplay. Its primary function is logistical: it tells the production team the specific information they need to budget, schedule, and shoot a scene. Each time the location or time of day changes, a new slugline is required, signifying the start of a new scene. The term ‘slugline’ is an old newspaper term for a short, attention-grabbing headline, which reflects its function as a bold, capitalized marker for a new unit of story.

This element is purely functional and should contain no creative description. It is a standardized piece of data that allows production management software to automatically break down a script, calculating how many scenes take place at night, how many are in a specific location, and so on. This breakdown is the foundation of a film’s shooting schedule and budget.

The Three Essential Components

A standard slugline is always written in all capital letters and contains three distinct parts.

1. INT. or EXT.: This abbreviation stands for ‘Interior’ or ‘Exterior’ and tells the crew whether the scene takes place indoors or outdoors. This is the most basic and important distinction for lighting, sound, and location scouting.
2. LOCATION: This names the specific physical place where the scene occurs (e.g., JAKE'S APARTMENT, GRAND CENTRAL STATION, FOREST CLEARING). The location should be as specific as necessary for clarity.
3. TIME OF DAY: This indicates when the scene takes place. For simplicity and scheduling purposes, this is almost always just DAY or NIGHT. More specific times like SUNSET, DAWN, or LATER can be used if they are narratively essential, but are generally used sparingly.

Examples:

• INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY
• EXT. BEACH - NIGHT
• INT. SPACESHIP COCKPIT - CONTINUOUS (Used when moving from one interior space to another without a break in time)

A Note on Terminology

The terms slugline and scene heading are completely interchangeable. Both are used by professionals in the film industry to refer to the exact same formatting element. ‘Scene heading’ is perhaps the more formal and descriptive term, while ‘slugline’ is the more common, informal industry jargon.