# Continuous > A time-of-day marker on a scene heading meaning the action picks up immediately from the prior scene, with no time jump. Often abbreviated CONT. in production drafts. Also known as CONT. **On the page** ``` EXT. STREET - CONTINUOUS ``` ## In practice CONTINUOUS tells readers and the breakdown that we have not skipped ahead — the next slugline is the same unbroken stretch of story time, often just across a doorway or cut. It is a time cue, not a camera move. Use it when the prior scene's clock is still running and a fresh DAY or NIGHT would falsely imply a jump. Common patterns put CONTINUOUS (or CONT.) in the time slot of the scene heading after INT./EXT. and location. Pairing it with a location change is normal: INT. to EXT. can still be continuous if the character walks straight out. Do not stack CONTINUOUS on every cut; save it for true immediate follow-through. Production cares because continuous scenes may share a shooting unit, lighting plan, or costume continuity even when locations differ on the page. Specs can use the word sparingly for clarity. If time has quietly passed — a walk that took ten minutes offscreen — prefer a clearer time label over a misleading CONTINUOUS. ## See it formatted - [How to format continuous action, SAME, LATER, and time jumps](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/continuous-action-and-time-jumps): Use CONTINUOUS for unbroken movement into a new location, SAME for simultaneous time, and a plain action beat or new time label for an actual jump forward. ## Common questions ### Where does CONTINUOUS go in a scene heading? In the time-of-day position, after the location — for example EXT. ALLEY - CONTINUOUS. It replaces DAY, NIGHT, or LATER when the action is unbroken. ### Is CONT. the same as CONTINUOUS? Yes. CONT. is the common production abbreviation. Either form signals immediate follow-through from the previous scene's clock. ### Can CONTINUOUS apply when INT. becomes EXT.? Yes. Location can change while time stays continuous — a character exits a building into the street without a time jump. ### When should I use LATER instead? When some time has passed offscreen. CONTINUOUS means no jump; LATER (or a specific time) is honest when the story skipped ahead. ## Related terms - [Scene heading (slugline)](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/scene-heading): The line that opens a scene: interior or exterior, location, and time of day — for example, INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT. It orients the reader and anchors production breakdowns. - [Action](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/action): The descriptive prose of a screenplay — what the audience sees and hears, written in present tense. Also called description. - [Transition](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/transition): An editing instruction between scenes — CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:, SMASH CUT TO:. Modern specs use them rarely; most cuts are assumed. - [Intercut](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/intercut): A formatting pattern for cutting back and forth between locations that are playing at the same time — classic phone calls, chases, or parallel climaxes. --- Canonical page: