# Transition > An editing instruction between scenes — CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:, SMASH CUT TO:. Modern specs use them rarely; most cuts are assumed. Also known as CUT TO, DISSOLVE TO **On the page** ``` CUT TO: ``` ## In practice Transitions earn their keep when the cut itself is a joke, a shock, or a thematic match. Decorating every scene end with CUT TO: adds noise and dates the draft. A new scene heading already implies a cut; explicit transitions should feel like storytelling choices, not paperwork stamped on every exit. Smash cuts and match dissolves are tools with specific jobs. A smash cut sells abrupt contrast; a dissolve often signals time, memory, or a soft join. Choosing the wrong label — or stacking three transitions in a row — reads like directing from fear that the reader will not feel the edit. In modern specs, restraint signals confidence. Save FADE IN / FADE OUT for openings and closings when you want them, and skip decorative wipes unless the form is part of the genre joke. Production can always add transitions later; readers cannot unsee a draft that shouts CUT TO: forty times. ## See it formatted - [How to format flashbacks and memory sequences](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/flashback-sequences): Make the time shift explicit in a scene heading or action cue, then clearly return to the present when the transition could otherwise be missed. - [How to format a pre-lap in a screenplay](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/pre-laps-and-sound-bridges): When the next scene's sound arrives before its picture, write it just above the scene it belongs to: a (PRE-LAP) cue for a line of dialogue, a PRE-LAP line in action for a sound. ## Common questions ### Do I need CUT TO: at the end of every scene? No. A new scene heading already implies a cut. Add an explicit transition only when the edit is part of the storytelling — a joke, a jolt, or a purposeful match. ### What is a smash cut? A deliberately abrupt join — often for comic or visceral contrast, like a whispered secret SMASH CUT TO a stadium roar. Use it when the jolt itself is the point of the join. ### Should specs use DISSOLVE TO: often? Sparingly. Dissolves suggest time, memory, or a soft associative link. Overusing them softens tension and can make a contemporary spec feel dated or overly directed. ### Where does a transition sit on the page? Conventionally right-aligned above the next scene heading (or at scene end). Keep the wording short and standard so readers recognize the edit instruction instantly. ## 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. - [Pre-lap](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/pre-lap): Sound from the next scene — a line of dialogue, an effect, or music — that begins before the picture cuts to it, written just above the new scene heading. - [Montage](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/montage): A run of short beats or shots in quick succession — often under a MONTAGE heading — used to compress time or braid parallel action. - [Fountain](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/fountain): An open, plain-text markup for screenplays. Light conventions — scene headings, character cues, dialogue — keep the file readable in any text editor while still carrying structure. In Plot you write normally; Inkwell understands the structure as you type. --- Canonical page: