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.
Direct answer
A pre-lap is sound from the next scene that starts before we cut to it. For dialogue, end the outgoing scene with the next speaker's cue marked (PRE-LAP) and their line, then write the new scene heading. For a sound effect or music, a single action line such as PRE-LAP: A guitar chord is struck does the job. Either way, place it directly above the scene it belongs to.
On the page
INT. MARA'S KITCHEN - NIGHT
Mara stares at the unopened letter.
ELI (PRE-LAP)
You opened it, didn't you?
INT. ELI'S CAR - MORNING
Eli waits at the curb, phone to his ear.
Evidence weight
A pre-lap sits at the end of the outgoing scene, immediately before the heading of the scene whose sound it is. The label tells the reader to hear it early; the heading that follows tells them where it came from.
Some writers mark a pre-lap as a cue extension, some as a standalone line, and some describe the bridge in plain action — we hear Eli before we see him. All read clearly once the reader knows which scene the sound belongs to. The difference is mostly typographic; the placement, just above the new scene heading, is what makes it work.
Not one rigid template
Use PRE-LAP in parentheses after the character name, the way V.O. or O.S. is used, so the line reads as dialogue that arrives ahead of its picture.
Write one action line such as PRE-LAP: A guitar chord is struck. Final Draft's own guidance italicizes it; the label carries the meaning on its own if the italics are lost in a later export.
How early the sound actually begins is decided in the cutting room. The script records the intent; it does not time the overlap in seconds or frames.
Reader and handoff friction
Choose for the recipient
A pre-lap can sharpen a transition in a spec, but it is still a device. Use it where the overlap carries meaning — an answer arriving before the question's scene ends — rather than as a house style for every cut.
In production the pre-lap becomes a note for editorial and sound. Keep the line and its scene placement stable in revised pages so the edit and the script continue to agree on which scene the sound belongs to.
In Plot, end the outgoing scene with the cue and its line, typing (PRE-LAP) after the character name — it prints and exports to Final Draft exactly as you wrote it. For a sound or music pre-lap, use an Action line directly above the next Scene Heading.
Asked next
Before it. The pre-lapped line or sound sits at the end of the outgoing scene, directly above the heading of the scene it comes from, so the reader hears it early and then sees where it belongs.
No. V.O. marks a voice from outside the pictured scene, such as narration. A pre-lap is ordinary dialogue or sound from the next scene, heard a moment before we cut to it.
Yes. Write it as one action line, such as PRE-LAP: A guitar chord is struck, directly above the scene the sound belongs to.
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.
Voice-over (V.O.)
Dialogue heard while the speaker is not speaking on camera in the scene — narration, a remembered voice, a call that is not diegetic in the frame. Marked as (V.O.) on the character cue.
Character cue
The speaker’s name above a dialogue block, conventionally in uppercase — the label that tells the reader who is talking.
Transition
An editing instruction between scenes — CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:, SMASH CUT TO:. Modern specs use them rarely; most cuts are assumed.
Browse the screenplay formatting reference
Complete, source-backed guides for common screenplay situations
V.O. vs O.S.
Use O.S. for a speaker who belongs to the current scene but is outside the frame; use V.O. when the voice comes from outside the scene's immediate physical action.
Sound effects & capitals
Capitalize a sound, prop, or action only when it has to jump off the page, and a speaking character's name at first appearance, so capitals still mean something.
Continuous action & 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.
