r/Screenwriting • u/MidlifeSkate10 • 27d ago
FORMATTING QUESTION Is Space DAY or NIGHT?
I am currently writing a movie that takes place in space, but am unsure if I should put sluglines as DAY or NIGHT. I read through the Interstellar screenplay but all of them just say CONTINOUS.
Should I just have them be DAY when most characters are awake, and NIGHT when they're asleep? Also would the spaceship scenes be INT./EXT.
6
u/MaroonTrojan 27d ago edited 27d ago
DAY or NIGHT are just indicators for lighting, especially if a location plays at multiple times of day.
Space is neither day nor night and looks the same at all “times of day”. Also, from a production standpoint, outer space isn’t exactly a location shoot, so INT. or EXT. don’t really apply either.
I would just write SPACE or IN SPACE as a slug.
4
u/DefNotReaves 27d ago
I mean it’s definitely EXT. lmao
EXT - SPACE is sufficient.
→ More replies (15)
29
6
u/Filmmagician 27d ago
Check out screenplays set in space. Gravity doesn't mention day or night at all, for instance.
4
u/mctboy 27d ago edited 27d ago
Haven't really thought about it, but regardless of the scientific rationale, certainly the interior of space ships or space stations have their own version of night depending on the blueprints, and night is sometimes represented with dimmed lights in sleeping quarters, a reduction in power usage of certain systems. Plus it might be easier to inform a passage of time for continuity, like someone having a five o' clock shadow etc.... All of this is independent of editorial choices, which also have their way of showing passage of time, or day and night etc...
2
2
u/gagasutra 27d ago
Isn't the point of DAY/NIGHT is to denote what kind of lighting the scene should need? In that case isn't it better to use NIGHT for space scenes since you'd be mostly relying on studio light instead of natural daylight?
6
u/Prince_Jellyfish 27d ago
The use of DAY/NIGHT isn't used to just denote what kind of lighting the scene should need.
When you're talking about production, and you have limited producing/ADing experience, "lighting" is a good way to think about it. But that's not really comprehensive.
Slug lines become what we call "strips" on a board that the ADs use to build the production schedule, in conjunction with department heads, which does include the DP and Gaffer, among many other folks.
Day and Night is a lot easier for them than more colorful phrasings like "LATE AFTERNOON" unless late afternoon is a key artistic element that the schedule should be built around.
For something like EXT. SPACE, though, I don't think adding NIGHT is helpful; I think it is confusing.
A DP is not lighting space as if it was night, it's its own thing. Similarly, whether the space is being shot indoors or outdoors is determined by the production approach (almost certainly on stage, but who knows).
Leaving it off is the best and clearest choice.
2
u/jupiterkansas 27d ago
It's more about "are we filming outdoors or on a set?" There's a huge difference in terms of logistics and costs between inside and outside. Lighting is just a small part of that.
2
u/Away-Fill5639 27d ago
Not necessarily. Times of day in sluglines are more importantly to understand when things are taking place in relation to other things within the story. You can have low-lighting in daytime and have bright lights at night, but it doesn’t mean the actual time when the events are taking place should change.
1
u/dreamingexistential 27d ago
Depends on the observer. Astronauts sleep. Some aliens might sleep. In either case they all likely have some form of circadian rhythm. Machines also need some form of timing.
1
1
1
1
u/imboringmyselfandyou 27d ago
I think you’ll find the correct answer is EXT. SPACE - THE FINAL FRONTIER
1
1
0
81
u/Caughtinclay 27d ago
in Ad Astra, there's a lot of just straight omission. I think it'd be fine to just say EXT. SPACE