WipeOne scene sweeps the last away

A wipe replaces one shot with another by moving a line or shape across the screen, pushing the old image off as the new one arrives. The audience sees the transition openly, which gives the story a playful, storybook rhythm.

Also calledWipe transitionWipe cutLine wipe

Demo clip, 4 seconds, rendered with Seedance 2.0 Mini from the prompt on this page.

Editing and transitions

Why it works on screen

The wipe announces: meanwhile, elsewhere. It suits adventure, serials, comedy and stories with a strong narrator's voice, where the audience enjoys jumping from one thread to another. It feels like turning a page or sliding a panel in a comic. It can also add energy to a chase between locations or a romance cutting between two lovers' days. A scene earns it when the film has embraced a visible, crafted style and the audience is ready to be guided between places. In a realist drama, a wipe breaks the illusion. In a fable or a pulp adventure, it is part of the pleasure.

The shot list line

Size: Wide or medium shots
Angle: Any, often matched in height
Movement: Camera or subject movement in the direction of the wipe
Lens: Any
Duration: 0.5 to 1.5 s for the wipe

Stage movement in the outgoing shot in the same direction as the planned wipe, so the transition feels driven by the action.

Screenplay

On the page

Wipes are rarely written in spec scripts, because they are an editing style. If your script is a deliberate homage to serials or a comic-book adventure, a single note at the first transition, or "WIPE TO:" used sparingly, can signal the tone. Otherwise leave it to the director and the editor. The direction of each wipe, its shape and speed belong in the shot list and editing notes, where they can be chosen to match movement in the frame.

EXT. JUNGLE RIVER - PACIFIC ISLAND - 1937 - DAY

Pilot RUBY HALLORAN (30s, leather jacket, oil on her cheek) paddles a canoe toward a waterfall, a map clenched in her teeth.

WIPE TO:

INT. HARBOR BAR - PORT MORESBY - SAME TIME

The villain, BARON KESSLER (60s, white linen suit), unfolds the other half of the same map on a sticky table.

KESSLER

She'll lead us straight to it.

Storyboard

In the storyboard

Draw both panels, then a middle panel split by a diagonal, vertical or circular line, with half of each image on either side. Draw an arrow showing the direction the line travels. Write WIPE and its style (line, clock, star, push) with its duration. Note any movement in the frame that motivates the wipe, such as a character walking off or a vehicle passing.

Pairs well with

Tracking shot

A tracking shot moving left to right before a wipe in the same direction makes the transition feel like the camera itself sweeping into the next location.

Establishing shot

Wiping to an establishing shot tells the audience clearly where the story has jumped. The playful wipe and the clear place card work together.

Reference

Watch it in

Star Wars (1977)
George Lucas uses many line and shape wipes between scenes, a nod to the adventure serials and Kurosawa films he loved.
The Hidden Fortress (1958)
Kurosawa uses wipes often to leap between places and moments, a style Lucas would later borrow for his space saga.

ScreenWeaver

Set it up in ScreenWeaver

Write your parallel scenes in the screenplay, and ScreenWeaver breaks them down into shots automatically. In the storyboard, give the outgoing shot a movement in the direction you want the wipe to travel, such as a truck or pan to the right, and set a framing and angle that match the incoming shot. Keep durations short around the transition. Characters and locations carry from shot to shot. Check how the wipe will feel in the AI previsualization, then note its style in your shot list.

Start writing for free

The prompt behind this clip

This is the exact prompt that rendered the clip at the top of the page. Keep the description of the camera and the light, change the subject and the place.

Wipe transition inside an abandoned train station: the first shot is a static wide view of a rusted platform with broken benches and scattered pigeons, dim gray daylight. A hard vertical line sweeps left to right across the frame at a steady pace over about one second, wiping the empty platform away with no fading. It reveals the second shot: the same station now lit by a shaft of warm light, dust motes drifting, an old clock frozen at the wrong hour on the far wall. The wipe edge stays sharp throughout. No text.

Common mistakes

01
Wipes in the wrong tone
A wipe in a serious, realist drama can feel like a joke. Use it only when the film's style welcomes visible transitions, such as adventure, comedy or homage.
02
Random directions
Wipes that go left, then up, then diagonally, with no link to movement, feel messy. Match the wipe to action in the frame and keep a consistent logic.
03
Too many shapes
Mixing stars, hearts, clocks and diamonds turns the film into a slideshow. Choose one or two wipe styles and stick with them.

Questions writers ask

How do you write a wipe in a screenplay?

Most spec scripts do not. If the story is a clear homage to serials or comics, use WIPE TO: once or twice, or add a note at the first transition. The style, direction and speed of the wipes belong in the shot list and editing notes.

What makes a wipe feel natural?

Motivation. A character walking out of frame, a car crossing the lens or a pan in the same direction as the wipe makes the transition seem driven by the story. Wipes that come out of nowhere feel pasted on.

Are wipes old-fashioned?

They carry a retro, playful flavor, which is exactly why some filmmakers still use them. In adventure, comedy and animation, they can be charming. In naturalistic dramas, they tend to feel out of place.

Can a wipe be hidden?

Yes. A foreground object like a pillar, a passing bus or a person can act as the wipe line, pushing the new scene in. This is sometimes called a natural or invisible wipe and can feel smoother than a graphic one.