Shots and Inserts

Shot descriptions and inserts are among the most misused tools in a new screenwriter's toolkit. They come from shooting scripts, where the director and cinematographer need precise instructions for every camera setup. In a spec script (what you write when trying to sell or showcase your story), excessive shot direction is one of the fastest ways to mark yourself as an amateur. You can still use them. You just need to know the difference between guiding the reader's eye and doing the director's job.

What Are Shots

In film production, a "shot" is a single continuous piece of footage from one camera setup. A shooting script breaks the screenplay down into numbered shots so the production team knows exactly what to film. These scripts include directions like WIDE SHOT, MEDIUM SHOT, CLOSE-UP, TWO SHOT, OVER THE SHOULDER, and dozens of other camera-specific instructions.

A spec script is not a shooting script. Your job is to tell a story so well that someone wants to make it into a film. The director, DP, and editor will decide how to shoot it. When you load your spec with camera directions, you clutter the page with technical noise that makes the story harder to read.

There are a handful of shot-related conventions that even spec scripts use when the story demands it: INSERT, CLOSE ON, ANGLE ON, and POV. Each has a specific purpose and should only be used when the information cannot be communicated any other way.

INSERT

An INSERT directs the reader's attention to a specific object or detail that is critical to the story. It is formatted as a sub-heading within a scene, followed by a brief description and then BACK TO SCENE. Use it when the audience absolutely must see something clearly: a text message, a headline, a ticking clock, a name on a document.

INT. DETECTIVE'S OFFICE - NIGHT
Rivera spreads the case files across her desk. She picks up a photograph and freezes.
INSERT - PHOTOGRAPH
A family portrait. Four smiling faces. The father is the man currently handcuffed in the interrogation room.
BACK TO SCENE
Rivera sets the photo down carefully, as if it might break.

The INSERT works here because the content of the photograph matters to the plot. The reader needs to see what Rivera sees. Without the INSERT, you could write "She picks up a photograph of a smiling family -- the father is the man in the interrogation room" as part of the action line, and in many cases that would be perfectly fine. The INSERT gives it more visual weight, more of a pause, which can be a deliberate storytelling choice.

INT. TAXI CAB - NIGHT
Jamie's phone buzzes. She glances down.
INSERT - PHONE SCREEN
A text from MOM: "Don't come home."
BACK TO SCENE
Jamie stares out the window. She tells the driver to keep going.

If the content of the insert can be communicated naturally within an action line, skip the INSERT formatting. Use it only when isolation on the page mirrors the visual isolation you want on screen.

CLOSE ON

CLOSE ON is a gentler version of INSERT. Where INSERT typically introduces a separate object or detail (a letter, a screen, a sign), CLOSE ON draws attention to something already in the scene: a character's hand trembling, a bead of sweat, a ticking watch. It tells the reader "zoom in here" without breaking the flow of the scene as sharply as an INSERT.

INT. COURTROOM - DAY
The jury files back in. The defendant stands.
CLOSE ON the defendant's hands, gripping the table edge so hard his knuckles have gone white.
JURY FOREPERSON
We the jury find the defendant...

Notice that CLOSE ON lives inside the action paragraph rather than as a separate heading. This is the more common spec script usage. You can also format it as a sub-heading (CLOSE ON -- DEFENDANT'S HANDS) but this is heavier and more typical of shooting scripts. In a spec, embedding it in the action keeps the read flowing.

The better question to ask before writing CLOSE ON is whether your action description already achieves the same effect. "His knuckles go white around the table edge" naturally implies a close-up without any camera instruction at all. Strong, specific action writing often eliminates the need for CLOSE ON entirely.

ANGLE ON

ANGLE ON shifts the reader's perspective within a scene without creating a new scene heading. It is commonly used in shooting scripts to indicate a change in camera position. In spec scripts, it is one of the more controversial shot directions because it is almost always unnecessary. Skilled action writing can redirect the reader's attention without announcing a camera move.

EXT. ROOFTOP - NIGHT
Kai and Mia argue by the ledge. The city sprawls below them.
ANGLE ON the street far below -- a police cruiser pulls up silently, lights off.
Kai does not notice. Mia does.

The ANGLE ON in this example shifts attention from the rooftop to the street. But consider the alternative:

EXT. ROOFTOP - NIGHT
Kai and Mia argue by the ledge. The city sprawls below them.
Far below, a police cruiser pulls up silently, lights off. Kai does not notice. Mia does.

The second version communicates the same information, reads more smoothly, and does not tell the director where to point the camera. In nearly every case, this is the better choice for a spec script. Reserve ANGLE ON for complex action sequences where spatial clarity genuinely requires it, such as a battle scene cutting between multiple positions.

Readers at agencies and production companies will notice heavy use of ANGLE ON, CLOSE ON, and similar camera directions. It signals that the writer is thinking like a technician rather than a storyteller. When in doubt, write the action and let the visuals speak for themselves.

POV Shots

A POV (point of view) shot shows the audience exactly what a character sees from their perspective. The camera literally becomes the character's eyes. In a screenplay, you can indicate this with a POV sub-heading or by working it into the action.

INT. SUBMARINE - CONTROL ROOM - DAY
Captain Okafor presses her face against the periscope.
OKAFOR'S POV -- THROUGH THE PERISCOPE
A massive cargo ship sits dead in the water. No lights. No movement on deck. A flag she does not recognize hangs limp from the mast.
BACK TO SCENE
Okafor steps back from the periscope. Her face tells us everything.
OKAFOR
Battle stations. Quietly.

POV shots are one of the more defensible camera directions in a spec script because they affect the storytelling, not just the cinematography. What a character sees (and what they cannot see) is often essential to suspense, horror, and mystery. A killer's POV stalking through a house. A child's POV looking up at towering adults. These communicate something about experience that plain action description sometimes cannot.

Even so, many situations that seem to call for a POV sub-heading can be handled with careful action writing:

INT. SUBMARINE - CONTROL ROOM - DAY
Captain Okafor presses her face against the periscope. Through the lens: a massive cargo ship, dead in the water. No lights. No movement. A flag she does not recognize.
She steps back. Her face tells us everything.
OKAFOR
Battle stations. Quietly.

Both versions work. The POV heading gives the moment more visual separation and emphasis. The inline version reads faster. Choose based on how much weight the moment deserves.

When to Use Shots

The fundamental question behind every shot direction is: does the reader need this instruction to understand the story, or am I doing the director's job? In a spec script, the answer should almost always favor the story.

Here are guidelines that will serve you well:

Use INSERT when the audience must clearly read or see a specific piece of information: a text message, a headline, a name on a document, a number on a clock.
Use POV when whose eyes we are seeing through is essential to the dramatic effect, particularly in horror, suspense, and scenes involving surveillance or spying.
Avoid ANGLE ON and CLOSE ON unless spatial clarity in a complex scene truly demands it. Strong action writing usually renders them unnecessary.
Never use WIDE SHOT, MEDIUM SHOT, TWO SHOT, TRACKING SHOT, CRANE SHOT, or similar production terminology in a spec script. These belong in shooting scripts prepared by or with the director.

The best spec scripts guide the reader's eye through the power of descriptive writing, not through camera instructions. When you write "A single drop of blood falls onto white marble," the reader sees a close-up. When you write "The city stretches to the horizon, endless and indifferent," the reader sees a wide shot. You do not need to label them. The writing does the work.

Read your script and highlight every shot direction. For each one, ask: "Can I communicate this through action writing alone?" If yes, rewrite the action and delete the direction. You will almost always end up with a better, cleaner script.

The goal is a screenplay that reads like a movie playing in the reader's head. Shot directions interrupt that. Every time you write CLOSE ON or ANGLE ON, you are asking the reader to stop imagining the scene and start imagining the camera. Trust your writing. Trust the reader. The director will know where to point the camera.

Screenwriting Fundamentals

Transitions

Screenwriting Fundamentals

Montages and Series of Shots