The short answer.
V.O. (voice-over) marks a voice that is not part of the scene's space, such as narration or the far end of a phone call. O.S. (off screen) marks a character who is in the scene but not in the shot. Both go in brackets after the name on the character cue, on the same line, as in THEO (V.O.). O.C. (off camera) is used the same way as O.S.
On this page
Where the extension goes
An extension is a short note in brackets that follows the character’s name on the cue line, in capitals: THEO (V.O.). It stays on the same line as the name. A parenthetical is different: it sits on its own line beneath the cue and says how a line is delivered. Formatting dialogue and parentheticals covers that.
V.O.: a voice from outside the scene
V.O. is voice-over. Use it when we hear a voice that is not part of the scene’s space: narration, a character’s thoughts, a recorded message, a radio or broadcast, or the far end of a phone call that we do not see. The speaker can be somewhere else entirely, or nowhere at all.
O.S.: in the scene, out of the shot
O.S. is off screen. Use it when the speaker is in the same place as the scene but the camera is not looking at them: someone calling from the kitchen, or a voice from behind the camera. The moment the character comes into the shot, their cue loses the extension.
INT. ROUTE 9 DINER - NIGHT
Theo at the counter, his back to the kitchen door. A plate clatters somewhere behind it.
JUNE (O.S.)
Pie's on the house. Don't make a thing of it.
The door swings open. June comes through with two plates.
JUNE
Not a word.
O.C. and other extensions
O.C. means off camera and is used the same way as O.S. O.S. is the more common of the two, and O.C. turns up in some television scripts. Pick one and use it throughout. Some writers also use (FILTERED) for a voice heard through a phone, speaker or radio. (CONT’D) is a different kind of note, and software usually adds it.
Which one to use
| Situation | Extension |
|---|---|
| Narration, or a character’s thoughts | (V.O.) |
| The other end of a call we only hear | (V.O.), or (FILTERED) for some writers |
| Both ends of a call, shown on screen | None. See the guide to intercut. |
| A voice from the next room | (O.S.) |
| A character in the room, behind the camera | (O.S.) or (O.C.) |
Phone calls and INTERCUT shows the phone cases in full.
In First Page
On the Mac, type an opening bracket after a character’s name and Script Assist suggests (V.O.), (O.S.), (O.C.) and (SUBTITLE). Press Tab to accept one. The list is yours to change in Document, then Script Assist.
Questions
- What is the difference between V.O. and O.S.?
- V.O. is a voice from outside the scene: narration, a character's thoughts, a recording, or someone we only hear on the phone. O.S. is a character who is in the same place as the scene but not in the shot, like someone calling from the next room. When a character steps into the shot, the extension comes off.
- Do you use V.O. or O.S. for a phone call?
- If we see both people, neither gets an extension, because both are on screen in an intercut. If we stay with one person and only hear the other, V.O. is the usual choice for the unseen voice, and some writers use (FILTERED) to show it comes through a phone.
- What does O.C. mean in a script?
- Off camera. It is used the same way as O.S.: the speaker is in the scene but not in the shot. O.S. is the more common of the two, and O.C. turns up in some television scripts. Pick one and use it throughout.
- Where do you put V.O. or O.S. in a script?
- In capitals and brackets after the character's name on the cue line, such as JUNE (O.S.). It is not a parenthetical on its own line beneath the cue.
