Wipe

Background

A moving graphic boundary gradually replaces A with B while each side keeps an independent image during the transition.

Narrative function

Wipe shapes how audiences read space, time, power, or emotion. Used with intention, it becomes part of the film's visual grammar rather than decoration.

How it works

Execute Wipe with clear marks: lock lens, distance, lighting, and timing so the technique supports the beat. Rehearse once, then protect continuity across coverage.

When to use

• When the scene's emotion or geography benefits from Wipe.
• When you want a readable visual motif that can pay off later.
• When a contrasting setup will make the next cut or reveal land harder.

FAQ

What is Wipe?

A cinematic technique: Wipe — a deliberate visual choice with readable grammar on screen.

When should I use Wipe?

When the scene's emotion or geography benefits from Wipe.

What is a common mistake with Wipe?

Using Wipe as a flex without story motivation.

Prompt

Includes camera move matched to the title, plus lens triad extras: focal length, aperture/T-stop, ISO, shutter, white balance, and the story being filmed.

16:9 cinematic demo: Wipe.
Technique: A moving graphic boundary replaces one shot with another while portions of both are simultaneously visible.
Scene: A tailor's blue cutting table gives way to a green garden workbench as a chapter change.
Start: A: overhead view of folded blue cloth and a tailor's hands.
Motion: Output 8 s: A alone 0–3, hard vertical edge travels left-to-right 3–5, B alone 5–8. The 2 s overlap explains the 10 s source total. A stays unchanged ahead of the edge; B is fully formed behind it. Crossfade room tone over the same two seconds. Generate each labeled plate separately with the specified framing and extra edit handles; do not substitute a single unedited clip.
End: Only B remains: three cut stems are neatly arranged under the gardener's resting hands on the green workbench; the blue cloth scene has completely disappeared.
Camera: 50 mm rectilinear prime; fixed focal length within this plate, f/4, shutter 1/48s, ISO 400, 24fps.
Light: A broad 5600 K window at camera left supplies the key; a white floor returns weak fill. Keep the opposite wall dark and retain texture in pale surfaces. Lock exposure and white balance rather than letting the effect drive automatic corrections.
Color: Deep blue cloth to leaf green; pale hand values matched. Muted blue-grey shadows, warm-neutral midtones and ivory highlights; moderate saturation, gently lifted deepest blacks and a smooth highlight shoulder. Preserve differences between cloth, skin and hard surfaces instead of smoothing them into a single material.
Duration: 8s. Mode: multi_shot.

Related techniques

• Match Cut

  A match cut connects distinct shots through a visible correspondence that also carries an intelligible relationship.

• Jump Cut

  Removing intervals inside a similar camera setup creates a conspicuous time jump rather than a continuous speed change.

• Cross-Cutting

  Cross-cutting alternates continuing action lines to invite a relationship in time while preserving each location's geography.