In taking such panoramic scenes as those just described, the tripod of the camera remains unmoved.  Even in a railroad drama, where we see an engine run down a track for a quarter of a mile or more, the camera is mounted on another train, which closely follows the one seen in the picture, and hence it is plainly, from a technical standpoint, only one scene, though while it is being shown on the screen the background is changing continuously.  It is the abrupt shifting from one locality to another that constitutes a “change of scene” in the photoplay.

This being so, it follows that each change of scene must be given a separate scene-number in your scenario.  We have examined dozens of amateur scripts in which scenes would be found written thus: 

8—­Library, same as 2.

     Tom looks on floor, fails to find locket, and then goes into
     one room after another searching for it.

This, of course, is impossible.  Even though the director were willing to show Tom going through the different rooms looking for the lost piece of jewelry, each scene would have to be separately and consecutively numbered in the scenario.  If in the tenth room visited Tom should find the locket and then go out on the piazza to speak to Mabel about it, the scene showing the piazza would be 18 and not 9.

It is quite as incorrect to divide into two or more parts the action of what should be one scene, as already explained, as it is to try to make one scene out of two or more by running them together in the way illustrated in the foregoing bad example.  To avoid both errors, bear in mind that besides giving every scene a separate scene number, you must write a scene into your scenario whenever it is necessary to supply a new background for some bit of action.  For example, you cannot say: 

     Scene 4.  John comes out of the store, walks down the street
     for a couple of blocks, and enters the bank on the corner.

That much action would be written about as follows: 

1—­Exterior of store.

     John comes out of store and walks down street, out of
     picture.

2—­Street.

     Enter John.  Passes down street and out of picture.

3—­Exterior of bank on street corner.

     John comes down street, approaches bank, and enters.

In the foregoing example, three scenes are given to show how John gets from the store to the bank; but it might not be really necessary to take three scenes to show this action.  We might see John leave the store and start down the street, the camera being set up in such a way as to take in not only the doorway of the store but also a considerable portion of the street.  If the scene showing the front of the bank were planned in the same way, so as to show John approaching up the street, as though coming from the store, the connecting scene (2), which merely shows him between the two points, could very well be left out altogether, to be supplied by the imagination of the spectators.