Transition Track
The Transition Track is a track of sound of the next scene that starts up at the very end of the previous scene. This track is said to "bleed" into the previous scene.
Required for a Split Edit. Bonus points if the track matches the mood or words at the end of the other scene. For instance, if a character has just been let down, and sad violin music pipes up. Cut to a fancy restaurant where the sad music is being played by the house entertainment.
Compare Two Scenes, One Dialogue.
Examples of Transition Track include:
Anime and Manga
- In Shakugan no Shana, just as Yuuji is about to cast a Fuzetsu, the scene cuts to Margery yelling "Fuzetsu!".
Film
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. As Indiana and his father are looking at the signpost to Berlin, we hear a marching drumbeat. The scene shifts to Berlin, where Nazis are marching around a pile of burning books with martial music playing.
- Used in Lawrence of Arabia when the scene cuts from the banks of the Suez Canal to a busy street in downtown Cairo.
Live Action Television
- A very good example of a non-musical Transition Track happens in the last episode of My So-Called Life. Patty is trying to tell her family about her dream, but they all leave before she can. She utters what she dreamed about, and we hear an off-screen "Seriously?" as though someone was answering her. Cut to the next scene, where the character who voiced the sentiment talks about another girl's dream.