Written or verbal handout detailing scenic continuity — object positions, lights, actor marks between takes. Prevents jump cuts and mismatches in editing.
On set, you note the continuity — and by that, you mean the exact documentation of everything that must remain the same between two consecutive shots. The actor is sitting with their left hand on the table? Noted. The lamp is 1.5 meters to the left of the camera? Photographed and measured. The coffee in the cup is half full? Marked. This may sound trivial, but it's the difference between a clean cut and one where the viewer is subconsciously irritated because objects seem to teleport.
Continuity works closely with Script Supervision — or you do it yourself if you're producing on a smaller scale. For each scene, you need a photo or a series of Polaroids from the front, back, top, and side. It becomes particularly critical in dialogue scenes using over-the-shoulder shots: If the actress raises her right hand in Take 1 and her left in Take 2, you'll notice it in the edited film and subconsciously wonder what just happened. This significantly diminishes the emotional impact. Therefore, you also precisely document the movement sequences — not just the final position, but the trajectory.
In practice, you make notes like: "TC 14:32–14:45: Protagonist sitting, left hand on table, looking left towards the window. Lamp photo 3. Whiskey glass position see Polaroid. Movement: slowly turn head from left to right, finished at TC 14:45." For the next take — regardless of whether it's shot four hours later — you restore everything identically. This becomes critical if lighting adjustments are made between takes or if the actor loses track of continuity.
In a digital workflow, you would today use screenshots or short video clips; in the past, it was indeed a Polaroid camera and a notebook. Modern continuity software stores metadata and timecodes in parallel. During editing — and this is the point — the cutters and editors can refer to this documentation and immediately identify discrepancies. If the continuity is poor or incomplete, editing is extended by days, and the editor will curse you.