# Continuity report

Source: https://storiara.com/glossary/continuity-report
Last updated: 2026-09-14
Author: Nick Harty, Storiara

> A continuity report is the record the script supervisor keeps for each scene and setup, noting what happened in every take: action and dialogue changes, which hand held a prop, wardrobe and hair details, eyelines, lens and camera position, timing, and which takes were circled. Editors and departments use it to match shots.

## What a page of notes looks like

The script supervisor fills one set of notes per setup. A page for a slate on the diner scene:

```
Sc. 14A   Slate 14A   INT. DINER - DAY (Story Day 3)
Cam A: 50mm, MCU on Maya over Joe's R shoulder, dolly push on "You kept it?"
Cam B: 85mm, CU Joe, static
```

| Take | Time | Circle | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0:52 | | Maya picks up mug with L hand on "kept it" line; Joe's napkin still folded |
| 2 | 0:49 | O | Mug R hand (matches master), Maya says "You still kept it?" (added "still") |
| 3 | 0:31 | | Cut: B cam lost focus |
| 4 | 0:50 | O | Clean. Coffee level half. Joe's sleeve rolled once |

The notes page usually faces the matching page of the [lined script](https://storiara.com/glossary/lined-script), so the editor can see which lines the setup covers and what happened in each take.

## What gets tracked

Anything that could fail to match from one shot to the next: which hand holds a prop and when it moves, the coffee level, cigarette length, wet or dry hair, a rolled sleeve, where an actor sits down on a line, eyeline direction, screen direction for exits and entrances, and dialogue that changed from the script. The report also records the [story day](https://storiara.com/glossary/story-day), which tells wardrobe and makeup what day it is in the film's timeline even when scene 88 is shot before scene 3.

Departments keep their own photos too. The script supervisor's job is to connect them to the takes.

## Where continuity breaks down

Most errors come from speed. When a setup turns around in two minutes, notes get abbreviated, and "R hand" in take 2 isn't marked as a change from take 1. Other trouble spots: not noting ad-libbed dialogue (which affects subtitles, [ADR](https://storiara.com/glossary/adr), and clearances), losing track of a prop that an actor pocketed at the end of a take, and circled takes that differ from what the [camera report](https://storiara.com/glossary/camera-report) says.

## Where it goes

Notes go to the editor with the [lined script](https://storiara.com/glossary/lined-script), usually daily. The day's totals go on the [script supervisor report](https://storiara.com/glossary/script-supervisor-report), which feeds the DPR. The [script supervisor](https://storiara.com/roles/script-supervisor) role page covers the job in more detail, and the [continuity log template](https://storiara.com/templates/continuity-log) gives you a blank page to work from.

## Frequently asked questions

### Who keeps the continuity report?

The script supervisor. Wardrobe, hair and makeup, and props also keep their own continuity photos and notes for their departments, but the script supervisor's report is the one that goes to the editor.

### Is a continuity report the same as a script supervisor's daily report?

No. The continuity report is detailed notes per setup and take. The daily report is the day's totals: scenes, pages, setups, minutes, and times, which feed the production report.

### Do small productions need continuity reports?

If you shoot scenes out of order or over more than one day, yes. Even a one-page log with scene, take, lens, and notes saves time in the edit.