Flashforward
Encyclopedia
A flashforward is an interjected scene that takes the narrative
forward in time from the current point of the story in literature
, film
, television
and other media. Flashforwards are often used to represent events expected, projected, or imagined to occur in the future. They may also reveal significant parts of the story that have not yet occurred, but soon will in greater detail. In the opposite direction, a flashback
(or analepsis) reveals events that have occurred in the past.
made a great deal of use of this technique throughout the show's later seasons. In season four, most of the episodes contained flashforwards, although flashbacks were still used.
The series finale of Star Trek: Voyager
, "Endgame", used a flashforward at the start to depict one possible future if the U.S.S. Voyager had returned to Earth the long way, but then an elderly Admiral Janeway decides to go back in time with new technology to get her crew home sooner.
Brannon Braga
co-wrote the pilot episode and is an executive producer for the U.S. sci-fi
TV series FlashForward
, which revolves around the entire planet losing consciousness for 137 seconds, during which almost everyone experiences a glimpse of events that may happen roughly 6 months into the future. This becomes commonly known as a "flash forward".
In December 2009, it was announced that British soap opera Hollyoaks
would flash forward six months in May 2010 for a special episode.
The last episode of Six Feet Under has an extensive flashforward through the eyes of Claire and we get to see the deaths of all the central characters as they unfold.
, is seen being thrust into a jail
cell by a police officer
, even though he has done nothing to provoke such treatment. The audience is notified, later in the story, that Sarrazin's character would have indeed made choices that warrant his arrest.
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
forward in time from the current point of the story in literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
, film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and other media. Flashforwards are often used to represent events expected, projected, or imagined to occur in the future. They may also reveal significant parts of the story that have not yet occurred, but soon will in greater detail. In the opposite direction, a flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
(or analepsis) reveals events that have occurred in the past.
Examples in television
The TV series LostLost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
made a great deal of use of this technique throughout the show's later seasons. In season four, most of the episodes contained flashforwards, although flashbacks were still used.
The series finale of Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
, "Endgame", used a flashforward at the start to depict one possible future if the U.S.S. Voyager had returned to Earth the long way, but then an elderly Admiral Janeway decides to go back in time with new technology to get her crew home sooner.
Brannon Braga
Brannon Braga
Brannon Braga is an American television producer and screenwriter, currently working as showrunner and executive producer on Terra Nova...
co-wrote the pilot episode and is an executive producer for the U.S. sci-fi
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
TV series FlashForward
Flashforward
A flashforward is an interjected scene that takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards are often used to represent events expected, projected, or imagined to occur in the future...
, which revolves around the entire planet losing consciousness for 137 seconds, during which almost everyone experiences a glimpse of events that may happen roughly 6 months into the future. This becomes commonly known as a "flash forward".
In December 2009, it was announced that British soap opera Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
would flash forward six months in May 2010 for a special episode.
The last episode of Six Feet Under has an extensive flashforward through the eyes of Claire and we get to see the deaths of all the central characters as they unfold.
Example in film
Midway through the film They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, there is an abrupt flashforward when Robert, the character played by Michael SarrazinMichael Sarrazin
Michael Sarrazin was a Canadian film and television actor who found fame opposite Jane Fonda in the drama film They Shoot Horses, Don't They? .- Early life :...
, is seen being thrust into a jail
Jail
A jail is a short-term detention facility in the United States and Canada.Jail may also refer to:In entertainment:*Jail , a 1966 Malayalam movie*Jail , a 2009 Bollywood movie...
cell by a police officer
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
, even though he has done nothing to provoke such treatment. The audience is notified, later in the story, that Sarrazin's character would have indeed made choices that warrant his arrest.
See also
- ForeshadowingForeshadowingForeshadowing or adumbrating is a literary device in which an author indistinctly suggests certain plot developments that might come later in the story.-Repetitive designation and Chekhov's gun:...
- Literary techniqueLiterary techniqueA literary technique is any element or the entirety of elements a writer intentionally uses in the structure of their work...
- Self-fulfilling prophecySelf-fulfilling prophecyA self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior. Although examples of such prophecies can be found in literature as far back as ancient Greece and...