Fade to Black

Fade to black is a transition that either indicates the clip is either over and another is about to start or the whole thing is over. It is often used to indicate a change in time or place. The length of the fade matters as well as a long fade indicates the end or beginning of a scene whereas a quick fade suggests a passing of time.

The clip above uses fades throughout to indicate an ending and beginning of a scene. It clearly breaks the video up into parts. Although at 0:32 there is an example of fade to black used in the wrong place. In the clip it is used in the middle, it gives a sense to the viewer that that scene is over, however it carries on after the fade. This can confuse the audience as they expect a new scene/location to appear but instead it is the same one carried on. There is then a second fade in the right place when the scene and the video is actually over. So fades used in the middle of clips are wrong, they are intended for the end or beginning of a clip.