A
flashforward (also spelled
flash-forward; also called a
prolepsis) is a scene that temporarily 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. It is similar to
foreshadowing, in which future events are not shown but rather implicitly hinted at. It is primarily a
postmodern narrative device, named by analogy to the more traditional
flashback (or analepsis), which reveals events that occurred in the past.