Nichtdiegetischer

Nichtdiegetischer is a German adjective used in film and media studies to describe elements that are external to the narrative world of a film, television show, or other audiovisual work. The term pairs the negation nicht with diegetisch (diegetic), indicating sounds, music, narration or visual information that the characters do not perceive within the story world.

Typical nichtdiegetische elements include orchestral scores, soundtrack music added for audience effect, opening and closing credits, on-screen titles, and certain forms of voice-over commentary. Such elements function to shape mood, provide commentary, signal transitions, or guide viewer interpretation without originating from an identifiable source inside the diegesis. The boundary between diegetic and nichtdiegetisch can be intentionally blurred by filmmakers—for example, when music seems to come from an offscreen source but is also used to comment on events.

The concept has applications beyond cinema, including television, theatre and video games, where interface sounds or background music may operate non-diegetically. In narratology and film theory it is often discussed alongside related categories (diegetic, metadiegetic) to analyze how media construct perspective and audience engagement. Usage and spelling vary; forms such as nicht-diegetisch or nichtdiegetisch appear alongside adjectival forms like nichtdiegetischer. The term remains a key tool for distinguishing who in a work hears or sees a given element and how that element functions rhetorically.