In television programming, an interstitial program (or wraparound program or wraparound segment) refers to a short program which is often shown between movies or other events, e.g. a cast interview(s) after movies on premium channels. The term can also refer to a narrative bridge between segments within a program, such as Leopold Stokowski's interstitials for Disney's Fantasia or the Simpson family's interludes between segments during their annual Halloween special, the Treehouse of Horror.
Sometimes, if a program finishes earlier than expected, a short extra program may be inserted in the schedule to fill the time until the next scheduled program is due to start. American cable channel TBS commonly aired TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes after shorter-than-average Braves games.
Radio Telefís Éireann in the Republic of Ireland used a variety of material as interstitials; often animation, including Roger Mainwood's video of Kraftwerk's hit "Autobahn", Halas and Batchelor shorts, and stop-motion Soviet cartoons; also rhythmic gymnastics performances, instrumental music, or sometimes simply a test card.
Japanese public broadcasting organization NHK's Minna no Uta is something of a national institution, commissioning makers of usually animated films and famous or upcoming music acts to collaborate on exclusive music videos used to plug schedule gaps in lieu of advertisements.
In Canada, short film series such as Canada Vignettes and Heritage Minutes were often used on CBC-TV and other broadcasters.[1]