The spiritual opposite of the term of art, mise en scéne, this term goes to describe the action implied though not explicitly depicted in the frame of film.
Origin: By focusing on a close-up of Indy’s face, the audience can’t see the German guards gathering just dehors de la scène. On the reveal shot, the audience can see the set-up that was taking place in hiding moment before.
Usage: Spielberg likes to trick us by playing dehors de la scène, revealing hidden action set-ups as he transitions from close-up to medium shots.
First Used: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull