A scene that cuts to some concurrent, past or future event that the player characters could not have knowledge of can be a means of introducing information that has just become or is about to become obvious. The purpose is not to introduce that information, provide forbidden information or change the narrative, but is solely to enhance the narrative and make the story more movie-like.
Perhaps it is an event one or more characters witnessed some time in the past that suddenly makes sense in the current circumstances. Or perhaps it provides answers to questions that the players would be inclined to ask, but that the characters would not likely be concerned with. Or perhaps it is simply to show that the story is epic and their tale will be told for eons. Or perhaps it is to show that the characters are merely one cog in a larger framework taking place. You can also have players play out the past scene to find out how it affects the current plot.
Besides culling information from a character's bio, you may instruct any player to "recall" (imagine) a past event in their character's life. The GM can then weave related elements of that past event into the narrative in order to strengthen the character's involvement within the narrative. Details that can be drawn from such recall are personal stakes, introduction of old friends, repercussions about to be felt, failures about to be re-experienced, a chance to show that the character has learned from their mistakes, or any number of other events that can be created as a result of the character's recall.
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