format Formatting questions..

[PeterWRoss]

I am writing a script in which some of the characters are filming a movie... and are often to referred to by the director as their character name in the movie. When I write their dialogue for the scenes in which they are acting in, should i use their real name and use a parenthetical to communicate to the reader that they are playing a role of another person?

Also, I am really concerned at how wordy it will be in exposition (trying to differentiate between what is real and what is being filmed).. Is there any good script you could think of that I might be able to use as an example?

 

[mlesemann]

The movie that comes to mind for me (and admittedly I'm older than most of the people on here) is The French Lieutenant's Woman from 1981, starring Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082416/combined

i haven't read/seen the screenplay, but according to Amazon it's available from 3rd party sellers for less than $5.

 

[Guanto]

The character name in the screenplay (as in all caps when speaking) needs to be what the characters name is in the reality/universe you are breathing life into. So even if other characters are mistakenly calling him by the wrong name in a scene the screenplay would still indicate the correct characters name above dialog for the actor (and everyone else) to follow. No parentheticals. Just use the same logic you would use if someone was addressing the character and using no name at all, let alone a wrong one.

Now a character that transforms into another character [insert Caitlyn jokes here] just as real (in your universe) as their former selves (so not an actor acting) is a different story . This is to say Peter Parker and Spider-Man would be indicated above dialog individually as such for a multitude of reasons.

 

[sfoster]

i'd just start looking around at movies about movies and see what they do.

Living in Oblivion is fantastic, hilarious to any film maker and may suit your needs.

 

[FantasySciFi]

Guanto is right on the money. Usually the slugline will indicate which interpretation is appropriate. If you need to distinguish, use a "slash".

DAVIS -- your authentic character
DAVIS/TOM -- Tom is the 'role' Davis plays

In the script, you want to be able to immediately identify your actor. The first person is always the one we see. The second is the persona portrayed by the actor if needed. This is a tracking tool for production. Typically, two distinctive roles would be PETER and SPIDERMAN. Sometimes we see a transition. SPIDERMAN removes his hood to become SPIDERMAN/PETER.

 

[sfoster]

Does anyone else get confused and because we have a different member named PeterJRoss