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If the script runs chronologically, it isn't too difficult for actors to find their lines with nothing more than action setting a new age.
JAKE (6) draws stuff.
JAKE (now 16) does stuff.
JAKE (now 21) does mature stuff.
On the other hand... if there are flashbacks, and voice-over narration, and other nonlinear jazz, then yes you need to make it clear exactly who is doing and saying what every moment.
If the script runs chronologically, it isn't too difficult for actors to find their lines with nothing more than action setting a new age.
JAKE (6) draws stuff.
JAKE (now 16) does stuff.
JAKE (now 21) does mature stuff.
On the other hand... if there are flashbacks, and voice-over narration, and other nonlinear jazz, then yes you need to make it clear exactly who is doing and saying what every moment.
This is the option I've gone with at the moment as the script does run chronologically.
A follow on from my original post is; would you then do that for all the characters aging with the lead or just assume by default that everyone else ages?
It’s certainly not mandatory, but I’d include it once for the first character introduced after a time jump. Unless there is a SUPER making the time jump bloody obvious... in which case stop beating the reader over the head with it.
Not even needed once. We write what we see on screen. 'Now' is redundant. That said, you shouldn't get marked down for it. I like to polish my sentences so everything runs crisp. Using a redundant word is what should be termed as overwriting. Unfortunately, most think overwriting is down to how many lines are in an action block. Or, maybe that's fortunate?
Hey, I read this thread very closely in the days it's been current.
Ha, I once thought to state toward Warren that he should take his own decisions cause well, he's experienced enough to take them and a reader will appreciate it imo.
Then I found myself in a similar situation lately where I know I may piss some people off when going away from the rulebook.
So, if I may hijack....
I got a story with a present time angle and other angles that happen in the past or even the future. Those angles between the 'present angle', long sections, aren't chronological ordered on their own.
To me it would be absolutely idiotic to indicate that in each slugline. FLASHBACK, FLASH FORWARD TWO YEARS, BACK TWO MONTHS etc etc etc...
My choice yet is to write in italics and underlined:
DIFFERENT TIMELINES FOLLOW
Then I just go with normal slugs and hope my reader paid attention.
ending with
BACK IN PRESENT
To me that would be clean and clear.
I really want to stay strict and consistent with this concept, so that I even use this format when only switching back to one single flashback.
Other segments may run 15 pages and more of course, otherwise it wouldn't make sense.
but a SUPER would be easier on the viewers (they don't see the slugs!). Once you go that route, you'd need a SUPER or other indication at every time jump, not just the first time you visit a time.
Now you mentioned timelines, which is more a sci-fi alternate reality kind of thing (most recent one I've seen was Alpha Gateway, but there are a lot of them). The slug or SUPER method should work there as well.
You can visit
INT. OUR REALITY - LONDON - SHOPPING MALL - DAY
EXT. WAR-TORN REALITY - LONDON - RUBBLE - DAY
INT. UTOPIAN REALITY - LONDON - MEETING ZONE - DAY
all without leaving a single "place."
Fringe used the SUPER method, but the only immediate clue of the reality was that place names in the other reality were spelled slightly differently. Alpha Gateway didn't give any on-screen clue at all, which was used to fool the audience about where some scenes took place.
No, that's no option. It just goes like a movie, there's no super needed. The readers and viewers are live with the story and I don't want to push them with the nose into the structure. It's rather part of the concept to guess for the connections and so on
Also, it's not about cities as you wrote, just normal locations like HALLWAY and stuff ;-)
Well, if you don't want to do any of that then a visual clue is all that is really necessary... and, IMO, the best way to handle this. I'll keep this simple with an easy example of what I mean.
If you have three timelines to deal with, then a visual clue from each time zone will be enough to tell the viewer where they are. 1950s could be an old car. The 70s - everyone wears flared trousers/pants, and the 90s could be a certain type of mobile phone, perhaps a Nokia 3210 or something.