I have a questions about character descriptions. Which is a better way to go, a very detailed description or a minor description such as the character's age? I've always wondered about this, cause I'm never sure about it.

Give us enough to work with.  Age isn't enough by itself.  A brief description of what the character looks like is all you need.


Phil

Quoted from weirdnjfan1 a very detailed description or a minor description such as the character's age?

For protagonic roles: None of them. I would suggest somewhere in between. Remember that a script is a blueprint for a movie, and lots of people with different jobs will participate in its production. So you want to make sure you're not stepping into their territory (which they'll know much better than you).

Your territory is "character" and "story". Don't go into details that got nothing to do with that. A few examples:

Hair colour: Is it so important to mention your main character is a blonde? What if she's a brunnette? Will the story change dramatically? If your script is about a serial killer that chases blonde women, then it could be important to mention the hair colour of your female protagonist. If not, leave that to the casting director.

Clothes: Yes, you can mention that the protagonist is wearing a suit in the scene where he's going late for work, but don't tell us the colour of his friggin' tie. You could also mention that your female anemic protagonist wears too much clothes on her to hide a body she thinks it's fat when it isn't, but let the costume designer choose the exact clothes for her; don't bore the reader with a woman's wardrobe.

Just tell us what kind of person (physically) your character is. This is how the W. Brothers describe Persephone (Monica Belluci's character) in the Matrix Reloaded script: "Sex and death squeezed into a woman's business suit made of latex". It pushes a little bit the limit of what the camera can or can't record, but it definetly paints a clear picture in your mind, in just one sentence, without going into boring specifics.

I just stick with whatever is relevant to know. Age, ethnicity, if they're supposed to be attractive, hair color (if it matters), if they have a hump or gimpy leg, glasses, a shaved head, mohawk, fat, a lot of piercings. Just keep it to whatever we're supposed to know this character HAS to look like. It depends on how much bearing his look has on the story and the character. Anything that can be changed probably isn't necessary to put down. Like if it doesn't matter what race they are or what their hair style or cloths look like, then don't put it down. I've had characters where I just put down their age, but have also had descriptions were I describe a lot of what they look like. It depends on the character, and the story, and how important the character's role is. Just Judge yourself. What do you want us to know? What's necessary to know about them?

I think basic wardrobe descriptions tell about one's character. For instance, someone who always wears jeans and a ratty T-shirt will paint a different overall picture than someone who dresses in business casual or shorts with an open button-down shirt.

Sometimes more extensive descriptions are necessary when there are unique wardrobe requirements, such as with Freddy Krueger's look, or some of the characters in The Burnout (his special suits) or The Fempiror Chronicles (the Rastem look).

If the description affects the story or reflects the character, then put it in. Otherwise, give us enough to paint a picture in our heads and leave it there.

As has been stated, just give us an idea.  We don't need specifics unless it's crucial to the plot/story/character.

"BOB, 40s, quiet, calloused knuckles, unbuttoned collar."  You get the image of a laid back tough guy.

Or, with something more specific...

"Bob, 40s.  L-shaped scar above his eye, a face haunted by the incident which put it there."

Quick examples but they paint a picture of the person.  The same would go for locations.  "Tropical paradise" is easier said and pictured than saying, "Palm trees, toucans, sandy beaches, crystal blue sky."

You get the idea.

Good luck.  Keep writing.

- Lon  

Remember that someone has to cast an actor to play your character, and the first prority will be someone who can act the character's personality.  So give leeway in terms of looks, unless it's important.  Or don't, and they'll ignore your descriptions anyway.  Lastly, too-detailed descriptions make your script longer.  I usually just give an age category (middle-aged, 20s, etc.).

I sat in on a teleconference yesterday given by Hal Croasman on the rewrite process.
In that conference he said when you introduce a character you can say anything you want to about them in that block of four lines, but only that block of four lines, never anywhere else in the script.

He said you can say something like

still sufferening from the effects of a broken relationship
a schizophrenic
always smiling
has a limp
religous fanatic

stuff like that

anything you want to give the reader a deeper meaning of the character, and to help an actor decide if he wants to play this part.

I've read descriptions like this in produced scripts. I did a description like this in Tattoo, too for Lucian.
Even though it cannot be filmed, it is the initial character description, and made clear to the reader.
Only in the initial description of the character though.

I can understand why he might have said that, as certain traits that are not immediately obvious can be conveyed by actors, but giving part of a history (the first example of a broken relationship) is a big no-no.  The audience has no way of knowing that, and if it's an important factor then your script will be readable, but your film will not make sense.

I went to the movie scripts here, and jotted down a few examples. These are produced scripts.


Part of the description of Ria in CRASH
American born Hispanic, thirties.

Alfie in ALFIE
Alfie is an Englishman in his thirties with tousled good looks and a healthy dose of cockiness. He lives in perpetual motion and has a youthful air of a guy who's managed to escape the normal adult responsibilities and emotions.

Gina Morris in BEAUTY SHOP
There's a sexy playful spark to her... and behind that a kind of innate wisdom.


Cindy

Cindy: You do have a point. If such descriptions are in produced scripts, they cannot be wrong, can't they? Nonetheless, I believe the examples you provided are not worth following.

Both the writers of Crash and Alfie are produced writers with extensive writing credits. Professionals can skip the rules; new writers working on spec, don't. Pros are usually paid before writing their script so nobody is gonna put a script down because some technical errors, after paying thousands for it. Copying what the big boys do is a very bad idea.

Shane Black, in his original Lethal Weapon script, described the bad guy's mansion as "the kind of house I'm gonna buy after I sell this script for a million dollars." It's a produced script and a successful movie, but... Would you include something like that in your script?

Writing that a character is "still sufferening from the effects of a broken relationship" is something that cannot be filmed by the camera. That's a fact, even if Tarantino writes a script tomorrow describing a character in that way and the movie is a hit.

If a big time writer includes descriptions like that in a script, it gets overlooked. If a new unknown writer working on spec does, it will be considered a red flag by any professional reader.

At this stage of the game, everyone should write their spec scripts the way they are supposed to be written.  After you make a name for yourself, you can change the rules.

It's kind of like when you learned to write in school....


Phil

I heard that...

When I went to pick up my daughter from her first day of kindergarden, the teacher pulled me aside. She had a horrified look on her face, and I was sure my daughter had either gotten hurt or did something wrong.
You know what the teacher's problem was?
My daughter could not only read, but could write in cursive.
This must stop immediatly, I was told.
She is just too young to be doing this...

And with that I'm outta' this thread.

Cindy