I'm writing a screenplay and I discuss the family dog throughout my work. When I first introduce the family pet would I assign it an age? Ex: GRACE, 4, beagle, barks in the background.
Screenwriting : Do you assign an age to a pet? by Jaclyn Natoli
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I'm not sure if there is a standard/rule for this, never seen one... personally I'd be tempted to go with puppy, young, old... they provide a prospective reader with the right clues for how the dog behaves.
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Only if the age is integral to the story.
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You could if its important. I really don't know. Thanks for making me aware.
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Yes, I l ove old pets. Grace, 16, Cane Corso, She sleeps on the same stain on the carpet and chews on bone with knubs for teeth.. Yes, the pet also reflects the main character or something they are working on, towards or are currently experiencing with there life. Yes, it colors personality. Hope that helps Love Bugs! Warm Regards, RJN!
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The only reason you would do that if is the pet must be young or old.
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Devil in the details, more or less. John Wick has a nice doggy description and dog tragic arc, add John's muscle car, job, guns, dead wife and you have a solid complex main character in the first 10 pages.
Jaclyn. If you must have a dog you have to have an animal trainer when filming so use the dog as little as possible. Also, if the dog has to be trained to do certain things it gets even more expensive. Just a suggestion.
Imagine you had to produce a script with a female beagle, 4.75 yrs old, born Feb 29 (!!) and with a green spot at his left ear.... - I think you get the idea. So, the answer is. NO. Be as unspecific as you can. Maybe the dog you get is the best trained dog on earth and can do everything you described in your script - but it is a Greyhound. What would you do?
Jaclyn, look at the John Wick script, originally titled Scorn—a Google search should bring up the pdf. The dog is easily "aged" with the simple mention in an action line: "John lowers the letter, wipes the tears from his cheeks, and stares at the puppy... chuckling." His recently departed wife, due to illness, arranged for a puppy to arrive after her death. But also the way in which the dog's behavior is written and described clearly defines its age as well: "The Chorgi scrambles out of the cage and studies him; sniffing, licking, and barking." No need for much more, or some number. If Grace is an adult dog, just describe the dog's behavior, perhaps she's well trained, mature. If Grace is a much older dog then say she has a dusting of gray fur on her face, lumbers when she moves. ...Or perhaps an older dog is blind and stumbles into walls on occasion. I've seen that in a script and that just made me chuckle because dog owners know... Old dogs are great and no matter what, they just keep going. Within that script, the writer would suddenly have this BANG happening here and there, and you knew it was that poor, sweet old dog banging into a wall somewhere in the house. It's a funny, charming touch. ;) Anyway, I hope that helps!
Only if it makes a visual difference.