characters that aren't mentioned by name

[Lynos]

Hey guys

Just wanted your take on this question:

What do you do when you have a character who not is not mentioned by name throughout the script? Do you still give it a name? Again, I'm not talking about characters which appear in one scene, like "Mailman" or "Drunken guy", but a major character.

Thanks!

 

[Cassius]

You make up a name for the script, yes. It doesn't have to be a real name. "Nameless Man" works fine.

 

[CallaghanFilms]

Just call 'em Blondie...

 

[Lynos]

Well, Blondie is actually being called Blondie in the movie, so it's not the same thing, but it's funny that you gave that example, though, since that character became known as "The Man With No Name".

 

[mookid]

Jason Bourne is simply THE MAN before he finds out his name.

 

[Charli]

he's the size of a refrigerator - REFRIGERATOR MAN

he's a high strung dude - HYPER MAN

he's a geek to infinite degree - BRAINIAC

he's a blue collar worker - AVERAGE JOE

he's a man dripping in jewelry - BLING MAN

he's strong athletic type - MUSCLE MAN

he's a simple man - CASUAL MAN

he's a follower not a leader - GOFOR MAN

etc, you have to give your character, even minor ones, something, some sort of trait and then just label them as that trait for their name.

I have, "Good Looking Killer" in the short I'm revising. This character has no lines but I didn't want to call him 'thug' so I gave him a name that best described him.

 

[clang]

For a major character, just give him/her a name like any other major character - doesn't matter if the name is never heard.

Fight Club had an extreme version of this issue - the protagonist's name is never heard, as a deliberate part of the identity theme. But he still had a name in the script.