Screenplay mode
Screenplay mode turns a document into a properly formatted script — Courier, correct margins, scene headings, action, character, dialogue and parenthetical elements, with Tab and Enter moving between them the way script software does. Pagination is line-accurate, so the pages you see are the pages that print, and you can import and export Final Draft and Fountain files.
A document in screenplay mode behaves like script software: Courier, industry margins, and the element model everyone writing a script expects.
Elements
Scene heading, action, character, dialogue, parenthetical, transition.
Tab and Enter move between them the way they do in script software — Enter after a character name goes to dialogue, Tab from action goes to character. You should not have to think about formatting while writing.
Scene headings, character names and transitions autocomplete from what you have already used, so the third INT. DINER - NIGHT matches the first exactly.
Pagination
Pagination is computed with real line metrics rather than approximated. The pages on screen are the pages in the PDF.
This matters more than it sounds. A page is roughly a minute of screen time, and that estimate is worthless if the page count changes when you export.
Title page
An editable 8.5×11 title page, laid out the way a title page is laid out — title, byline, contact — rendered on the page rather than in a settings dialog.
Scene navigator
A rail listing every scene heading with its scene number. Click to jump.
On a feature-length script this is the primary means of navigation.
Import and export
| Format | In | Out |
|---|---|---|
Final Draft .fdx | ✓ | ✓ |
Fountain .fountain | ✓ | ✓ |
| ✓ |
Bring in a script from Final Draft, work on it here, take it back out. Nothing is trapped in the format.
PDF export is real vector output in Courier — selectable, searchable text at the correct metrics, not a screenshot of the editor.
Alongside the board
The reason to write a script here rather than in dedicated software is what surrounds it: the references, the storyboard grid, the shot list and the schedule are all on the same board, and the document can be docked beside the canvas while you work.
Scene headings can be tagged and locations mentioned, which connects a scene in the script to the reference wall for that location.
Working out the shots as well? See the shot list maker guide.
Frequently asked questions
Do the on-screen pages match the exported PDF?
Yes. Pagination is computed with real line metrics, so page breaks on screen are the page breaks in the PDF. Page count is meaningful, which matters when a page is a minute.
Can I bring in an existing script?
Yes. Import Final Draft (.fdx) or Fountain (.fountain) files. Both are also export formats, so nothing is trapped.
Is there a scene list?
Yes. The scene navigator lists every scene heading with its number, and clicking one jumps to it.
Machine-readable: /docs/documents/screenplay.md · /llms.txt