Learning Screenwriting with Final Draft 12

Course details

Writing scripts for the big or small screen is a dream for countless aspiring creatives. As communication has grown increasingly visual—and video technology has become increasingly accessible—the art and craft of screenwriting has found powerful additional uses in everything from politics to marketing to education. Final Draft 12 is a leader in the creation and revision of screenplays of all types, and is the go-to tool for novices and veteran screenwriters alike.

This step-by-step, interactive course gets aspiring screenwriters—or pros who haven’t yet used Final Draft—up to speed quickly. Highlighted are the latest cutting-edge features in version 12 that enable brainstorming, alternate versions of dialog, and more. Your guide, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Roger S.H. Schulman, also offers insider tips and tricks to save time and improve the quality of scripts, and a bonus chapter on using Final Draft Writer on iOS—to take scripts wherever inspiration strikes.

Concepts

Introduction

Final draft is a screenwriting power tool
What we will and won t be covering

What s with All the Formatting

A brief history of screenwriting
Basic elements
Make formatting a tool not an obstacle

Your Script s New Home

Final Draft user interface
Making the Toolbar your own

Starting a New Script

Choosing a template
Just beat it
Be an outlier in outlining
Index Card view
Best practices

Faster Formatting Facilitates Finishing

Say hello to your little friends
Go To and Find
Other keyboard shortcuts
MORE CONTINUED and other frills
Creating your own macros
Format Assistant

Ahoy Navigator

Scenes Navigator and Scene view
ScriptNotes Navigator
Character Navigator

Revisions

Track changes
Alt Dialog
Comparing two drafts
Let s collab

Importing and Exporting

What Final Draft can import
Reformatting
Exporting

Tips and Tricks

Splitting the window
Cheating
Creating a spike file

Final Draft for iOS

The Final Draft Mobile interface
Importing and exporting in iOS
Normal Page Two very different views
Throwing a wrench into the works

Conclusion

There s even more
Goodbye and good luck