Anyone here use Final Draft?

sunflower27

Hi guys,

I have downloaded Final Draft (8) to my laptop and it looks incredibly complicated. I'm quite daunted at the prospect of using it.

Does anyone here use it? Was it easy to get the hang of it? I have to say it has unnerved me. There just seems to be so much to learn before I even begin my first draft.

Any tips greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

smcgiff

I haven't used it, but what seems daunting now will be second nature after a couple of days use.

Don't give up - initially, you may need to eat into your creative time, but it'll be time well spent.

Hopefully others will be able to give you specific help.

It depends on what type of person you are. Some people would just plow in and see how it works, while others may need a step by step set up.

I'm sure you'll be fine

Memnoch

I use Movie Magic, but then I'm not in the industry and mostly write feature scripts when I do, so it's not an issue for me.

But, I would say the best way to learn is to do. Write a script and as you figure out each little bit, i.e. creating scene headings etc. you will automatically learn as you go along.

I know you've received advice to not read any scripts before hand, but I'd recommending checking at least one or two out to get an idea of format.

Both 'Batman Begins,' and 'The Dark Knight,' are excellent reads, not just to learn from but also enjoyable to read in their own right.

iguana

I found Final Draft incredibly easy to work with. It's very intuitive and pretty much "knows" what you should be doing.

How familiar are you with what standard shooting scripts look like? I can't imagine that FD is that easy to get started with if you aren't very familiar with the formatting.

sunflower27

Iguana - I haven't used any scriptwriting software before. Not familiar with scripts at all. I shall have a look online to try and get the gist.

I plan to just plough into it tomorrow and see how I get on. Yikes!!!!

Fatboydim

Are you using a Mac or PC?

The versions differ slightly - I have a Mac so what I'm telling you may be slightly different for a PC.

Go to the file tab - and click "New From Stationery"

You will then be presented with templates.

Click scripts

Click the one that most closely resembles what you are trying to write.

EG: BBC Screenplay

It will load the layout and you will see the style of the page.

Go to edit - click "Select All" then backspace or delete.

Click file and "Save as" then save the script as "My Screenplay title 1st draft" or whatever.

Then start typing away. Usually with either INT or EXT as the first part of your scene element.

So to get:

INT PUB NIGHT

you would type INT [tab] PUB [Tab] Night [Return]

Then it will automatically move to the next element which is action.

Type in your action.

EG: Derek sits at the bar. He orders a drink.[Return followed by tab will bring you to the next element which is character]

Type - DEREK [Return]

and it will bring you to the next element - Dialogue

Type - Pint Please [Return will bring you to the action element if you want a stage direction. Return followed by tab will bring you to the character element.]

And that is basically it until end of scene where a double return will give you the transition element.

[A return tab after the character element will give you parenthesis]
It will soon become second nature and you can also customise your toolbar to put element tabs on there if you prefer to click. [On PC]

Just play around with it.

Don't add scene numbers until you finish your draft. And don't worry about revisions mode yet.

sunflower27

Fatboydim - Thanks so much for all that - you are as star.

I've a PC so will just play around with it. I was not expecting it to look so complicated, but I agree I will get the hang of it soon enough.

Is it OK if I PM you if I need to for advice later down the line?

Thanks again.

lorsric

I have a Final Draft question. I've finished a script and converted it to pdf, however the title page isn't included in the pdf. Is there anyway I can get it to include the title page as I'd like to be able to email it. It's on a mac.

Fatboydim

lorsric wrote: »

I have a Final Draft question. I've finished a script and converted it to pdf, however the title page isn't included in the pdf. Is there anyway I can get it to include the title page as I'd like to be able to email it. It's on a mac.

Yes when you save as PDF tick the box that says "include Title page"

Sunflower... I prefer not to do PMs as I can respond here when I have time. So unless it's something you'd feel has to be private just post here and if I see it I'll respond. Just depends how busy I am.

bigsmokewriting

Final Draft is definitely slightly daunting when you first open it up, but can be really useful. I found the assigning voices option to be amazing when revising scenes, it means you can hear things that we sometimes overlook when we're so deep into reading it!

It's one of those programs that you really do need to fiddle around with a lot until you get used to. Think of it as your new toy and soon you'll be giving others tips on it!:D

abouttobebanned

This is an excellent program...although I'm probably going to get frustrated because I know I'm only scratching the surface of its capabilities.