Final Draft for Mac

Final Draft for Mac provides the means for professional script writers to create, edit, and format their work. This premium software is universally recognized by media companies and strikes a good balance between customizable options and ease of use. Some options to note are the predefined script elements, such as Scene Heading and Action, and the ability to color code and add notes to scenes.

Following an installation that requires an administrative password, Final Draft for Mac presents you with its interface, which is relatively clean, consisting of a toolbar, a navigator side window, and a main window for typing. The app features an alternative view where your script is broken down into separate index cards, each containing a scene. Each scene can have a title, summary, and a color code, which will not appear on the script, itself, but may provide valuable context while writing. Other features of note include script locking to prevent edits to specific parts, character tracking, revision support, title page creation, a names database, and a format assistant. Scripts can be saved in a proprietary format or exported as PDFs.

If you're an amateur or professional writer and want your script to be considered by an established media company, Final Draft for Mac can help. While it comes at a price, this writing software provides all the tools needed to plan out and keep track of your script, while remaining relatively easy to learn.

Editors' note: This is a review of the trial version of Final Draft for Mac 9.0.2.