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Organize scenes, notes, and the bin

You can shape a screenplay's structure without leaving the editor: group scenes into acts and sequences, summarize each scene, and drag scenes into a new order. Notes, cut text, sections, and synopses stay in the script for you and your collaborators, but never appear in the PDF, the page count, or the word count.

Add sections and synopses

A section is a header for an act, a sequence, or a beat. A synopsis is a one-line summary under a scene heading.

  1. Put the cursor on an empty line.
  2. In the element list, choose Section or Synopsis, then type.

Sections show as #, ##, or ### and synopses as =, the same marks Fountain uses, so they come back when you export to Fountain and import again. A Final Draft export carries each synopsis as the scene's summary.

The Scenes tab of the side panel lists the sections above the scenes they open, with each scene's synopsis under its heading. To write or change a synopsis there, click it (or Add synopsis), type, then press Return.

Reorder scenes

  • In the side panel: In the Scenes tab, drag a scene onto another scene to move it before that scene, or onto a section to move it to the start of that section.
  • On the timeline: With outlines shown, drag a scene in the scene strip above the page numbers onto another scene.
  • With the keyboard: Select a scene in the Scenes tab and press Option-Up Arrow or Option-Down Arrow (Alt on Windows).

The scene heading moves together with everything up to the next scene heading or section.

Keep notes and cut text in the script

  1. Select the text.
  2. Choose Format > Inline note (Option-Command-N, Ctrl+Alt+N on Windows) or Format > Boneyard (Option-Command-B, Ctrl+Alt+B on Windows).

An inline note shows in gray italics; boneyard text is struck through. Choose the same command again to turn the text back into script. In Fountain they're written as [[note]] and /* boneyard */.

Park text in the bin

The bin holds pieces of the script you've cut but may want back. Everyone working on the screenplay sees the same bin.

  • Move text to the bin: Select it, then choose Format > Move to bin (Shift-Command-B, Ctrl+Shift+B on Windows). The text leaves the script and appears in the Bin tab of the side panel. Moving text to the bin isn't available while you're suggesting changes; switch to editing first.
  • Put a snippet back: Put the cursor where you want it, then click Insert at cursor under the snippet. You can also drag a snippet onto the page.
  • Pin, rename, or delete a snippet: Click the pin to keep a snippet at the top, or click next to it and choose Rename or Delete.

See also