Final Draft 13 is the latest major version of the industry-standard screenwriting software, emphasizing customization and enhanced story planning tools to streamline the writing process.
Key New and Enhanced Features
The new version focuses on providing writers with a more personalized environment and more powerful structural tools:
| Feature | Description |
| Navigator 2.0 | A complete redesign of the script outline and navigation pane, allowing for deep customization with new tabs, editable cells, and direct outlining. |
| Typewriter Mode | A dedicated writing view that automatically scrolls to keep the line you’re working on centered in the middle of the screen, mimicking an old-school typewriter for improved focus and ergonomics. |
| Midnight Mode | A new, very dark gray/near-black theme that extends the dark-mode options to reduce eye strain. |
| Writing Stats & Goals | Tools to set writing targets (e.g., words per day) and track productivity, including pages added, peak writing times, and streaks, to help monitor habits. |
| Structure Lines | The ability to assign custom colors to outline elements, acts, sequences, and scenes to visually track them within the script and its planning components. |
| Custom Color PDFs | Allows you to create PDFs that retain the color themes (like Night Mode or Midnight Mode) or custom-colored elements from your script. |
| Emoji Support | Emojis can now be inserted into the script, Beat Board, Outline Editor, and ScriptNotes, allowing for more authentic modern dialogue (like text messages) or expressive notes. |
| Enhanced Beat Board | Improvements to the visual brainstorming space, including more options for customizing the look and arrangement of your story Beats. |
Core Industry Standard Features
Final Draft 13 retains all the core features that have made it the industry standard for over 30 years:
- Automatic Formatting: Automatically formats scripts to professional industry standards (screenplay, TV, stage play, graphic novel, etc.).
- Story Planning: Includes the Beat Board for visual brainstorming and the Outline Editor for high-level structure planning.
- Production Tools: Features like Revision Tracking, Colored Pages, and the ability to generate Production Reports (Cast, Scene, Location, etc.) make it ready for film and TV production.
- Collaboration: Real-time online collaboration allows multiple writers to work on the same script simultaneously.
