Final Draft vs. Screenwriter 2000

Rivalries in Hollywood aren't limited to studio heads. Two major screenwriting programs, Screenplay System's Movie Magic Screenwriter 2000 and Final Draft's namesake product, have been playing a game of one-upmanship for years. The most recent versions offer the best feature sets yet, and they both run in Mac OS X. The laundry list of features common to both Final Draft 6 and Screenwriter 2000 4.5.3 is extensive. Both include standard script templates for TV and film; script-to-PDF output; extensive and easy-to-use formatting assistance; import from other applications; quick-type lists for frequently used words, such as names, scene slugs, or locations; embedded script notes; text-to-speech; index-card view; Internet collaboration; and production features, including scene breakdowns and character lists.

Each program also has exclusive features that the other lacks. Final Draft's big one is an Ask The Expert With Syd Field help area, based on Syd Field's popular screenwriting books, that works as an automated script doctor. Screenwriter 2000's exclusives are more production-centric and are heavily integrated with Screenplay Systems' other products (such as Movie Magic Scheduling), shooting and revision reports, and password protection. Though Screenplay has more features overall than Final Draft, the real difference between these two applications lies in the execution of their common features - and what a difference it is.

Final Draft's dialogs, menus, and icons look right at home in the Mac interface, while Screenwriter 2000 feels more like a Windows port. We forgave the latter's ungraceful interface since its preferences window and onscreen menus brim with options and provide many customization opportunities, such as assigning functions to menu commands. Final Draft's preferences window offers less than a dozen options, with all the feature-specific ones integrated into the menus. Some users might find this limiting, but others will enjoy being able to start writing without having to master complex options.

Basic functionality, including autoformatting for different types of screenplays, automatically switching between elements (dialog, action, and character), and industry-standard page breaks (mores and continues), are virtually identical in both applications. Both programs can also import old scripts from Microsoft Word format and let you collaborate over the Internet, provided you and your writing partner use the same program.
Choosing between the two comes down to two things: the feel of the application and whether you're a working screenwriter (meaning others actually pay you to write and then shoot the film themselves). Writers who deliver scripts to mainstream studios, or independent producers with the intention of also shooting their own work, are better off with the added production features and customizability of Screenwriter 2000. Writers who work on spec or who primarily submit scripts to contests or readers will probably feel more comfortable working in Final Draft.

Screenwriter 2000 and Final Draft are both excellent programs and either one can handle most script-writing needs. We had more fun writing with Final Draft, but we'd go with Screenwriter for production work.