Writing that 'Final Draft'
Screenwriting software designer discusses the road to success and sponsoring the showcase.

The Scriptwriter's Showcase is a three-day conference from April 7 to 9 where students can interact with successful writers and industry executives, pose questions and enroll in panel discussions regarding moviemaking in Hollywood. Sponsored by Final Draft and scr(i)pt magazine, this year's keynote speakers include recent Oscar winners Diana Ossana for "Brokeback Mountain," Robert Moresco for "Crash" and nominee Josh Olson for "A History of Violence."

There is an obvious disclaimer that needs to be attached to this article. Marc Madnick is both the subject of this story as well as the founder of screenwriting software Final Draft. The danger is in turning a piece of journalism into a sales pitch for the software program. Instead of reading this as a not-so-sly advertisement, consider it a glimpse into the mind of one man - a man with an idea.

Madnick has an accent. Perhaps an Eastern twang. He sounds like a computer nerd, the kind of guy who spends his days ruthlessly pent up in some steel box slaving over circuit boards. If not this, certainly some other equally as cliché and trite imagery will justify the passionate yet hotly restrained voice fluttering through the telephone receiver. The interview began with Madnick energetically explaining the basics of his little creation, a program known as Final Draft. For the slightly less pretentious and noncinema oriented students who are unfamiliar with this product, Final Draft is, as Madnick puts it, "a specialized word processor to fit the format regulations of a screenplay." It allows the user to focus on the content instead of the anal retentive formal structure of a script. In short, Final Draft was the first program of its kind and quickly became a godsend for writers who, pre-Final Draft, were forced to meticulously navigate the rules of spacing and format within Microsoft Word or - heaven forbid - a typewriter.

Although Final Draft arguably has the stronghold on the market, competitors such as DramaticaPro and arch nemesis Movie Magic Screenwriter threaten Madnick and his product.

When asked about Movie Magic, he simply evokes a verbal shoulder shrug, "I don't consider them competition."

The Dramatica line, however, does not get off as easily. Madnick said he doesn't really like the software because one becomes a writer "by one, writing; and two, by taking classes." Screenwriting is a craft, and a computer program cannot teach you how to be a writer. It would appear that perhaps this mysterious voice in the phone is not a computer nerd.

A self-professed opponent of computers and all things technology, Final Draft was the product of Madnick's own frustration with the tools available to him as a writer.

"I'm anal retentive," he said, explaining that screenwriting with such limited resources made the process much more difficult. Madnick was always so entangled with the format that it distracted from the content of his scripts. One mentor, a handful of business kids and absolutely no investors later, Madnick unveiled Final Draft to the public in 1991.

"We are a small business with a big presence in Hollywood," he said. Despite the presence of the teal and white box on nearly any office supply shelf or college bookstore, Final Draft the company is rather small with a staff of around 30 employees and a modest Los Angeles office. "Go to Oklahoma and people are not sure who we are."

With 15 years in the history books, Final Draft now finds itself paired up with other sponsors to host the Screenwriters Showcase, just one of the many ways in which Final Draft is trying to foster new talent. Madnick's company also hosts the "Final Draft Big Break" screenwriting competition, helping to link promising young screenwriters up with agents and Hollywood contacts. "We are not just a software company," he said. "I really like what we are trying to do."

Madnick and his Final Draft creation are surprisingly uncomplicated. It's a Hollywood success story that did not include triple mortgages, repeat failure or loss of a vital organ. The voice through the phone (reminiscent of "Charlie's Angels") does not belong to a scheming eccentric attempting to dominate the Hollywood scene. On the contrary, the voice belongs to an everyday man who just wanted to write.

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"Writing that 'Final Draft'" is the first in a two-part series on the Scriptwriter's Showcase. The series concludes Wednesday, April 5.