LaperDocs

Create a project or import Final Draft

Choose the correct project type, start from an idea, or import a supported FDX screenplay safely.

Choose the project type first

Create a Script project when the screenplay and its derived production information are your foundation. Create a Cinema project when you want to build visual reels and generated clips through a production pipeline. They are peer document types; one is not a view inside the other.

The idea-first Script flow does not offer Blank, Three-Act, or Character-First templates. It accepts a written brief and optional reference files, then opens a normal editable project. You remain free to change the structure at any point.

Import a Final Draft screenplay

Use the import entry when you already have an .fdx file. Laper accepts Final Draft documents whose document type is Script. It reads screenplay paragraphs, converts supported paragraph types into Laper editor nodes, and derives project entities from the result.

During import:

  • Scene headings are parsed into interior/exterior, location, and time-of-day data when possible.
  • Character cues are normalized so recurring names connect to the same character.
  • Locations and scenes are created from screenplay structure, not from a separate spreadsheet.
  • A progress overlay stays visible while the new project, entities, and script are written.

Very large imports are limited by the temporary browser handoff used while opening the new project. If an import is rejected, simplify embedded metadata in Final Draft or split the document before retrying.

What is not supported

Cinema projects do not import FDX. Non-script Final Draft document types are rejected. Import is not a round-trip merge into an existing project; it creates a project and writes the imported screenplay into that new document.

After import, check several scene headings, recurring character names, and unusual paragraph styles before continuing. The safest workflow is to correct conversion edge cases immediately, then name a version in history as your clean imported baseline.