Script Breakdown & AI Auto-Tagging

A breakdown is the list of what each scene physically needs: props, wardrobe, vehicles, stunts, everything a department has to turn up with. For the wider picture, see FilmBase’s script breakdown software.

In this episode, we will break down the screenplay for Dead Tired using FilmBase’s built-in AI auto-tagger, which runs on your own computer, plus manual tagging mode and direct category tag creation.

---

Step 1: Navigate Scenes with the Scenes Panel

1. Click Script in the top navigation bar.
2. Select Script Breakdown in the left sidebar.

Take the layout in first, because you work across all three parts of it:

• Middle — your screenplay.
• Left — the scenes panel. Click any scene to jump straight to it.
• Right — the breakdown categories: props, wardrobe, vehicles and the rest. Everything you tag in the current scene appears here as a chip under its category, so this panel is the scene’s shopping list, building itself as you work.

3. In the toolbar, click the Scenes Panel toggle button (the ViewList list icon) to open the scene drawer on the left side of your screen.
4. Click Scene 12 (EXT. WOODS - CONTINUOUS) to jump straight to Scene 12.
5. Click the Scenes Panel button again anytime to collapse the drawer and free up writing space.

---

Step 2: Run Auto-Tagging on the Current Scene

FilmBase includes an AI auto-tagger. It runs on your own computer, so it needs no internet connection and your screenplay is never uploaded.

1. On Scene 12, keep the toolbar scope dropdown set to Current Scene.
2. Click the auto-tag button in the toolbar. It is the AutoFix wand icon, and its tooltip reads “Run auto-tagging”.
3. A quick AI analysis runs, and the Tag Suggestions Panel opens at the bottom displaying suggested elements.
4. Locate the suggested drone tag chip under Props. Click the checkmark icon (✓) on the chip or drag it into the Props category on the right to accept it into your active breakdown.

---

Step 3: Manual Tagging Mode & Sticky Category Auto-Tagging

FilmBase also supports manual tagging for total control, or if an obscure item is not automatically picked up by AI.

1. Open the Scenes Panel and jump to Scene 2 (INT. GRAN’S HOUSE - KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS).
2. In the toolbar, click the Tagging Mode toggle button (the Tag icon). The top banner displays “Tagging mode is active”.
3. In Scene 2 screenplay text, click and drag to highlight the word blender.
4. In the category popup picker, select Props.
5. The top banner locks onto “Auto-tagging as: Props”.
6. Now highlight any subsequent word, such as ketchup, and it tags automatically as a Prop in one click without the picker reappearing.

That locked banner is the whole point. Because the category stays selected, a prop master can work through a 120-page screenplay in a single pass, highlighting as they read, instead of choosing a category several hundred times. Switch categories only when you switch departments.

---

Step 4: Add Elements Directly in the Breakdown Panel

You can also add elements to your breakdown without text in the screenplay:

1. Look at the breakdown categories panel on the right side of the screen.
2. Hover over the Props category header and click the + (Add Tag) button.
3. Type folding chairs into the text field and press Enter.

A new Props tag chip labeled folding chairs appears immediately under Scene 2.

---

Step 5: Export Breakdown Sheets

1. Click Export in the breakdown toolbar.
2. In the export dialog, select Breakdown Sheets.
3. Click Export, choose your Dead Tired project folder, and save.

FilmBase confirms how many sheets it wrote. Open the PDF from your project folder and you have a formatted breakdown sheet for each scene, with elements grouped by department.