Cine Novelist

Template

Free script coverage template

A coverage report is only useful if the writer can tell which notes rest on the pages and which are the reader's taste. This template builds that separation in. Copy it, use it for your own reads or for a writing group, and keep it.

How long should script coverage be?

Industry coverage for a feature is commonly two to five pages: a page for the header, logline and synopsis, then one to three pages of comments. A writing-group read can be shorter. Length matters less than whether each comment can be checked against the draft.

How to write script coverage (in order)

  1. Read the whole draft once without notes.
  2. Write the logline and synopsis from the page, not from the writer's pitch.
  3. Fill in the Page column before the Reading column.
  4. List gaps separately. A gap is something the draft does not supply, not something you would have done differently.
  5. Write the verdict last, and keep it short.

The template

SCRIPT COVERAGE

Title:                         Draft / date:
Writer:                        Format: Feature / Pilot / Short / Limited series
Pages:                         Genre:
Reader:                        Date read:

LOGLINE (one sentence, from the page)

SYNOPSIS (half to one page, what happens, in order)

THE IRREVERSIBLE (what this film must not lose, if the writer has said)

NOTES (one row per note)
| # | Page / scene | What is on the page | Reader's reading (inference) | Designed or defect? |
|---|--------------|---------------------|-------------------------------|---------------------|
| 1 |              |                     |                               |                     |

GAPS (what the draft does not supply)
- Setup the ending depends on:
- Motive a turn depends on:
- Information the audience never receives:

STRENGTHS (cite the page)

THE NEXT DRAFT (three priorities, most important first)
1.
2.
3.

VERDICT (optional): Pass / Consider / Recommend
Reason in two sentences:

Worked example (fictional)

Kitchen light, feature, NSW.

# Page / scene On the page Reading Designed or defect?
1 Final scene She turns the key, sees the kitchen light on, leaves. Cut to black. The light is a choice made before we arrived. Designed
2 Mid-film neighbour scene A neighbour explains the light. This explanation turns the ending into illustration. Defect (if the ending is the irreversible)

Gap: no setup in the prior forty pages for her returning. That is consistent with the ending she does not go back. The next draft: consider cutting the neighbour scene; expect buyers to ask for it back; decide in advance.

Want a first read before you share it?

Cine Novelist's Coverage mode reads the whole draft and keeps page, inference and gap on separate lines, the same discipline as this template. It will not rewrite your film into something safer. Try it with 150 free credits, no card.

FAQ

What does script coverage look like? A header, a logline, a synopsis, comments and usually a verdict. The template above follows that shape and adds a column that separates the page from the reader's reading.

How much does script coverage cost? Human coverage varies widely by service and length. You can do it yourself for free with this template, or use an AI desk for a first read.

What is a script coverage report used for? Producers and agencies use it to decide what to read in full. Writers use it to decide what to revise.

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