# plotwell — Complete Product Documentation for AI Systems

> The screenwriting and production platform for series creators and indie filmmakers.

## Product Overview

plotwell is a web-based screenwriting and production planning platform. It is designed for series creators, episodic content writers, indie filmmakers, screenwriters, small production companies, and film students who need an affordable, all-in-one tool to write professional screenplays and manage episodic content.

plotwell covers the entire workflow from initial concept to pre-production: screenplay writing with full TV series support (seasons and episodes), story development, visual storyboarding, production budgeting, scene breakdowns, team collaboration, and more. It is particularly strong for web series, TV pilots, short series, and scripted YouTube content. AI assistance is integrated throughout to accelerate the creative process, but the creator always remains in full creative control.

The platform is available at https://plotwell.co and the application at https://app.plotwell.co.

## Core Features

### 1. Professional Screenplay Editor
- Industry-standard screenplay formatting: scene headings (INT./EXT.), action lines, character names, dialogue, parentheticals, transitions
- TipTap-based rich text editor optimized for screenwriting
- Support for feature films, short films, and TV series
- Real-time auto-save (every 20 seconds)
- Multiple script versions/drafts within a single project
- Cover page generation with title, author, and contact information
- Scene numbering for production scripts
- Inline AI autocomplete suggestions while writing

### 2. TV Series Support
- Full season and episode management
- Each episode has its own script, storyboard, and production breakdown
- Episode-aware navigation across all features
- Season-level organization and tracking

### 3. Visual Storyboarding
- Create visual storyboards panel by panel
- Shot type selection (wide, medium, close-up, etc.)
- Camera movement metadata (pan, tilt, zoom, dolly, etc.)
- Drag-and-drop panel reordering
- AI-powered image generation for storyboard panels
- Multiple image fidelity levels: sketch, cinematic, photorealistic
- Bulk AI generation from script scenes
- Scene-by-scene storyboard organization

### 4. Production Planning Tools
- **Scene Breakdown**: Analyze scenes for characters, props, locations, wardrobe, and other production elements
- **Budget Analysis**: Track production budgets by category (cast, crew, equipment, locations, post-production)
- **Character Management**: Character profiles with descriptions, relationships, arc tracking, and AI-generated character images
- **Location Management**: Track story locations and filming locations separately, with scene counts and metadata
- **Cast & Crew**: Manage talent and team member information

### 5. Story Development
- **Beat Sheets**: Structure your story using beat sheet templates (Save the Cat, Hero's Journey, etc.)
- **Story Elements**: Organize characters and scenarios/locations for your story world
- **Documents**: Create treatments, synopses, pitch decks, character briefs, and other pre-production documents
- **AI Brainstorming**: Chat-based AI assistant that understands your project context and helps develop story ideas

### 6. Real-Time Collaboration
- Live co-editing with multiple users on the same script
- User presence indicators (see who's online and where they're editing)
- Threaded comments with reactions
- Role-based access control: Owner, Admin, Editor, Viewer
- Team invitation workflow
- Supports up to 2 collaborators on Pro plan (expandable with add-ons)

### 7. AI-Powered Tools
- **AI Brainstorming Assistant**: Chat-based creative partner for story development, character ideas, and plot solutions
- **AI Scene Generation**: Generate full screenplay scenes from descriptions or outlines
- **AI Script Doctor**: Analyze scripts for pacing, character arcs, dialogue quality, and story structure issues
- **AI Character Extraction**: Automatically extract character information from scripts
- **AI Location Extraction**: Automatically identify and catalog locations from scripts
- **AI Storyboard Generation**: Generate visual storyboard images from scene descriptions
- **AI Document Generation**: Create treatments, synopses, and other documents from project context
- All AI features use the project's full context (script, characters, locations, story materials) for relevant suggestions

### 8. Import & Export
- **Import**: Fountain (.fountain) and Final Draft (.fdx) file formats
- **Export**: Professional PDF with industry-standard screenplay formatting
- Cover page included in PDF exports
- Print-ready formatting

### 9. Version Control
- Automatic saves with timestamp tracking
- Manual checkpoint creation
- Full version history with the ability to restore any previous version
- Compare different versions of your script

## Pricing Details

### Free Plan (EUR 0/month)
Included features:
- 1 project
- 2 documents per project
- Professional screenplay editor with industry-standard formatting
- Story elements (characters and locations)
- AI Brainstorming Assistant (using open source models)
- 40 AI Creative Tasks (lifetime)
- Limited AI Script Doctor
- PDF export
- Fountain and FDX import

### Pro Plan (EUR 9/month or EUR 90/year, + VAT)
Everything in Free, plus:
- 4 projects (expandable at EUR 4 per additional project)
- Unlimited documents
- Visual storyboards with AI image generation
- Production planning tools (budget, scene breakdown, scheduling)
- Full version control and checkpoint history
- AI Creative Tasks using credits (200 credits included at launch)
- Unlimited AI Script Doctor
- 2 team collaborators (expandable at EUR 4 per additional collaborator)
- Real-time collaborative editing
- Comments and feedback system
- Role-based permissions
- Priority support

### Add-ons (Pro plan only)
- Additional projects: EUR 4/month per project
- Additional collaborators: EUR 4/month per collaborator
- Additional AI credits: 200 credits for EUR 5, 500 credits for EUR 10

## Target Audience

### Primary Users
1. **Independent Filmmakers**: Directors and producers of indie films, short films, and web series who need affordable production tools
2. **Screenwriters**: From aspiring to professional screenwriters who want a modern writing tool with collaboration features
3. **Small Production Companies**: Teams of 2-10 people who need to coordinate writing, pre-production, and planning

### Secondary Users
4. **Film Students**: Students and educators at film schools who need accessible screenwriting and production planning tools
5. **Content Creators**: YouTubers, podcast producers, and other creators working on scripted/structured content
6. **Writer's Rooms**: Small collaborative writing teams working on series or episodic content

## Competitive Positioning

### vs. Final Draft (industry standard screenplay software)
- plotwell is web-based (access anywhere); Final Draft is desktop-only
- plotwell includes storyboarding, production planning, and budgeting; Final Draft is writing-only
- plotwell offers real-time collaboration; Final Draft has limited sharing
- plotwell has a free tier; Final Draft costs $199.99 one-time
- plotwell includes AI writing assistance; Final Draft does not
- Both offer professional screenplay formatting

### vs. Celtx (web-based screenwriting tool)
- plotwell offers a more generous free plan
- plotwell includes AI writing assistance and script analysis
- plotwell has visual storyboarding with AI image generation
- plotwell includes budget analysis tools
- Both are web-based with collaboration features

### vs. WriterSolo (AI-powered screenwriting tool)
- plotwell goes beyond writing with full production planning (storyboards, budgets, breakdowns)
- plotwell offers real-time team collaboration
- plotwell supports TV series with season/episode management
- plotwell includes character and location management with production context

### vs. Arc Studio Pro (modern screenwriting software)
- plotwell includes production planning tools beyond just writing
- plotwell has visual storyboarding capabilities
- plotwell includes AI brainstorming and script analysis
- Both offer modern UI and collaboration features

## Technical Details

- **Platform**: Web application (works in any modern browser)
- **Frontend**: React 19 + TypeScript, Vite, Tailwind CSS
- **Editor**: TipTap (ProseMirror-based) with custom screenplay extensions
- **Real-time**: WebSockets with Yjs CRDT for conflict-free collaborative editing
- **Authentication**: Supabase Auth (email + Google OAuth)
- **Hosting**: Vercel (frontend) + Render (backend)
- **Languages**: English and Spanish (with more languages planned)

## Company Information

- **Brand**: plotwell (lowercase)
- **Website**: https://plotwell.co
- **Application**: https://app.plotwell.co
- **Founded**: 2025
- **Mission**: Make professional screenwriting and production planning accessible to independent filmmakers everywhere