# Free FDX Viewer: FDX to PDF & PDF to Fountain > Convert FDX, Fountain, a screenplay PDF, or pasted text to formatted pages and PDF. Open Final Draft files without Final Draft, or turn a PDF back into Fountain. Convert FDX, Fountain, a screenplay PDF, or pasted text to formatted pages and PDF. Open Final Draft files without Final Draft, or turn a PDF back into Fountain. [See a worked FDX conversion](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-converter#conversion-example) Open the example. Compare the files. ## One screenplay, three files you can inspect The Long Way Round includes numbered scenes, overlapping dialogue, a page break, and a blue revision. Compare its Fountain, plain text, and formatted pages, or download the files to try the converter. Original example by Inkwell. The example screenplay is in English. - Scenes 2 - Speaking characters 2 - Screenplay pages 3 [Download Original FDX](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-converter/example/the-long-way-round.fdx) [Download Converted Fountain](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-converter/example/the-long-way-round.fountain) [Download Converted plain text](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-converter/example/the-long-way-round.txt) **See the formatted screenplay pages** Compare the formatted pages with the Fountain below. The overlapping exchange sits in two columns, and scenes 12A and 13 keep their source numbers. THE LONG WAY ROUND Inkwell INT. NIGHT FERRY - LOWER DECK - NIGHT Fluorescent tubes buzz over rows of empty seats. Rain runs sideways across the portholes. DELPHINE OKONKWO sits with a cello case upright beside her. A luggage tag identifies its owner as SOLOIST. A STEWARD collects cups. Delphine moves the case to let him through, then moves it back before he has passed. STEWARD I can put that somewhere safe. DELPHINE It's safe here. The ferry rolls. He catches the case as she catches his tray. DELPHINE Don't lift it by that handle. STEWARD (overlapping) It isn't latched. The lid falls open. Empty velvet. They stand holding each other's burdens. STEWARD Should I call someone? DELPHINE I sold it. Nobody stole anything. He sets the case down. She returns his tray, keeping one cup. DELPHINE The girl played in my kitchen. Asked if she could try one more thing. Every time I thought she was finished. STEWARD Did you mind? DELPHINE I put the kettle on again. She fits her cup into the velvet hollow. Takes it out before it can leave a ring. STEWARD What did she carry it home in? DELPHINE Her coat. I wouldn't sell her the case. He looks at the case, then at her. This time he leaves the question alone. EXT. NIGHT FERRY - STERN - PRE-DAWN The empty case rests against the rail. Delphine watches the wake close behind the ferry. She peels off the SOLOIST tag, holds it above the water, then puts it in her pocket. The Steward backs through the door with a breakfast tray. A flask rolls against his wrist. He cannot reach the door handle. STEWARD Could you hold this? Delphine reaches for the tray. Stops. Opens the case at his feet. DELPHINE Put the flask where the neck goes. He wraps it in a tea towel. Bread fills the curve where the instrument's shoulder rested. Delphine tucks a second towel around the cups. STEWARD It'll smell of coffee. DELPHINE Good. She fastens both latches and takes the worn handle. He supports the other end. They carry breakfast inside together. CUT TO: ### The converted Fountain Scene numbers stay beside the headings; the caret marks overlapping dialogue. Three equals signs preserve an explicit page break. ``` Title: The Long Way Round Author: Inkwell INT. NIGHT FERRY - LOWER DECK - NIGHT #12A# Fluorescent tubes buzz over rows of empty seats. Rain runs sideways across the portholes. DELPHINE OKONKWO sits with a cello case upright beside her. A luggage tag identifies its owner as SOLOIST. A STEWARD collects cups. Delphine moves the case to let him through, then moves it back before he has passed. STEWARD I can put that somewhere safe. DELPHINE It's safe here. The ferry rolls. He catches the case as she catches his tray. DELPHINE Don't lift it by that handle. STEWARD ^ (overlapping) It isn't latched. The lid falls open. Empty velvet. They stand holding each other's burdens. STEWARD Should I call someone? DELPHINE I sold it. Nobody *stole* anything. He sets the case down. She returns his tray, keeping one cup. DELPHINE The girl played in my kitchen. Asked if she could try one more thing. Every time I thought she was finished. STEWARD Did you mind? DELPHINE I put the kettle on again. She fits her cup into the velvet hollow. Takes it out before it can leave a ring. STEWARD What did she carry it home in? DELPHINE Her coat. I wouldn't sell her the case. He looks at the case, then at her. This time he leaves the question alone. === EXT. NIGHT FERRY - STERN - PRE-DAWN #13# [[Use the same worn handle as scene 12A. Delphine chooses to trust it under weight at the end.]] The empty case rests against the rail. Delphine watches the wake close behind the ferry. She peels off the SOLOIST tag, holds it above the water, then puts it in her pocket. The Steward backs through the door with a breakfast tray. A flask rolls against his wrist. He cannot reach the door handle. STEWARD Could you hold this? Delphine reaches for the tray. Stops. Opens the case at his feet. DELPHINE Put the flask where the neck goes. He wraps it in a tea towel. Bread fills the curve where the instrument's shoulder rested. Delphine tucks a second towel around the cups. STEWARD It'll smell of coffee. DELPHINE Good. She fastens both latches and takes the worn handle. He supports the other end. They carry breakfast inside together. CUT TO: ``` **Compare the plain-text output** ``` THE LONG WAY ROUND Inkwell 12A INT. NIGHT FERRY - LOWER DECK - NIGHT Fluorescent tubes buzz over rows of empty seats. Rain runs sideways across the portholes. DELPHINE OKONKWO sits with a cello case upright beside her. A luggage tag identifies its owner as SOLOIST. A STEWARD collects cups. Delphine moves the case to let him through, then moves it back before he has passed. STEWARD I can put that somewhere safe. DELPHINE It's safe here. The ferry rolls. He catches the case as she catches his tray. DELPHINE Don't lift it by that handle. STEWARD (overlapping) It isn't latched. The lid falls open. Empty velvet. They stand holding each other's burdens. STEWARD Should I call someone? DELPHINE I sold it. Nobody stole anything. He sets the case down. She returns his tray, keeping one cup. DELPHINE The girl played in my kitchen. Asked if she could try one more thing. Every time I thought she was finished. STEWARD Did you mind? DELPHINE I put the kettle on again. She fits her cup into the velvet hollow. Takes it out before it can leave a ring. STEWARD What did she carry it home in? DELPHINE Her coat. I wouldn't sell her the case. He looks at the case, then at her. This time he leaves the question alone. 13 EXT. NIGHT FERRY - STERN - PRE-DAWN The empty case rests against the rail. Delphine watches the wake close behind the ferry. She peels off the SOLOIST tag, holds it above the water, then puts it in her pocket. The Steward backs through the door with a breakfast tray. A flask rolls against his wrist. He cannot reach the door handle. STEWARD Could you hold this? Delphine reaches for the tray. Stops. Opens the case at his feet. DELPHINE Put the flask where the neck goes. He wraps it in a tea towel. Bread fills the curve where the instrument's shoulder rested. Delphine tucks a second towel around the cups. STEWARD It'll smell of coffee. DELPHINE Good. She fastens both latches and takes the worn handle. He supports the other end. They carry breakfast inside together. CUT TO: ``` **Read the original FDX source** Open the complete source to inspect its scene numbers, dialogue markers, revision set, and production note. ``` INT. NIGHT FERRY - LOWER DECK - NIGHT Fluorescent tubes buzz over rows of empty seats. Rain runs sideways across the portholes. DELPHINE OKONKWO sits with a cello case upright beside her. A luggage tag identifies its owner as SOLOIST. A STEWARD collects cups. Delphine moves the case to let him through, then moves it back before he has passed. STEWARD I can put that somewhere safe. DELPHINE It's safe here. The ferry rolls. He catches the case as she catches his tray. DELPHINE Don't lift it by that handle. STEWARD (overlapping) It isn't latched. The lid falls open. Empty velvet. They stand holding each other's burdens. STEWARD Should I call someone? DELPHINE I sold it. Nobody stole anything. He sets the case down. She returns his tray, keeping one cup. DELPHINE The girl played in my kitchen. Asked if she could try one more thing. Every time I thought she was finished. STEWARD Did you mind? DELPHINE I put the kettle on again. She fits her cup into the velvet hollow. Takes it out before it can leave a ring. STEWARD What did she carry it home in? DELPHINE Her coat. I wouldn't sell her the case. He looks at the case, then at her. This time he leaves the question alone. EXT. NIGHT FERRY - STERN - PRE-DAWN Use the same worn handle as scene 12A. Delphine chooses to trust it under weight at the end. The empty case rests against the rail. Delphine watches the wake close behind the ferry. She peels off the SOLOIST tag, holds it above the water, then puts it in her pocket. The Steward backs through the door with a breakfast tray. A flask rolls against his wrist. He cannot reach the door handle. STEWARD Could you hold this? Delphine reaches for the tray. Stops. Opens the case at his feet. DELPHINE Put the flask where the neck goes. He wraps it in a tea towel. Bread fills the curve where the instrument's shoulder rested. Delphine tucks a second towel around the cups. STEWARD It'll smell of coffee. DELPHINE Good. She fastens both latches and takes the worn handle. He supports the other end. They carry breakfast inside together. CUT TO: The Long Way Round Inkwell ``` ### What carries into the converted draft - Character 15 - Dialogue 15 - Action 12 - Scene Heading 2 - Parenthetical 1 - Transition 1 - Scene numbers 2 ### What changes between formats Scene numbers identify scenes. Locked pages and revision sets carry additional production instructions: keep the original FDX when those references are in use. - #### Emphasized text Not printed Bold, italic, underline and strikethrough come across into the Fountain output. Screenplay pages print in plain Courier throughout, so the marks are not drawn on the PDF, in this preview, or in the plain text. - #### Script notes Not printed Notes travel into the Fountain output as \[\[bracketed notes]]. They are not drawn on the PDF, in this preview, or in the plain text — a printed screenplay carries no annotations. - #### Page breaks you set Not in every output Kept in the Fountain download and honored on the printed page. The plain text has no pages to break, so they are not marked there. - #### Locked pages Source only Frozen page boundaries and A-page numbering stay in Final Draft. Keep the original .fdx while a production draft is locked. - #### Revision generations Source only Blue/Pink/Yellow passes and their change marks reach none of this tool's outputs — not the printed page, the Fountain download, or the plain text. Keep the original .fdx to preserve them. ### Page numbers can change This file uses forced page breaks. These often reflow when fonts, margins, or engines change, so expect page numbers to differ even when the text is intact. ### Follow the formatting in this example [Overlapping dialogue](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/dual-dialogue-and-overlapping-dialogue) [When two speeches share the same moment, and how to lay them out.](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/dual-dialogue-and-overlapping-dialogue) [Scene numbers in production](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/scene-numbers-production-drafts) [Keep stable references when scenes are inserted or a draft is issued.](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-formatting/scene-numbers-production-drafts) [Locked pages and revisions](https://www.inkwell.software/blog/screenplay-revisions-locked-pages-and-a-pages) [Why a reading copy and an issued production draft need different handling.](https://www.inkwell.software/blog/screenplay-revisions-locked-pages-and-a-pages) **Need a PDF instead?** Load the original FDX in the converter, convert it, then choose Print / Save PDF. Select Letter paper and turn off your browser's headers and footers. Useful output, not a score ## What this tool gives you ### See the hard formatting before you commit Load a sample Final Draft file to inspect dual dialogue in two columns, numbered scenes, page layout, and a per-file fidelity report before choosing your own draft. ### Three ways out Print or save a PDF through your own browser, or download Fountain or plain text. ### What the conversion costs — in your file A per-element count of what comes across unchanged, what arrives as action, and what stays in Final Draft. Counted from your draft, not from a general table. ## How to use it 1. 1 ### Open a draft Choose a .fdx, a Fountain file, or a screenplay PDF, or paste the text. Reading and parsing happen in this tab. 2. 2 ### Read the pages and the cost Check the page count and the layout, then read which elements carry across and which flatten to action. 3. 3 ### Take the format you need Print to PDF for a reader, or take Fountain to keep writing anywhere — in Inkwell or any other tool. ## How to read the result This tool reads Final Draft, Fountain, and screenplay PDFs and outputs PDF, Fountain, and plain text. Export FDX from Plot when a production office asks. Script text and structure carry across; locked pages and revision generations stay in the original Final Draft file. Keep that original while the draft is locked. ## Questions writers ask ### Is my screenplay uploaded anywhere? Only when you choose Continue in Plot. Converting, previewing and downloading run in this browser. Continue in Plot sends the converted screenplay to Inkwell so it opens as your project after you sign in, and Inkwell keeps that copy for up to 24 hours. ### Can I open an .fdx without Final Draft? Yes. Choose the file and the screenplay is laid out as pages you can read, print, or save in another format. You do not need a Final Draft license, and the original file is not modified. ### Is the PDF in real screenplay format? Yes — Courier 12pt on US Letter, a 1.5-inch left margin for the binding, 1-inch elsewhere, dialogue and character cues on the industry columns, dual dialogue in two columns, scene numbers in the margins, and page numbers top right. Page breaks follow the screenplay’s formatting. ### Why does the PDF come from my print dialog? Your browser renders the pages you can already see. In the dialog, choose Save as PDF, set paper to Letter, and turn off headers and footers — the page carries its own margins and numbers. ### What does not survive the conversion? Locked page boundaries and revision generations are Final Draft production state and stay there. Camera shots, cast lists, and Final Draft's General paragraphs keep every word but arrive as action, because there is no separate element for them. The tool counts each of these in your specific file rather than describing them in general. ### Can I convert a script INTO Final Draft format here? No — this page reads .fdx files, it does not write them. Export .fdx from Plot when a production office asks. Reading an .fdx is free here and in Plot. ### Can I turn a screenplay PDF back into Fountain? Yes, when the PDF was exported from a writing app rather than scanned. Choose the PDF and each element is read from where it sits on the page: scene headings, action, character cues, dialogue, parentheticals, transitions, and dual dialogue. Page numbers, headers, and (MORE) and (CONT’D) markers are left out. The Fountain lands in the box to check before you convert. A PDF holds only what was printed, so script notes and revision colors are not in it. Plot imports the same PDFs as a new project. ### How is this different from the FDX inspector? The inspector diagnoses one file — revision sets, locked pages, name variants, what looks unusual or malformed. This converts one: it lays the script out and hands you the format you asked for. ## Defined in the glossary - [FDX](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/fdx) [Final Draft’s native XML format — still the file many coordinators, studios, and production tools expect. Inkwell imports and exports FDX so a Plot draft can enter and leave a Final Draft workflow without rewriting by hand.](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/fdx) - [Fountain](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/fountain) [An open, plain-text markup for screenplays. Light conventions — scene headings, character cues, dialogue — keep the file readable in any text editor while still carrying structure. In Plot you write normally; Inkwell understands the structure as you type.](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/fountain) - [WGA-Compliant Screenplay Formatting](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/wga-formatting) [Professional screenplay layout that conforms to WGA and industry submission conventions — familiar margins, element spacing, pagination, and production behavior that let readers focus on the story.](https://www.inkwell.software/glossary/wga-formatting) ## Use it in your own code What this page is built on is published openly. Download it, test against it or build on it under its license. - [GitHub repository inkwell-app/screenplay-interop Original Fountain and Final Draft test files, with what a tool should keep when it imports or exports each one.MIT license](https://github.com/inkwell-app/screenplay-interop) - [Hugging Face dataset Inkwell-Software/screenplay-interop-fixtures The same test files as a dataset, ready to load into your own test suite.MIT license](https://huggingface.co/datasets/Inkwell-Software/screenplay-interop-fixtures) ## Keep working with the draft ### [Compare Screenplay Drafts — Free Script Diff](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-diff) [Compare two screenplay drafts by scene, dialogue, character, exact text, and production impact. Load a rewrite example or paste Fountain and FDX privately in the browser.](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-diff) [Open tool](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-diff) ### [Free Final Draft FDX Inspector](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/fdx-inspector) [Open an FDX file privately in your browser to inventory revision sets, locked pages, scene numbers, and portability risks before you import or convert.](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/fdx-inspector) [Open tool](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/fdx-inspector) ### [Free Screenplay Length Checker](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-length) [Check a feature, pilot, or short against page-count practice, official contest windows, and a published feature corpus — then export a memo you can send with the draft.](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-length) [Open tool](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/screenplay-length) ### [Free Script Breakdown Tool](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/script-breakdown) [Break down a Fountain or Final Draft screenplay privately in your browser: scene sheets, eighths, cast, locations, day/night, and exportable CSVs.](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/script-breakdown) [Open tool](https://www.inkwell.software/tools/script-breakdown) Continue in Plot and keep writing, with the screenplay formatting done for you. [Start writing in Plot](https://app.inkwell.software/signup) [Read the related guide](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/interop) --- Canonical page: