Find & Replace
Search your screenplay and replace text quickly.
Opening Find & Replace
Press ⌘F or go to Edit > Find & Replace to open the search panel.
The Find & Replace panel is draggable — click and drag the panel to move it anywhere on screen so it doesn't cover the text you're working with.
Finding Text
- Open Find & Replace with ⌘F.
- Type your search term in the Find field.
- Matches are highlighted throughout the script in real-time as you type.
- Use the arrow buttons (or press Enter) to jump between matches.
Search Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Match Case | When enabled, "Sarah" won't match "SARAH" or "sarah". Useful for finding specific character names. |
| Whole Word | When enabled, searching "he" won't match "the" or "she". Only matches complete words. |
Replacing Text
- Enter your search term in the Find field.
- Enter the replacement text in the Replace field.
- Click Replace to replace the current match and move to the next one.
- Click Replace All to replace every match in the script at once.
Be careful with Replace All! It will replace every occurrence in your entire script. If you make a mistake, press ⌘Z to undo.
Common Uses
- Rename a character: Search for the old name and replace with the new one. Use "Match Case" to be precise.
- Fix a typo everywhere: Replace All is perfect for fixing a word you've been misspelling throughout the script.
- Change a location name: Search the scene heading text and replace it. (You can also use the Locations panel for batch renaming locations.)
Closing the Panel
Press Escape or click the close button on the Find & Replace panel to dismiss it.