Script coverage example
Most people asking for a coverage example have never been allowed to see one. Studios treat coverage as internal paperwork. Here's what a real report looks like, section by section, plus a template you can copy.
Why real coverage examples are hard to find
Script coverage is an internal document. A reader at a studio or agency writes it so an executive doesn't have to read the script. It contains honest, sometimes brutal opinions about material the company doesn't own, written about writers who might sit across the table next month. Nobody publishes that.
So when you search for a script coverage example, you mostly find descriptions of coverage rather than the thing itself. This page fixes that. Below is the standard format every company builds on, a filled-in example, and a copy-paste template.
If you're not sure what coverage is in the first place, start with the basics and come back.
The standard script coverage format
There's no official industry spec, but nearly every company uses the same skeleton. Coverage is usually 2-5 pages and follows this order:
Top sheet
The header block. Title, writer, format (feature or pilot), genre, budget range, setting and time period, draft date, who read it, and when. An exec should know what they're holding in five seconds.
Logline
One or two sentences: protagonist, goal, conflict, stakes. Written by the reader, not copied from the writer's query letter.
Synopsis
A plot summary including the ending. Coverage always spoils the ending; the whole point is that the exec doesn't have to read the script. Traditional coverage keeps this to about a page.
Comments
The analysis. What works and what doesn't across premise, structure, character, dialogue, and marketability. This is the section executives actually read first.
Verdict
Traditionally Pass, Consider, or Recommend, often given separately for the script and for the writer. Many companies add a ratings grid scoring categories like premise, structure, and dialogue as Excellent, Good, Fair, or Poor.
For a deeper breakdown of what goes inside each section, see the full report guide.
A filled-in example
Here's what the top of a real report looks like, filled in for a fictional thriller. The script is invented; the structure and scoring are exactly what an OnDesk coverage report produces.
When a foreclosure notice arrives the same week a cartel courier goes missing on her family's almond farm, a widowed farmer must decide whether the money hidden in her orchard is a rescue or a death sentence.
Top 3 of nine scored categories: character, conflict, structure, dialogue, pacing, premise, originality, tone, and logic. Each score comes with a rationale and evidence from the script.
- • Protagonist with a clear external goal and a moral cost attached to every option.
- • Fresh setting that does real narrative work instead of decorating the genre.
- • Second act relies on a coincidence to reconnect the antagonist to the farm.
- • Pacing dips across a repetitive stretch of surveillance scenes.
The full report also includes an executive summary, comparable titles, a 1,000-1,300 word synopsis, character breakdowns for up to 8 characters, and a market potential read.
Free script coverage template
If you're writing coverage yourself, as a reader, an assistant, or an intern handed a weekend read pile, copy this. It's the standard structure used across studios, production companies, and management companies.
SCRIPT COVERAGE TITLE: FORMAT: Feature / Pilot WRITER: GENRE: DRAFT DATE: BUDGET RANGE: SETTING / TIME PERIOD: READER: SUBMITTED BY: DATE OF COVERAGE: LOGLINE: [1-2 sentences: protagonist, goal, conflict, stakes.] SYNOPSIS: [Full plot summary, including the ending. ~1 page.] COMMENTS: [Premise: is the concept fresh? Does it sustain a whole film?] [Structure: does each act work? Where does momentum stall?] [Character: clear goals? Real arcs? Distinct voices?] [Dialogue: natural? On-the-nose? Exposition-heavy?] [Marketability: audience, comps, casting appeal.] RATINGS: EXCELLENT GOOD FAIR POOR Premise [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Structure [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Character [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Dialogue [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Marketability [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] VERDICT: Script: PASS / CONSIDER / RECOMMEND Writer: PASS / CONSIDER / RECOMMEND
Quick tips for writing your coverage
The essentials below. For the reading process, section-by-section instructions, and what the verdicts really signal, see the full guide on how to write script coverage.
Read the whole script first
Take notes on act breaks, character introductions, and anything that confused you. Confusion is data; if you got lost on page 40, say so in the comments.
Write the synopsis before the comments
Summarizing the plot forces you to test whether the story actually tracks. If you can't summarize the second act cleanly, that's usually the script's problem, and it belongs in your comments.
Make the comments specific
“The dialogue is weak” helps nobody. “Characters explain their feelings out loud in every scene from the midpoint on” is a note someone can act on. Point to pages.
Give the verdict a spine
Consider is not a safe middle option; it means you'd defend this script in a meeting. Recommend means you're staking your name on it. If you wouldn't, it's a pass, and that's fine.
Or generate a report instead
Writing good coverage takes 2-4 hours per script. If you want the report rather than the exercise, AI script coverage produces the full document in minutes: at a glance metadata, logline, executive summary, a scored recommendation out of 100 across nine categories, comparable titles, a complete synopsis, character breakdowns, strengths and weaknesses, and market potential.
Reports export to PDF or Word on paid plans, so they drop straight into the same folders and email threads traditional coverage lives in. 3 free reports to start, no card required.