Gorilla Scheduling

Gorilla Scheduling combines screenplay breakdowns and production scheduling with desktop and browser-based workflows. It is a strong fit for film teams that need detailed schedules, cast and crew organization, and production reporting. Its main limitation is scope: budgeting requires a separate product, and there is no mobile app.

Overview

Screenplay import, scene breakdowns, stripboards, shoot-day planning, cast and crew management, and production reports sit in one scheduling workflow. Gorilla Online adds browser access and collaboration without a desktop installation, while supported projects can move between Online and Desktop without starting over. That flexibility suits teams mixing browser and desktop work, but the product remains focused on scheduling rather than financial management.

Key features

Gorilla Online imports Final Draft and PDF screenplays. Gorilla can also import Movie Magic Scheduling data and export to Movie Magic Scheduling’s .sex format; Final Draft .fdx screenplay or schedule files can be imported and exported. These exchanges help teams working with either format carry project material into and out of Gorilla.

Its reports include shooting and one-line schedules, Day Out of Days, cast and crew lists, element reports, breakdown sheets, stripboard reports, and calendar reports. That range makes it useful for teams that need to share more than a stripboard view of the plan.

Breakdown Assistant AI identifies and organizes production elements from a screenplay for review in the scheduling workflow. It can assist with organizing a breakdown, while the review step keeps the elements within the production team’s workflow.

Koala Call Sheets uses information entered in Gorilla Scheduling to create, customize, export as PDFs, email, and distribute call sheets. Gorilla Online’s Work Offline mode supports editing breakdown sheets, scheduling elements, creating shoot days, adding crew, and rearranging the stripboard; changes sync when the project is back online. Cloud storage ties Online project data to the user account. These tools support continuity across planning tasks, though they do not add mobile-app access.

Gorilla Online also includes film-school tools for browser-based breakdown, stripboard scheduling, production planning, and reporting. The company says Gorilla began in July 2002, after filmmakers and programmers built production modules for their own film work.

Pricing

Gorilla Online Free costs nothing. It is a way to use the online product at no cost, but collaboration, certain reports and exports, fringes, and the integrated Ratebook require a paid plan. Those restrictions make it a limited starting point rather than a full team workflow.

Gorilla Scheduling Desktop costs $64.99 a month, billed $64.99 every 3 months. It runs on Mac and Windows and includes scheduling, screenplay breakdown, stripboards, and reports. It suits users who want the core desktop scheduling toolkit, but not those seeking budgeting in the same plan.

Gorilla Budgeting Desktop also costs $64.99 a month, billed $64.99 every 3 months. It includes budgeting, accounts, globals, fringes, expenses, and reports for Mac and Windows. This is the separate option for budget work, not a substitute for the scheduling plan.

The Gorilla Combo Pack costs $109.99 a month, billed $109.99 every 3 months, and combines Scheduling and Budgeting for Mac and Windows. For teams needing both functions, it avoids choosing between the two desktop products. The published paid-from price is 24.99 /mo, and a 15-day trial is available; the plans above show their own quarterly billing terms.

Platforms

Gorilla is available on macOS, Windows, and the web. Online provides browser-based collaboration and offline editing with later syncing, while desktop plans cover Mac and Windows. There are no mobile app platforms, so teams needing a dedicated phone or tablet app should look elsewhere.

Who it's for

Gorilla is best suited to film productions and film schools that need screenplay-based breakdowns, schedule building, cast and crew organization, and a broad set of production reports. It is less suitable for buyers who require integrated budgeting in the scheduling product or mobile apps; budgeting means buying the separate desktop budgeting plan or Combo Pack.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Imports and exports for Final Draft .fdx and Movie Magic Scheduling .sex support workflows that use those formats.
• Pros: Reports cover schedules, cast and crew, elements, breakdowns, stripboards, and calendars, giving productions several ways to communicate plans.
• Pros: Online collaboration, offline editing with sync, and project transfer between Online and Desktop support teams that work across those environments.
• Cons: Gorilla Scheduling does not include budget tracking; budgeting requires a separate plan or the Combo Pack.
• Cons: The free online plan excludes collaboration and certain reports and exports, limiting its usefulness for a full production team.
• Cons: There is no mobile app, which rules it out for teams that need a dedicated mobile workflow.

Alternatives

Consider CineLog if you want a freemium option with Android and iOS apps as well as web and desktop platforms; its Free plan allows one active project, 50 MB of media storage, and up to two collaborators.

Production Slate is another freemium option, with its Free plan capped at two projects, 50 budget items, 15 crew, and five shoot days, plus call-sheet and attachment limits.

Cinetech offers a free read-only account with a demo project and 100 assistant credits, alongside a Scheduling plan priced at $15 a month.

Filmustage has a free plan limited to one active project and partial AI breakdown of 20% of scenes, with a Director's Cut plan at $55 a month.

MoviePrepper is a freemium alternative.

Prescene offers a free Screenplay Editor plan with unlimited drafts and no AI usage, and a Plus plan at $49 a month.

Shamel Studio has a free plan limited to one project and a Call Sheets & Production Reports add-on priced at 12.00.

Slatefox is a web-based paid option with a free trial; its Indie plan is €19 a month and includes script breakdown.

For category-wide comparisons, browse Film Production Scheduling Software and Video Production Management Software.

Verdict

Choose Gorilla Scheduling if your production needs screenplay breakdowns, stripboards, shoot-day planning, cast and crew organization, and reporting across desktop and browser workflows. Its format support and reporting breadth are compelling for scheduling-led teams; look elsewhere if you need mobile apps or expect budgeting to be included in the scheduling plan.