VFX Showrunner™ FAQ

Q: What's the coolest feature of Showrunner™?
A: Sorting. Lots of facilities build in-house databases to display shot data. But very few of them can sort shots. Once you've tried it you'll wonder how you ever got by without it.

Q: Why is Showrunner™ no longer free?
A: Though the free version of VFX Showrunner was very popular worldwide, donations received to help continue Showrunner's further development were inadequate. Better to pay a few bucks than have it go away altogether, right?

Q: What's different about Showrunner Pro?
A: The most obvious difference is it is no longer free. But it contains hundreds of new features and enhancements that make it more than worth the meager $99 pricetag.

Q: What is the upgrade path to Showrunner Pro? If I made a donation before, does that get me a discount?
A: The price for Showrunner Pro is $99 for every user, donor or not. That's a lot cheaper than any upgrade from Microsoft. And you probably spent more than that at Starbucks last month. Plus Showrunner is tax-deductible. And finally, if you still are squeamish you have a ten-day fully functional free trial to determine whether Showrunner Pro is worth your hard-earned cash.

Q: Do I need to buy a copy of VFX Showrunner PRO for each member of my crew?
A: No. You need a copy of VFX Showrunner PRO for each SERVER that is running your database. (Which should be exactly ONE or you're defeating the purpose of a collaborative database, right?) You will, however, need a copy of Filemaker 8 or better for each workstation that accesses VFX Showrunner PRO.

Q: Can I donate money to show my gratitude and ensure Showrunner continues to be developed?
A: Yes. Check out the Donate section of this Website.

Q: How much should I donate?
A: Go with your conscience. But you might check out the prices of our competition.

Q: Can I get Showrunner™ customized to my specific needs?
A: Yes. For more info click here.

Q: Can I get a version of Showrunner™ where I can alter the layouts and do my own customization?
A: No. Trust me. It's better for both of us this way. If you really really need to customize your own reports, simply go to your favorite Showrunner page that has all the fields you need and export the data to either Excel or Apple's Numbers and format your report to your heart's content.

Q: What do I need in order to use Showrunner™?
A: At a minimum you'll need a copy of Showrunner™ and a copy of Filemaker Pro 8 or better. If you want more than one workstation to access all the features of Showrunner™, you'll need a copy of Filemaker 8 or better (but not Showrunner) for each Mac or PC workstation. If you wish to run a full studio based on Showrunner™ it is best to serve it from a central server using Filemaker Server. See Filemaker.com for more info on Filemaker Server.

Q: Can I access Showrunner™ through a plain web browser?
A: Yes. Sort of. Using Filemaker's Instant Web Publishing function you can access your database and most of the functionality of Showrunner™ using Internet Explorer or Safari. Access and functionality are limited because of the realities of browsers but Instant Web Publishing does provide access for the casual user. Users needing full functionality should use Filemaker 8 or better to access Showrunner™.

Q: Does Showrunner™export to Excel?
A: Filemaker 8 will do so and make an Excel file directly.

Q: Do I need to know how to use Filemaker in order to use Showrunner™?
A: No. If you are familiar with Filemaker's conventions you can use Showrunner more quickly. But Showrunner is specifically designed to be self evident, with an interface even an intern will quickly understand.

Q: Can I print out reports from Showrunner™?
A: Yes. Each section of Showrunner is constructed so that you can print out nice looking reports at the touch of a button. No page setup, no formatting. Just print it.

Q: Don't all those pretty colors screw up printing? I just want plain black and white printouts.
A: Not a problem. When a page is printed everything that doesn't need to be printed disappears. Try it!

Q: Speaking of printing my Showrunner™ reports don't print out properly from my PC.
A: The problem is more likely with your individual printer drivers than with Showrunner. Experiment with the magnification setting in your Page Setup dialog box till you get an acceptable printout...or use a Mac and avoid the issue.
One PC User suggested this:
"If you print to a PDF file, and set the paper size to 9.9 x 12.6 inches, it formats on the page almost exactly the way it formats on the screen before selecting a printer (in other words, it's correct.) You can then print the PDF file on any printer, and Acrobat will automatically scale the image back down to 8-1/2 x 11. Acrobat allows you to save custom page size settings, so I just named it "Showrunner" and saved it. When printing, I just select "Adobe PDF" as the printer, and "Showrunner" as the paper size. It's an extra step, but at least is seems to work."