Off Book!

Overall this app is a godsend. As it has been said by many others, it is definitely clunky to set up. There has to be a better way, but since I’m not a designer I’m not gonna complain too much. I haven’t searched around for similar products, I just had this app recommended to me by a fellow actor in my show… And I’m finding it extremely useful. Please continue to improve and refine it. Even if eventually you have to charge a little for it… Please make it easier and smoother to use. But thank you for your hard work so far.

This is one of those apps that is extremely useful if you can figure out how to use it. Like other reviewers, I have had problems finding scenes, getting characters to show up in the scene menu, recording, etc. Turns out it’s all about the initial set up of the scene in the “Works” tab. Not only do you need to create your scene and add your characters but you also need to toggle on the switches for each character. Only then can you record lines- or even mute them (which makes no sense). Anyhow, the app works well – it’s just not intuitive which can be frustrating. If the developer would update the app with a smoother interface, I would happily pay for it (once I know it works, of course!).

I want to tell you about this awesome app I found while trying to learn lines to 15 mini scripts. It was created by an actor faced with the same dilemmas I was facing with no one to rehearse with. It has a very simple interface. I didn’t need to view the videos to figure out how to use it. With a few learning lessons after my lines were not saved, it becomes second nature. For those not technologically inclined, I highly recommend the videos. You don’t have to do the traditional upload of a paper script like other apps do. It’s a bit tedious at firs, as you have to record every characters’ line with your voice. You tell it which character you are reading for, then you can have it run all the lines (even yours) so you can recite with it or you can tell it to mute your lines. It can also ding every time to prompt your turn to read your line. This way your brain learns when it’s your turn to speak. When I had a tough few sentences to memorize, I ran it in the car on my way to set & had it repeat my line over & over until I kept in sync with my own voice recording. When I nailed it, I went on to the next line. It has been very handy for my most recent gig. There is a fee, if you want to back up your data in case you lose your phone or something happens to it. I am able to log in from my phone or iPad after syncing it to the cloud. You can also collaborate with your other cast members when they subscribe as well. Steven, the creator, is very responsive to emails, so compliments are very appreciated on his end. Try it today. You will wish you had tried it a long time ago!!!!