Book Device Getting New Life as Script Tool?

Who says NuvoMedia’s Rocket eBook is just for books? Some folks in Hollywood think the portable device can make bulky paper scripts as much of a relic as silent films.

The idea to turn the eBook into E-Scripts came from James Korris, the new executive director of USC’s Entertainment Technology Center. Korris, a technology junkie, said he started fiddling with his eBook and his script-writing software to see if they were compatible. When he discovered they were, he contacted NuvoMedia in Mountain View, Calif.

It turns out that nearly all the popular script-writing software programs--which facilitate writing by automating the script format--can be used with the Rocket eBook without requiring any modification, said Chris Kahn, NuvoMedia’s director of business development.

Korris persuaded Sony Pictures Entertainment in Culver City to check out the technology, and senior executives in the company’s story department are evaluating the eBook and a rival product, the SoftBook Reader from Menlo Park, Calif.-based SoftBook Press. Sony has not yet decided whether to test the new technology in a formal pilot program, said Lisa Sanders, executive director of special projects for its Digital Studios Division.

Kahn said he never contemplated marketing the eBook as a script-writing tool until Korris brought it up. But it’s not the first time NuvoMedia customers have suggested new applications for its flagship product. A few Fortune 500 companies may use the eBook to distribute human resources materials, some doctors are taking eBooks with them on their rounds, and aerospace and automotive companies are considering using it to store repair manuals, he said.

Korris’ brainstorm reflects a new focus for the Entertainment Technology Center. Instead of spearheading large-scale projects like HollyNet--an ambitious proposal for a high-speed network to link the region’s film studios, post production houses and special effects firms--the center is now concentrating on tasks that promise more near-term benefit.