A screenplay markup language and toolchain built for Egyptian and Arabic-speaking screenwriters.
Hekaya extends the Fountain specification with native support for RTL (right-to-left) text, enabling screenwriters across Egypt and the Arab world to write professionally formatted screenplays in plain text.
Hekaya was created for the Cairo Indie Filmmakers Club to standardize Arabic screenwriting and make it easier to write, share, and export screenplays in a standard PDF format.
Hekaya is to Egyptian and Arabic-speaking screenwriters what Fountain is to English screenwriters: a simple, plain-text markup language that lets you write screenplays in any text editor. The syntax feels natural for writing in Egyptian dialect and formal Arabic while remaining fully backward-compatible with standard Fountain files.
العنوان: آخر أيام الصيف سيناريو: سمير عبدالحميد داخلي - قهوة بلدي - نهار سمير قاعد لوحده في ركن القهوة، بيبص على فنجان القهوة اللي قدامه. @سمير (بهدوء) قهوة سادة، لو سمحت. @نادية مكنتش عارفة إنك هنا. @سمير ولا أنا كنت ناوي أجي. - قطع -
| Package | Description | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
@hekaya/parser |
Core markup parser (zero dependencies) |  |
@hekaya/renderer |
HTML renderer with RTL-aware screenplay CSS |  |
@hekaya/pdf |
PDF generator with proper font support |  |
@hekaya/cli |
Command-line tool |  |
# Install the CLI globally
npm install -g @hekaya/cli
# Or use individual packages
npm install @hekaya/parser
npm install @hekaya/renderer
npm install @hekaya/pdfOr download a pre-built binary from the Releases page — no installation needed, just Node.js 20+:
# Download the binary for your platform (example: macOS ARM)
curl -LO https://github.com/michaelkmalak/hekaya/releases/latest/download/hekaya-macos-arm64.tar.gz
tar -xzf hekaya-macos-arm64.tar.gzOr build from source:
git clone https://github.com/michaelkmalak/hekaya.git
cd hekaya
pnpm install && pnpm build
node apps/hekaya-cli/dist/index.js render script.hekaya -o script.html# Parse a Hekaya file
hekaya parse script.hekaya --format json
# Render to HTML
hekaya render script.hekaya -o script.html
# Export to PDF
hekaya export script.hekaya -o script.pdf
# Validate
hekaya validate script.hekaya
# Convert between .hekaya and .fountain
hekaya convert script.hekaya -o script.fountainFull sample screenplays are available on the documentation site for best RTL readability:
| Sample | Description |
|---|---|
| آخر أيام الصيف | Drama — a writer rediscovering hope in Cairo |
| بكرا السما ح تقع | Comedy — a satirical tale of misinformation spreading across Cairo |
To establish .hekaya as a recognized file extension:
- VS Code Extension — Create a VS Code language extension providing syntax highlighting, snippets, and autocomplete for
.hekayafiles - npm Packages — Publish
@hekaya/parser,@hekaya/renderer,@hekaya/pdf,@hekaya/clito npm - GitHub Linguist — Submit a PR to github-linguist to add
.hekayaas a recognized language for syntax highlighting on GitHub - IANA Media Type — Register
text/x-hekayaas a media type via IANA - Domain & Website — Launch hekaya.com with documentation, playground, and download links
- Port parser to Dart (zero-dep design enables this)
- Flutter desktop app (macOS + Windows) with WYSIWYG editor
- StudioBinder-style autocomplete for character names, scene headings, and transitions
- Real-time preview pane
- app.hekaya.com — Web-based screenplay editor (Flutter web app)
- hekaya.com — Landing page with documentation, download links, and getting started guide
# Install dependencies
pnpm install
# Build all packages
pnpm build
# Run tests
pnpm test
# Watch mode
pnpm test:watchMIT