11 Tips for Storyboarding Like a Pro

When a writer is writing a film or a director is reading a script, they probably have a decent idea of what the final product will look like in their head. Their mind’s eye will be drawing inspiration from their various personal influences, piecing together the visual themes and rhythm of the film.

However, we all visualise things differently – so get yourself a storyboard to lay down the visual law! A storyboard is a great way to demonstrate the flow of a film, give the editor an idea of the rhythm, and give the cinematographer and camera crew information on how to frame every moving image on the screen.

Storyboarding Templates

If you’re new to storyboarding, you might want to try a storyboarding template. There are different websites that allow you to create a storyboard for free including our personal favourite, Milanote! Creating your own storyboard from scratch can be very harrowing, but a template system that holds your hand throughout the process can be a huge relief.

Movement

Yes, we’re drawing still images, but the movement of both characters and cameras is essential. You might note that this is a two-shot, but does the camera stay static? Does it slowly zoom in? Does it suddenly hard pan to the right to reveal something? Similarly, do the characters move around in a certain direction? Make notes and draw plenty of arrows.

Industry

Posted By

Shaquilla Alexander

Founder + Film Editor / Sharing her thoughts on all things film! When she's not writing about filmmaking for So Theory Goes, she is writing weekly posts for her new video editing platform, Working Womxn. workingwomxn.com