Q&As of Being an Animator: Question #1

Question #1: How do you go about creating storyboards?

Before we go about creating a storyboard, we must first cover what is a “storyboard.” A storyboard is the visual representation of the essence and structure of the planned animation. This is created through a series of sketches that draw out key events of the animation’s narrative in chronological order. One sketch is known as a panel, which panels can also contain technical details in separate boxes. Some key information that should be included in a storyboard panel are the following: a frame, dialogue notes, action notes, and camera shots. A frame is a rectangular box that the storyboard artist will sketch the shot in the eyes of a viewer. Dialogue notes are brief notes of any dialogue that will appear in the frame. Action notes note down any action that occurs. The last key information that should be included in a storyboard are camera shots, or depictions that capture the intended perspective for each scene.

There are different types of storyboards that can be created: traditional, thumbnail, and digital. Traditional storyboards are typically a series of pencil sketches paired with written explanations of what’s happening in each scene. These sketches still encapsulate a character(s)’s actions and expressions. Thumbnail storyboards are often used by solo animators or small teams who already know how they want to produce their project, as these are quick drawings, called storyboard drawings, meant to visualize an action sequence without the need for text. Thumbnail storyboards are also used by directors with distinct styles to plan large productions. Digital storyboards are made with specialized software and are useful for anyone creating videos with premade graphics, as an animator can reuse the same graphics of a digital storyboard into their final video. There are plenty of free programs that can be used, such as: Boords, Milanote, and Storyboarder.

With the framework and the different types of storyboards in mind, here are some tips in creating the storyboard. Begin with creating smaller scenes and shots for your script, and to help organize your storyboard, number each section to create a shot list during production. Establish your visual style that would be used to visualize your script. You can gather reference images in a mood board to help visualize your script and create a list of everything that needs to be drawn to match your script. Create a blank template of the type of storyboard you want to use. If you want to create a traditional storyboard, you can create the template with equally sized individual panels with space underneath either digitally or with pencil and paper. You can find digital storyboard templates from the various free software previously mentioned. For thumbnail storyboards, you can draw out smaller panels that do not need the extra space for detailed notes. Establish the location of your scene in the first panel, then draw out each panel with illustrations highlighting the most important parts of the story without adding too much detail. You can include dialogues, actions, or also descriptions of the scene using handwritten notes. Include technical details of how each shot should look like into the storyboard, such as whether you want there to be a zoom into the action or have the scene tilt. After creating your first draft of your storyboard, gather feedback from clientele, team members, or people you personally know and apply the necessary edits until your storyboard is ready to be animated.