The Art of the Storyboard

A storyboard is essentially a large comic of a film created at the pre-production stage to help directors and cinematographers visualize scenes and find potential problems before they occur. All filmmakers need storyboards to help plan their scenes, structure their story, work out a schedule and effectively allocate budget. Amateur and student filmmakers planning their first film and facing storyboards for the first time will find this an accessible introduction to a vital subject. They will learn basic drawing techniques such as the use of perspective, light and shade, and depth of field needed to render the human figure in motion. As well as essential components of storyboarding, such as framing, placement of figures and use of camera angles.