What Is a Storyboard?

A storyboard is the visual plan for a film, commercial, animation or video: a sequence of frames, one per shot, with the action, dialogue and camera work noted under each. Directors use it to design coverage before the shoot, agencies use it to sell the idea to the client, and editors use it as the blueprint for the cut. Panel by panel, it answers the question every production eventually asks: what exactly will we see on screen?

The tool above is both a working storyboard template — six blank frames the moment you arrive, printable as-is — and a full storyboard creator: sketch in each frame, upload images, set shot sizes and camera moves, then print a client-ready PDF.

How to Make a Storyboard

1. Pick a frame format. Match the board to the deliverable: 16:9 for YouTube and broadcast, 9:16 vertical for Reels/TikTok/Stories, 1:1 for square feeds, 2.39:1 for a cinematic look. Set panels per row to control how dense the printed page is.
2. Block the story frame by frame. One panel per shot. Sketch directly in the frame (rough stick figures are enough — boards communicate, they don't decorate), upload a reference image, or leave it blank to draw on paper after printing.
3. Add the camera. Give each panel a shot size (ECU through EWS) and a movement (pan, dolly, track, handheld…). Draw movement arrows in the frame for pans, pushes and character travel.
4. Time it. Add a duration in seconds to each panel; the running total tells you whether the board actually fits a :30 spot before anyone argues about it in the edit.
5. Print or save. Print / Save as PDF gives you a bordered board with your production details as the letterhead. Save the project file to keep an editable copy with all the artwork.

What Goes in Each Storyboard Panel

• Frame artwork — a sketch, photo or blocking diagram of what the camera sees.
• Scene and frame number — printed as SC 2 · FR 5, so the board cross-references the script and shot list.
• Action / description — what happens in the shot, present tense, one or two lines.
• Dialogue / VO — the line or voice-over heard during the shot.
• Shot size and camera movement — the camera grammar (see the glossary below).
• Duration — estimated seconds on screen.
• Sound / notes — SFX, music cues, supers or anything the frame can't show.

Shot Sizes and Camera Movements

Storyboard Examples

Click Load example in the tool to open "Morning Coffee", a complete eight-panel :30 commercial storyboard you can study, edit and print. It walks through the standard vocabulary: an extreme wide establishing frame at dawn, a pan with an arrow as the character enters, a close-up insert on the pour, an extreme close-up push-in on the coffee bloom, a handheld medium shot, a reaction close-up with dialogue, a tracking exit with a movement arrow, and a closing pack shot with logo and tagline supers. Printed, it reads exactly like the boards agencies send to clients — which is the point: replace the frames and you have your own.

Storyboard Template Formats

The classic printable storyboard template is a 16:9 grid, three panels per row, landscape — that is what this page opens with, and Print blank template gives you that empty grid (plus your letterhead) for drawing by hand. For vertical social work, switch to 9:16 and the template re-flows to a portrait page; square 1:1 boards suit feed posts; 2.39:1 suits cinematic spots. Two panels per row prints larger frames for detailed boards; four per row fits a whole :60 on a page or two. Every format prints cleanly on both A4 and US Letter.

Storyboard or Shot List?

They answer different questions. The storyboard shows what each shot looks like — composition, blocking, movement — and is the tool for designing and selling the idea. The shot list is the set's logistics document: every planned setup with location, lens, gear and priority, in shooting order. Board first to design the film, then turn it into a shot list to schedule the day. VoiceDeck has a free builder for each, plus a call sheet generator for the shoot day itself.