Planning - What is a storyboard? - Miss Begum

Storyboarding



What is a storyboard?

A storyboard is a plan, a way of figuring out the story of the film before you put in the enormous amount of work of the animation itself. A storyboard visually tells the story of an animation panel by panel similar to a comic book. Moreover, it helps to pre-visualize how the director wants the screenplay to be shot. The example shown is a template of a storyboard.

 Why is it important in the planning of a film?

 Taking time in creating a storyboard would save a significant amount of time in the future. If you jump in and start creating without a storyboard you are increasing the likely hood of wasting time on work that doesn't end up being used. Storyboards give an idea of what you're trying to create and they could be used as a reference to check your work whenever you like as you go along.

What elements need to go into a storyboard?
 The first element we need to consider in a storyboard is the shot number. The shot numbers determine each shot on the storyboard in order. E.g. shot 1,2,3,4.
Another element is the cinematography used. Each frame on the storyboard is labelled with a certain camera shot. For example the camera shot of a setting being an establishing shot.
The duration is also another element. This is when we determine how long each frame would be taken for. The duration would vary with the different type of frame.
The final element I would be discussing is the lighting that would be used. Low-key lighting is used more often that other types of lighting because it fits well with the thriller specific genre that we're working on.

What makes a thriller specific storyboard?
The specific type of elements that are used makes a thriller specific storyboard. For instance in the lighting element, there would be a large amount of low-key lighting being used to portray the intense scenes.
The location used could also relate to a thriller such as a haunted house or an abandoned alley-way.
The duration could also relate to the thriller genre because if there was an attack being implied through the storyboard, the duration of the frame would be longer than a frame without an attack taking place and it would be displayed as being more in depth.
In the example, we can see a thriller specific storyboard that has been created.

To conclude, I have now learned what a storyboard is, and how significant a storyboard could be in the process of film making. Moreover, I have concentrated on thriller specific storyboards which include elements that are used just for the thriller genre. Understanding the thriller specific storyboarding elements has helped me in creating my own storyboard because I now know what is required in my own storyboard.