ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

11 years, 7 months ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin

Heh heh, hope you find whatever works well for you :-)

Remember you don't need to be able to draw to storyboard - it's not about likenesses, it's just to show framings and camera movements. You can always augment it with mood boards and clippings to set the visual scene.

Just be wary of the technology getting in the way of productivity - there have been a lot of attempts at apps and software and some have revolutionised some areas, most have withered by the wayside, and with reason.

11 years, 6 months ago - John David Clay

Alton,

There is also storyboard quick 6 reasonably cheap not the most effeicant but I would aways agree with the pad and pencil approach!!

hope its useful anyway.

John

11 years, 7 months ago - Camp Cult Classics Film Festival

Have you looked into http://studios.amazon.com/storyteller ? It turns a script into a storyboard. The backgrounds are limited, but it's still a great FREE tool.

11 years, 8 months ago - Marlom Tander

Absolutely. When I write, I have a wall covered in post-its. Structure and story just needs far more space than a screen. And for story boarding it is - literally - about the Big Picture :-)

Anyone else who falls for tech style over effective substance, just watch this whenever you feel tempted http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3rNQ2pTyAY

11 years, 7 months ago - Alton Letto

Thank you all so much, that's really helpful!

A

11 years, 6 months ago - Alton Letto

Thanks for that answer. I'll check it out.

A

11 years, 7 months ago - Dan Selakovich

I'm with Paddy, but I think we share an old curmudgeon aesthetic. I've often traced a credit card to make a 1.85 frame.

There is a program I like, but it's expensive. FrameForge 3D. http://www.frameforge3d.com/

The reason I like it is because of the way you can set it up. You can tell it what's in your lens kit, how big your actual locations are, how high your camera jib goes, etc. Once all of that is in, it won't let you do a frame that's not possible in the real world. DPs hate storyboards for the simple reason that they can't get the shot you drew because, say, the ceiling is too low.

I think it would be helpful in your case, because it can do some "previz", so your people can actually see camera moves and whatnot. And if you can't draw, no problem!

One of my students when I was teaching had "springboard". He seemed to like it. I don't think it's free, but cheap.

I've worked with a couple of professional storyboard artists that used Toon Boom. I don't know how much it is, but really cool. Like springboard, you are the artist.

11 years, 7 months ago - Deva Palmier

I work with a combination of tools.

A Wacom tablet. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wacom-Bamboo-Pen-Graphics-Tablet/dp/B005TYVS4Y/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1386479453&sr=8-2&keywords=graphics+tablet

with Gimp - that's free - http://www.gimp.org/

and with Directors Note Pad - http://directorsnotebook.com/ The Directors Note Pad software is $ 100

What I love about bringing my storyboard pictures together with Directors Note Pad is that I can export either a shot list or as a story board as PDFs. Also I can makes notes on certain shots and bring all the info with me to meetings to share with my team and to the shoot. It means that I'm super organised and I can explain all the shots in pictures and with notes.

I take loads of photos - different angles - of where I'm going to shoot and then I paste pictures that I have taken or found on the internet of people/ actors in to the picture of the location and combine them together with Gimp.

This has really helped me on shoots when we're rushed for time. I just point to a picture and say to my DOP, let's do this now.

Good Luck!!!

11 years, 7 months ago - deena greenberg

I think celtx has free softwear for that. Also, moviestorm allows you to make an essentially animated version of the movie. There's a free 14 day trial, and if you don't buy it after the trial, you can still have free limited use of the program.

11 years, 8 months ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin

Call me a dinosaur, but I'm still speaking up for a pad of 'widescreen' post-it notes and a pencil. It's portable, works reliably any time of day or night, doesn't require a desk or charger, is very quick to bang out your ideas, easy to update etc.

But the big plus is it is easy to *share* - a storyboard is no good if you can't use it to communicate with crew. You'll be on set on day 14 of 3 weeks of 12h hour days. You'll be a husk, empty, exhausted, barely able to speak let alone find your phone, start the app etc. If you have a big wall of yellow post-its anyone can look at and immediately 'get' it, all standing around it together, you'll save yourself so much grief. Filming, despite the gadgets, is still low tech when we get down to it. High-tech toys can actually get in the way.

11 years, 7 months ago - Alton Letto

These are great in an ideal world, but I'm trying to use the storyboard for raising funds as well and need to share it digitally. I'm also not a great drawer so use a mix of photos and sketches and need to be able to merge the two. I happen also to believe in embracing technology as a way of making life easier, I promise on my Hollywood blockbuster I'll hire a huge space with the entire storyboard plastered to the wall, maybe painted as a fresco.

A ;-)