Create a Commercial Storyboard

A storyboard is a visual aid primarily used to plan out or prepare a television commercial, short-film, or movie. Storyboards are useful in organizing sequences and steps and contain the flow of several processes that include visual elements, text or dialogue elements, audio, and actions of characters. Creating a storyboard can also help you plan for special effects, testing complicated ideas on paper first versus at the actual filming location, and finally with validating continuity.

Steps

Create a Commercial Storyboard Using a Basic Template.

1. Create a title frame. The title area of your storyboard should contain your intended topic or general idea of the commercial.
2. Designate frame numbers or screen numbers. Each of your frames should be given its own unique name or number. Most storyboards follow a format similar to "t6m2s5," which stands for topic 6, module 2, section 5.
3. Explain actions occurring on each frame. Provide explicit details and your vision behind what should happen in each frame, such as "John throws ball at Cindy."
4. Designate camera instructions. Explain what the camera should be doing for each particular frame, such as "Camera follows John as he walks 4 steps to the left."
5. Include character dialogue. For each frame in the commercial storyboard, write out the intended dialogue, such as "John: Our company is innovative and will get the job done."
6. Describe additional audio. For each frame, add details surrounding any extra audio you want to include, such as sound effects and background music.
7. Provide details on visual effects. If there are to be any visual effects you need to add after filming your commercial, include them in that frame. For example, if your character is talking about the world, mention in your storyboard that a picture of a globe should be turning around in the corner of the screen.

Create a Commercial Storyboard Using the Paper Method.

1. Use large poster boards and draw between 6 to 12 rectangles that depict frames on each poster board. Make sure you leave enough space below each frame to include all written information from the template.
2. Sketch simple drawings in each frame like stick figures to depict your commercial. To indicate movement in a frame, use sketches such as arrows to depict character or object movement.
3. Underneath each frame, write down all the information from the commercial storyboard template, such as frame numbers, actions, camera instructions, dialogue, audio, and visual effects.

Create a Commercial Storyboard Using Digital Methods.

1. Determine your digital method for creating a storyboard. Most people use drawing applications on their computers or purchase commercial storyboard software.
   • Drawing applications will allow users to sketch directly on the computer screen using a mouse or stylus and makes frames easy to delete, modify or rearrange. Some applications also allow you to add extensive notes under each frame or image.
   • Commercial storyboard software will usually already have templates for you to use and include numerous built-in tools designed specifically for commercial production.

Tips

• Commercial storyboards can be used to pitch ideas to clients and communicating your vision to others.
• Consider hiring a professional artist to draw pictures if you are using the paper storyboard method in order to appear more professional.
• If you are creating a commercial storyboard with a group of people, have each person generate their own basic storyboard using the title frame as inspiration to generate new ideas.
• Be real and be creative. When writing the storyboard have the desired topic or theme in mind, what message are you bringing across.

Warnings

• Most commercial storyboard software comes with basic drawings or illustrations, which may present difficulty in getting specific ideas, or visions across.

Things You'll Need

• Drawing pencils, pens or markers
• Poster boards (quantity depending on project)
• Ream of blank paper

Related Articles

• Create a Storyboard
• Pitch a TV Commercial

Sources and Citations

• http://www.videomaker.com/article/8841/
• http://www.learncamtasia.com/free-articles/the-easiest-way-to-create-a-storyboard-for-your-video/

See also

• Write a Script
• Make a Commercial
• Make a Short Film
• Make a Movie With One Person
• Make a Movie Set
• Create a Storyboard
• Make a Movie
• Make an Action Movie
• Write, Direct and Edit Your Own Movie
• Make Your Own TV Show

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