Disney credited animator Webb Smith with creating the idea of drawing scenes of seperate sheets of paper, and pinning them up on a bulletin board to tell a story in sequence, thus creating the first story board. Furthermore, it was Disney who first recognized necessity for studios to maintain a separate 'story board' department with specialized story board artists(in that its a new occupation distinct from animators), as he had realized that audiences would not watch a film unless its story gave them a reason to care about its characters.
By 1937/38, all American studios were using storyboards.
Gone With The Wind(1939) was one of the first live action films live action films to be completely storyboarded. William Cameron Menzies, the films production designer, was hired by producer David O. Selznick to design every shot of the film.
Storyboarding becomes popular in live action film production during the early 1940s and grew into a standard medium pre visualization of films. Celebrated directors such as Alfred Hitchcock were renowned for their meticulous visualization in the pre production process.
Storyboards are now an essential part of the creative process.
Why story boards are helpful
Visualizing your ideas
The greatest incentive for storyboarding is simply the fact that the story board will help you make a much stronger film by allowing you to visualize your product before its even made.
This is essentially your chance to create a blueprint for your production that will help you identify any potential problem areas or missed opportunities while you still have a chance to fix them.
Visualizing your ideas
Your screenplay is the backbone of your film, but no matter how beautifully written it may be, it will never translate exactly as you might be picturing it to film.
Theres a common saying among directors: 'If your final film looks even seventy percent of the way you thought it would, you did your job really well'.
Storyboards play a huge part in getting that seventy percent, as they help you visualize your project in a way that in is not other wise possible.
The last thing you want is to get to set and realize that something about your shoot isn't congruent with the script.
Storyboarding will help you nip those issues in the bud, and keep your vision clear.
An advantage of using a story board is that it allows the director or producer to experiment with changes in the story line to have stronger reactions.
Flashbacks, for example, are often the result of sorting storyboards out of chronological order, this helps build suspense and interest for the audience.
The process of visual thinking and planning allows a group of people to brainstorm together, placing their ideas on story boards and then arranging the storyboards on the wall.
This fosters more ideas and generates consensus inside the group.
Its important that crew members are on the same page, and can see the product 'come to life' on page.
Storyboards will often include specific technical details that help crew members understand the specific needs and requirements of each shot. These could include camera angles, character movements and edits.
Technical details
Generally speaking for every illustration (storyboard) you create, there are five types of shots to choose from: master, long, medium, close up and extreme close up.
Once you've decided on which of the five will be used, you'll want to illustrate the camera movements.
To depict a painting or tilting shot, where the camera either moves sideways or up and down, you'll want to create two frames to indicate where the camera will start and where it will wind up.
From there, you can use arrows moving in both directions in order to portray movements. To illustrate a tracking shot,(which invloves moving the entire camera in order to follow your continuously moving subject), simply draw an arrow on the frame - indicating camera placement - and point it in the direction the camera will be moving in.
You can also illustrate zooming, which only involves a lens and no camera movement at all. To show zooming in(moving closer to the subject) and zooming out means two frames are needed for the subject, and depending on which direction the subject is moving In, you'll either have arrows moving towards the interior frame or the exterior frame.
The Purpose Of Story Boards
In production you will have a strong idea of camera set ups, blocking, lighting requirements etc, therefor should save time when shooting.
By the time you get to post, your editor will be thanking you, as the film will have coverage in all the right places, proper transitional moments, and a slicker aesthetic. In the long run saving money for the production company.
There are props that are made more significant by the use of shading in the story boards, such as the mechanical robot arms used by the villain. The setting is well described in the storyboards to help understand the story, as well as this the two characters have been well defined as well as the public on the train, this all allows the viewer of the story board to understand that direction the story is heading. The facial expression of the villain shows distress, this also shows the impact of Spider man's punch. Impact is further given to the punch due to the word 'bam' being incorporated into the design.
The angles used show movement, this would help the viewer track the characters and therefor the story, this is done by showing different angles of Spider man along with movement arrows. Close up shots are also used to show the emotion on the villains face or in this case the pain, as well as this a cut away shot is used to show the faces and emotion of the pedestrians on the train. As well as this impact words are used to help the audience follow the scene and feel the impact of Spider man's punch.
For certain shots used they can be clearly identified, such as the cutaway shot used to show the emotion on the train passengers faces. A cut away is also used to show the wheels trying and struggling to slow, this also shows a use of dietetic sound that the audience would be able to interpenetrate. As well as this the sound of glass breaking would be a dietetic sound that the audience would be able to identify due to its popularity, this would add sympathy pain to for the viewer and add impact the hit.
The format used is erratic and shaky, unpredictable. This is exactly how the characters in this scene would be feeling, During the fight they would be experiencing these same feelings of fear and adrenaline, this is shown through the story boards themselves by the use of jump cuts.
Some of the imagery used is significant due to the difference of colour between the two characters this is used to show their contrast in character, for example Scar is cunning and manipulating where as Simba is young, joyful and naive. This has been portrayed by the use of shading. The setting of the scene is also important to Scars character, other characters of the film are always seen in the light of the sun , not shrouded in shadows and darkness in a cave. As well as this caves are dangerous, wild animals are found here, animals that aren't tame and friendly like the rest of the characters portrayed.
The camera angles used show both of the characters facial expressions, also it is easy for the viewer to interpenetrate what shot will be next used as Scar begging to walk away, a tracking shot would be used.
There is no used digetic or non digetic sound visibly used in this scene. Digetic sound would be heard as the characters speak in this scene but it is not shown on the storyboard.
The begging of a tracking shot can be seen when 'Scar' begins to walk away, this shot follows a character and sometimes shows another following, It is used to keep track of the on screen character and make sure that they stay on screen.
The scene itself is very easy to follow, close up shots are used to show emotion on characters faces as well as the shots and edits used to help follow the scene, the storyboards however are a different story, Scar is erratic never seems to want to look characters in the eyes, this shows deceit and betrayal.
The effectiveness of the story board is very high, this is due to elaborate tracing of characters, as well as the effective art work.
Unlike film and TV story boards, Video game are different entirely, they have far more outcomes for the scene and therefore require more detail in said storyboards.
This story board is effective due to the amount of detail used in each specific scene, it shows the charcaters past battles and traumas therefor showing what has shaped them as a character and put them on this particular path.
There are a vast use of camera angles used in these particular story boards, such as: close ups, overhead shots and extreme close ups. These are used to show emotion and where the character is and where he is going.
Movement arrows are seen and this would also help track the main character.
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