Idea #109 - Storyboard Like an Artist

We are all full of stories. The only difference between you and a filmmaker is that he pours his dreams onto a piece of paper, engraves in ink his thoughts and gives them a coherent structure and tone.

Today we learned how to storyboard! Regardless of one’s artistic skills, storyboarding is something anyone can ace as long as they can graphically sketch on the paper precisely what is in their mind. Almost as if using comic book grids, every scene has a grid to itself. From the lighting to how and when the camera pans in/out, every nuance is carefully labelled.

Essentially, your storyboard must be clear as day about the three primary facets of filmmaking -

1. Mise en scène - how you choose to break down and detail the elements of a scene

2. Camerawork - involves the focus of the lens, the composition, the way the camera moves

3. Editing - to make the transitions (and the time frame needed for the same) from one scene to another absolutely clear

It is simply unethical for a cinephile to not vocally and with much excitement remind the room of Hayao Miyazaki while speaking of storyboarding. Being a man of the 21st century just as much as of the 19th century, Miyazaki still believes in the art of storyboarding and rejects entirely the concept of digital art, and we will never shut up about it!

A little pro tip - try to make panels that align with the aspect ratio of the scene!

Written and Curated by Arya Kastwar