How to train yourself to be an effective storyboard artist
HI HELLO long time no see! I haven’t been on here in a long time!
A while back, a student reached out to me over e-mail and asked for suggestions and tips on storyboarding, and asked how to become an effective storyboard artist. I wrote a whole lot in response because I love talking about this stuff--I hope it was helpful for her, and I figured I’d post it here just in case it could be helpful for anyone else!
To be an effective storyboard artist in any medium, you'll want to:
Be a solid draftsperson: be able to draw proper perspective, correct proportions, clear acting (both gesture/movement and facial acting). Some shows will want you to draw perfectly on model, others won't, but the most important thing is--can you clearly draw all the information needed by the many departments who will use your storyboards as a blueprint for the final product?
Be a cinematographer: know good shot composition, the utility of shot choices i.e. a medium shot versus a close up (intimate) versus a wide (informational, impersonal). Know how to guide the audience's eye to what's most important on the screen from shot to shot, not just in a single drawing.
Be an editor: understand how a scene will feel when moving, where and when to cut to the next shot. Is it more effective to stay close on this character as they react, to give the audience time to feel and settle into the same thoughts or emotions the character is feeling? Or is the character's reaction not the point of this scene?
Be an actor: know how a character moves, talks, what small mannerisms make a character feel alive and uniquely them. Be able to think about and show how a character lives in and interacts with the world around them--how one character might walk into a room entirely differently than another.
It's a lot! But it can be a lot of fun, and it means you never really stop learning. (I'M definitely still learning.) You also don’t need to be great at all of those things (or even most of them) to get a job as a storyboard revisionist--you just need strong drawing fundamentals, an interest in storytelling for TV/movies/etc, and you’ll want to be ready and excited to learn on the job.
One of the best ways to practice all of the above is to do film studies. Find a scene in a movie or show (or a video game cut scene, even--many narrative games out there are on par with great tv and film) you love and watch it through a few times. What is the sequence of shots? How does the composition in one shot lead your eye to the next? What motivates a cut--does a character start to stand up, does someone from off-screen start to say something? Do quick thumbnail sketches for each shot, each important beat inside that shot--the important thing isn't to do nice drawings, but to capture the information in the sequence as it's given to you as an audience member. You'll start to understand the machinery behind it all, see the strings being pulled, the reasons for the decisions behind made--why is the lighting like this? What tiny expression change from the character totally changes the feeling of the scene? Why is it cutting so quickly, or so slowly? You'll build your shot library and hone your decision-making skills the more you study and understand the reasons behind it all.
Other ways to train: study storyboards from artists you find online! There are so many great storyboards being posted these days. You'll get a good understanding of what the work actually looks like, and how it can vary depending on the style of production. Boards on Steven Universe will vary a lot from a show like Adventure Time will vary a lot from a show like Korra, etc.
I also recommend books like: The Filmmaker's Eye: Learning (and Breaking) the Rules of Cinematic Composition, and any of the Master Shots books.
I've used Storyboard Pro almost exclusively as a professional. It's the best program I know for doing production storyboards. However: all the training I did leading up to my first job was done on paper, or on Photoshop. I didn't learn how to use SBPro until my very first job. It's easy to pick up how to use software, and the programs used might change--better to focus on the skills that you'll use your whole career, no matter the program!
She-Ra executive producer Noelle Stevenson, Aimee Carrero (Adora/She-Ra), Karen Fukuhara (Glimmer) and Marcus Scribner (Bow) are answering your questions! Submit your questions here: https://dwan.im/TumblrAsk
Then tune in next Wednesday, October 10th @ 10am PST for their answers!
can someone get into the indrustry without going to calarts ?im really nervous since i rely heavily on aid and live far away
Oh my gosh, yes. There are SO many people in the industry who didn’t go to CalArts and/or came from abroad. For most major studio jobs you would have to relocate to Burbank/LA, but if your work is strong enough, not going to CalArts or any other “big name school” won’t be stop anyone from hiring you.
I finally finished the Crystal Kingdom arc of The Adventure Zone last night! Such a good fun ride. I had to stop at one point and write down the beats of what happened in a section of episode 37, and then probably scare my neighbors shout-laughing. There’s some Marvel movie, swinging, deadly, slapstick action going on in that episode.
Doodled this in Storyboard Pro after I got home last night. DOIN’ THE SHIT
Definitely referenced Carey Pietsch’s killer designs for this!
I finished Uncharted 4 last weekend and it was a beautiful end to Nathan Drake’s story, great gameplay, stupendous environments, amazing acting, etc., but tonight all I could think about was Sam Drake getting out of jail in Colombia or wherever X amount of years ago and going: HI WHO ARE YOU, ADULT MAN HANGING AROUND MY KID BROTHER, WANT TO DIE? And thus began the tumultuous relationship of Sam Drake and Victor Sullivan.
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