This week students will learn how to Storyboard an idea.

• Watch a video explaining how to Storyboard
• Provide an opportunity for students to collaborate and work in Project Teams
• Watch videos for different charity organisations for some inspiration
• Create a storyboard for their own video for a charity of their choice following a brief they have been given

• AV / Laptop / Sound
• Access to uniTY Site
• Large Flip Chart Size Paper and Markers for Students
• Handout
  • Storyboard Template (printed version or a good online site if you have computer access http://www.storyboardthat.com/  and use the Free Trial.

What is Storyboarding? 

A storyboard is a graphic representation of how your video will unfold, shot by shot. It is made up of a number of squares with illustrations or pictures representing each shot, with notes about what’s going on in the scene and what’s being said in the script during that shot. Think of it as sort of a comic book version of your script.

Why you need a storyboard?
Creating a storyboard might just sound like an extra step in the process of making a video, but trust me — it’s a step you won’t want to ignore.

A storyboard is the best way to share your vision

A visual aid makes it much easier for you to share and explain your vision for your video with others. We’ve all had experiences where we were trying to explain something to another person and they just didn’t get it — they couldn’t see our vision. When you have a storyboard, you can show people exactly how your video is going to be mapped out and what it will look like. This makes it much easier for them to understand your idea.

A storyboard makes production much easier

When you storyboard your video you are basically setting up a plan for production, including all the shots that you will need, the order that they’ll be laid out, and how the visuals will interact with the script. This really comes in handy when you are making your video, as it ensures that you won’t forget any shots. It also comes in handy during editing, as it serves as a nice guide for the person editing your video, so they can piece together the video according to the vision of your group.

A storyboard saves you time

While it may take you a little while to put your storyboard together, in the long run it will save you time. Not only will it save you time by making it easier to explain your vision to the people you are working on the video with, but also by providing a solid shot list that will make the creation process go more smoothly.

How to make a storyboard
The first step in creating a storyboard is to draw a series of squares on a piece of paper (you can also find tons of printable storyboard templates on Google or use the one attached). Think of these squares as the video frame. In each square a different shot or scene will take place. You can sketch the scenes by hand, create them on a computer or even take photographs. Make sure to leave space to write notes and lines from the script beneath or next to each frame.

Beneath each picture you should write the lines from the script that will be said in that shot and jot down some notes about what is happening in the scene. People should be able to read through your storyboard like a comic book to get a sense of exactly what will happen in your video.

Note that your storyboard doesn’t have to be incredibly detailed — you don’t have to draw in all of the props or even use color. If you’re not great at drawing that’s fine too. Just provide enough visual detail to give an impression of what is happening, which characters are in the scene and what the general framing will look like. The script and notes will help fill in the rest of the details. You can also make notes about camera angles and movement, transitions between shots and other details that will come in handy during production and post production.

Hopefully your students now understand the importance of making a storyboard when you create a video and are ready to grab some paper and a pen and start storyboarding! It is like a recipe for a cake, if you don’t know the ingredients and method, you can’t bake the perfect cake!

Class Activity 

Next divide the students into Project Groups. They must complete an incomplete storyboard

Next the students should be divided into their groups and begin to complete their own storyboards. They can start basic, with the running order of the movie and gradually we will add dialogue, directions and types of shots.