storyboard-creation
Film and video storyboarding with shot vocabulary, continuity rules, and panel layout. Covers shot types, camera angles, movement, 180-degree rule, and annotation format. Use for: video planning, film pre-production, ad storyboards, music video planning, animation. Triggers: storyboard, storyboarding, shot list, film planning, video planning, pre production, shot composition, camera angles, scene planning, visual script, animatic, storyboard panels, video storyboard
Storyboard Creation
Create visual storyboards with AI image generation via inference.sh CLI.
Quick Start
curl -fsSL https://cli.inference.sh | sh && infsh login
# Generate a storyboard panel
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
"prompt": "storyboard panel, wide establishing shot of a modern city skyline at sunset, cinematic composition, slightly desaturated colors, film still style, 16:9 aspect ratio",
"width": 1248,
"height": 832
}'
# Stitch panels into a board
infsh app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
"images": ["panel1.png", "panel2.png", "panel3.png"],
"direction": "horizontal"
}'
Shot Types
| Abbreviation | Name | Framing | When to Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| ECU | Extreme Close-Up | Eyes only, a detail | Intense emotion, revealing detail |
| CU | Close-Up | Face fills frame | Emotion, reaction, dialogue |
| MCU | Medium Close-Up | Head and shoulders | Interviews, conversations |
| MS | Medium Shot | Waist up | General dialogue, action |
| MLS | Medium Long Shot | Knees up | Walking, casual interaction |
| LS | Long Shot | Full body | Character in environment |
| WS | Wide Shot | Environment dominant | Establishing location, scale |
| EWS | Extreme Wide Shot | Vast landscape | Epic scope, isolation, transitions |
Generating Each Shot Type
# Close-Up — emotion focus
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
"prompt": "close-up shot of a woman face showing concern, soft dramatic lighting from the left, shallow depth of field, cinematic film still, slightly desaturated",
"width": 1248,
"height": 832
}'
# Medium Shot — dialogue scene
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
"prompt": "medium shot of two people talking across a table in a cafe, warm afternoon light through windows, natural composition, cinematic film still, 35mm lens look",
"width": 1248,
"height": 832
}'
# Wide Shot — establishing
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
"prompt": "wide establishing shot of a futuristic laboratory interior, dramatic overhead lighting, long corridor with glass walls, sci-fi atmosphere, cinematic composition, anamorphic lens style",
"width": 1248,
"height": 832
}'
Camera Angles
| Angle | Effect | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
| Eye Level | Neutral, natural | Default for most scenes |
| High Angle | Subject looks small, vulnerable | Showing weakness, overview |
| Low Angle | Subject looks powerful, dominant | Authority, heroism, threat |
| Bird's Eye | God-like overview | Maps, establishing geography |
| Worm's Eye | Extreme power, awe | Architecture, towering figures |
| Dutch Angle | Unease, disorientation | Tension, madness, action |
| Over-the-Shoulder (OTS) | Viewer positioned with character | Conversations, POV |
Camera Movement
| Movement | Description | Emotion |
|---|---|---|
| Pan | Camera rotates horizontally (on tripod) | Scanning, following, revealing |
| Tilt | Camera rotates vertically (on tripod) | Revealing height, power |
| Dolly | Camera moves toward/away from subject | Intimacy (in), distance (out) |
| Truck | Camera moves laterally | Following alongside, revealing |
| Crane/Jib | Camera moves up or down vertically | Grand reveals, transitions |
| Zoom | Lens focal length changes (camera stays) | Focus shift, dramatic emphasis |
| Steadicam/Gimbal | Smooth handheld tracking | Immersion, following action |
| Handheld | Deliberate camera shake | Urgency, documentary feel, chaos |
| Static | Camera doesn't move | Stability, observation, tension |
In storyboards, indicate movement with arrows drawn on panels.
Continuity Rules
The 180-Degree Rule
Imagine a line (axis) between two characters in conversation. The camera must stay on ONE side of that line.
Character A Character B
●─────────────────●
/ \
/ CAMERA ZONE \
/ (stay on this side) \
📷 📷 📷
Camera 1 Camera 2 Camera 3
Crossing the line confuses the viewer about spatial relationships. Only cross intentionally (with a neutral shot in between or a visible camera move).
Match on Action
When cutting between two angles of the same action, the action must continue seamlessly:
Panel A: Hand reaches for door handle (medium shot)
Panel B: Hand grabs door handle (close-up)
↑ Action continues from same point
Eyeline Match
When a character looks at something, the next shot should show what they're looking at, from their approximate point of view.
Panel A: Character looks up and to the right
Panel B: The object they see, framed from slightly below-left
Screen Direction
If a character moves left-to-right in one shot, they should continue left-to-right in the next. Reversing direction implies they turned around.
Panel Layout
Standard Formats
| Layout | Panels | Use For |
|---|---|---|
| 2x3 (6 panels) | 6 per page | Detailed scenes, dialogue |
| 3x3 (9 panels) | 9 per page | Action sequences, montages |
| 2x2 (4 panels) | 4 per page | Key moments, presentations |
| Single | 1 per page | Hero shots, critical moments |
Panel Annotation Format
Each panel should include:
┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SCENE 3 — SHOT 2 │ ← Scene and shot number
│ │
│ [Generated image here] │ ← Visual
│ │
├────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Shot: MS, eye level │ ← Shot type and angle
│ Movement: Slow dolly in │ ← Camera movement
│ Duration: 4 sec │ ← Estimated duration
│ Action: Sarah opens the letter │ ← What happens
│ Dialogue: "This changes everything"│ ← Any spoken lines
│ SFX: Paper rustling, clock ticking │ ← Sound effects
│ Music: Tension builds │ ← Music cue
└────────────────────────────────────┘
Storyboard Workflow
Step 1: Shot List
Before generating images, write a shot list:
SCENE 1 — OFFICE, DAY
1.1 WS - Establishing shot of office building exterior, morning
1.2 MS - Sarah walks through office, carrying coffee
1.3 CU - Sarah's face, notices something on her desk
1.4 ECU - An envelope on the desk, unfamiliar handwriting
1.5 MS - Sarah picks up envelope, opens it
1.6 CU - Sarah's eyes widen as she reads
1.7 ECU - Key phrase on the letter (insert text)
Step 2: Generate Panels
Use consistent style across all panels:
# Establish a consistent style prompt suffix
STYLE="cinematic film still, slightly desaturated, warm color grade, 35mm lens, shallow depth of field"
# Panel 1.1 — Wide establishing
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
\"prompt\": \"wide shot of a modern glass office building exterior, morning golden hour light, people entering, $STYLE\",
\"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait
# Panel 1.2 — Medium shot
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
\"prompt\": \"medium shot of a professional woman walking through a modern open office, carrying coffee cup, morning light through windows, $STYLE\",
\"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait
# Panel 1.3 — Close-up
infsh app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
\"prompt\": \"close-up of a woman face looking down at her desk with curious expression, soft office lighting, $STYLE\",
\"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait
Step 3: Assemble Board
# Stitch panels into rows
infsh app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
"images": ["panel_1_1.png", "panel_1_2.png", "panel_1_3.png"],
"direction": "horizontal"
}'
infsh app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
"images": ["panel_1_4.png", "panel_1_5.png", "panel_1_6.png"],
"direction": "horizontal"
}'
# Then stitch rows vertically for full page
infsh app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
"images": ["row1.png", "row2.png"],
"direction": "vertical"
}'
Style Consistency Tips
- Use the same style suffix across all panels (lens, color grade, lighting)
- Use FLUX LoRA if you need consistent characters across panels
- Keep the same aspect ratio for all panels
- Generate more panels than you need and select the best
- If a panel doesn't match the style, regenerate with adjusted prompt
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Problem | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Crossing the 180-degree line | Confuses spatial relationships | Stay on one side or use neutral shot |
| All same shot type | Visually boring, no rhythm | Vary between CU, MS, WS |
| No establishing shot | Viewer doesn't know where they are | Start scenes with WS or EWS |
| Too many shots per scene | Pacing drags | 5-8 shots per scene is typical |
| Inconsistent style between panels | Looks like different projects | Use same style prompt suffix |
| Missing annotations | Panels are ambiguous | Always note shot type, movement, action |
Related Skills
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@ai-image-generation
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@ai-video-generation
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@video-prompting-guide
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@prompt-engineering
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