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Draw storyboards

You can draw storyboard panels for every scene on the Storyboards page. Each panel, called a board, has its own drawing, captions taken from the script, timing, and links to the shots it shows.

The storyboard workspace, with the screenplay rail, the drawing canvas, and the filmstrip of scenes.
The storyboard workspace, with the screenplay rail, the drawing canvas, and the filmstrip of scenes.

The workspace has four parts: the screenplay of the current scene on the left, the drawing canvas in the middle, the side panel for the selected board on the right, and the filmstrip of scenes and their boards along the bottom.

Add a board

  1. In a project, click Storyboards in the sidebar.
  2. In the filmstrip, find the scene, then click the Add board button at the end of its row.
    The new board appears in the filmstrip and opens on the canvas.

To open a board, click it in the filmstrip.

Draw on a board

  1. In the tool dock, choose a tool: a brush (Pen, Pencil, or Marker), the Eraser, or Pan to move around the canvas.
  2. Choose a color and a stroke width.
  3. Draw on the canvas with a mouse, trackpad, or stylus.
    Your strokes appear for everyone working on the storyboard as you draw.

To zoom, use the zoom buttons at the top right of the canvas, or hold ⌘ while you scroll. Scrolling without a key moves the canvas. To see the whole board, click Fit view.

Work with layers

Each board can have several drawing layers, so you can keep, for example, the background, the characters, and the camera arrows apart. The layer stack is at the right of the canvas.

Do any of the following:

  • Add a layer: In the layer stack, click .
  • Choose the layer you draw on: Click the layer in the stack.
  • Rename a layer or change its opacity: Select the layer, then change its name or Opacity.
  • Hide, lock, reorder, or delete a layer: Select the layer, then use the buttons below its name. Deleted layers move to the project's Trash, where you can restore them.

Add a background image

You can put a photo, a location scout image, or a reference frame behind your drawing.

Do one of the following:

  • Upload an image: At the top left of the canvas, click the Upload background image button , then choose a PNG, JPEG, WebP, or GIF image.
  • Drag an image: Drag an image file from your computer onto the canvas.

To remove the image, click Remove background image, then click Remove.

  1. Select a board.
  2. In the screenplay on the left, click the lines this board covers.
    Linked lines are highlighted. To unlink a line, click it again, then click Unlink.

To show or hide the screenplay, click the Show screenplay or Hide screenplay button at the top left of the canvas.

Add captions, timing, and shots

  1. Select a board, then click Board at the top of the side panel.
  2. Under Captions, enter a Title, or edit the Action and Dialogue text.
    When you've linked script lines, Action and Dialogue show the script text and stay in sync with it. Like the speaker names, you can't edit them on the board — change the lines in the screenplay. If the linked lines have no action or no dialogue, that field stays empty. To write your own text instead, click the × next to the field to unlink it: the script text is copied in and you can edit it freely. Clear an unlinked field to sync it with the script again.
    When the linked lines are dialogue, Character above Dialogue shows who speaks them, and Dialogue holds only the spoken lines. The speaker always comes from the script, so text you type in Dialogue replaces the lines but keeps the speaker. To change the speaker, edit the screenplay. If a speaker is linked to a character, click it to open the character page.
  3. Add Notes for camera, continuity, or planning.
  4. Under Timing, enter the Time and Duration as timecode, and the Line mileage in eighths of a page.
  5. Under Linked shots, do one of the following:
    • Link an existing shot: Choose a shot from Pick a shot, then click Link.
    • Create a shot for this board: Click New shot. The shot is added to the scene on the Shots page.

To change the order of boards in a scene, click Move earlier or Move later under Panel order.

Save and restore versions of a drawing

Drawings save automatically as you draw. A snapshot keeps a point you can go back to later. Version history also lists every frame that was generated, edited, or uploaded for the board.

  1. Select a board, then click Board in the side panel.
  2. Under Version history, click Snapshot.
    The current drawing is saved as a version.

To go back to a saved version, click next to it, then confirm. Strokes added after that snapshot are removed for everyone.

Duplicate, delete, or restore a board

Point to the board in the filmstrip, then do one of the following:

  • Duplicate the board: Click .
  • Delete the board: Click , then click Delete to confirm.

A deleted board moves to the project's Trash, together with its links to shots and script lines. When you restore it, the links come back too. See Restore deleted items from the Trash.

Export the storyboard

At the top left of the canvas, do one of the following:

  • Export a PDF with captions: Click the Export storyboard PDF button .
  • Export every frame as an image: Click the Export frame archive (ZIP) button . The archive holds one PNG for each board, in order.

See also