Storyboards can be a great help in determining what should be included in a story that anchors a presentation. It’s also an essential tool for video and motion design. Motion design pieces can create a powerful impact in a presentation by reinforcing points made throughout the presentation in a visually stimulating, compelling way.
In short, a storyboard is a sketch organizing a story and its content. While they are most often used for video and motion design pieces, storyboarding can be an effect tool to organize any story. It will help define and focus the story, and it’s also a good way to brainstorm ideas to improve and enhance the original story. This way you’ll be able to see the story progress visually, or at very least see the words on paper.
Start by dividing your story into logical, but not necessarily linear, parts. Decide what content to include and what to leave out. Maybe your story has a traditional beginning, middle and end structure, or maybe your story is more flexible. Either way, storyboarding will help you decide what organization is the best.
If you’re not using motion design or video, think of storyboarding as a time to sketch down ideas. Draw out the content of each slide to see what can be mixed around to create a better flow. Brainstorm better ways of telling the story, and think of ways to bring the story to life more compellingly.
Next, decide which parts of the story work best as photos, images, video or text. There are many options as to how to communicate your story, so make sure you’re employing the most effective and compelling medium. Which parts work best as text? Which work best as still images? Do you want to use many different mediums? Which work best together?
Also, if you are storyboarding for a video or motion design piece, consider the audio aspect. What will be playing over your piece? Avoid using audio alone, and consider the length of your piece before deciding to eliminate audio altogether. Even 30 seconds of complete silence during a presentation can be too much. Make sure that the audio you choose is appropriate for the presentation. A voiceover can be effective if clear and compelling, and if you choose music to accompany your video, ensure that it is appropriate for the content you are presenting.
Remember that this storyboard is just a guide, a rough sketch of what you intend to produce. Be creative and think outside the box. This is the time to feel inspired and come up with ideas you wouldn’t normally consider. This is the time to move things around and shake things up in your story. The main question to ask yourself as you storyboard is, “How can I make my story more compelling and exciting?”
The storyboard also serves as a good guidepost for how well rounded and solid your story is. It’s a pretty accurate indication of whether you need to start from scratch and brainstorm more ideas, or if you’re headed in the right direction and simply need to flesh out the story more completely.
Above all, use storyboarding to check that your story’s content is powerful and compelling. Did you create an engaging theme? Is the story indicative of the main point of the presentation? Did you highlight the important ideas in an impactful way? If all these answers are yes, then you’re ready to start turning your storyboard into a reality.
