Free storyboard template maker
Pick the frame shape you deliver in, how many frames per page and how many the board needs. Print it, draw on it, show the client. Free, no account.
Free, no account. Drawn in your browser.
How to storyboard a commercial, shot by shot
A board for a client is a different document from a board for a crew. The crew needs the hard shots. The client is approving the film, so they need every shot, in order, at the ratio it will run at. That makes the count simple: one frame per shot.
1. Write the shot list first
Go through the script or the voice-over line by line and note every cut. A 30 second spot that cuts every two or three seconds is 10 to 15 shots, a 60 second one 20 to 30. Set that as the frame count above and the template gives you exactly enough pages. What belongs on a shot list.
2. Draw the frame, not the art
Rough is fine. What matters is the size of the subject in the frame, where they are looking, and what moves. A figure, a horizon line and an arrow for the camera move read better at a client meeting than a beautiful drawing of the wrong framing.
3. Fill the three boxes
Shot number, shot size (wide, medium, close-up) and movement (static, push in, pan, handheld). Under them, the line of voice-over or action that plays over the shot. A client reads the words first and the drawing second. Shot sizes, explained.
4. Present it in order, then to time
Walk the client through the pages in order and say the voice-over out loud as you go. If there is time, cut the frames to the track as an animatic: it is the only way to know the edit fits the length before anyone is booked.
- Online video, TV, most corporate and brand work.
- A widescreen, cinematic look, or anything shot anamorphic.
- Reels, TikTok and Shorts. Board vertical from the start.
- The Instagram feed, where it takes up the most screen.
- Square placements and some paid social.
More on panels, arrows and ratios in the storyboard guide, and everything else due before the shoot in the pre-production checklist.
How many storyboard frames does a 30 second commercial need?
Roughly one frame per shot, and a commercial cuts every two to three seconds, so 10 to 15 frames. Board the product shot, the opening and anything with a stunt, a move or an effect. A client presentation usually wants every shot, because they are approving the edit before it exists.
What should a storyboard frame include?
The frame at the delivery ratio, the shot number, the shot size, any camera movement as an arrow, and a line or two for action and dialogue. That is what the template lays out.
What aspect ratio should my storyboard template be?
The one you deliver in. 16:9 for most online and TV work, 2.39:1 for a widescreen look, 9:16 for Reels, TikTok and Shorts, 4:5 for the Instagram feed. Boarding vertical from the start is faster than reframing a horizontal board later.
Can I print the storyboard template?
Yes. It downloads as an A4 PDF, landscape or portrait, with numbered frames that carry on across pages, and a scene, date and page line at the top.
Do I need to be able to draw?
No. Stick figures, a clear frame size and an arrow for the move say everything a crew needs. Many directors paste in photos or reference stills instead.
Is this storyboard template free?
Yes. No account and no email. The PDF carries one small footer line, and your settings are saved in your browser.
Or board it where the shot list already is
In Frameboard a frame is a shot: number it once and it is on the storyboard, the shot list and the schedule. Share the board with the client as a link they can approve.