Storyboard Shots / How to Use & FAQ

How to Use & FAQ

Storyboard Shots is a free tool that shows 38 essential film shots with example photos and lets you copy an English prompt for video AI. Line shots up to build a timed storyboard, then export it as one prompt, a PNG or JSON. No sign-up, and nothing is sent to a server.

What is a storyboard?

A storyboard is the blueprint for a video. Before you shoot, or generate with AI, you decide frame by frame which cuts to use, at what size, angle and camera movement, and how many seconds each one lasts, in what order. Video AI follows instructions best one cut at a time, so settling the storyboard first means fewer do-overs.

Alongside an example photo of the composition, every shot here comes with what the shot conveys and tips for generating it with AI.

Basic use

  1. Find a shotIn "Shots", filter by category: Establishing, Shot Size, Relationships & Dialogue, Angle & Viewpoint, Camera Movement, or Effects & Transitions. For shots with camera movement, the photo moves to show the effect.
  2. Check what it conveys and how to get it from AIClick "Details" on a card to read when to use it, what it conveys and tips for AI, along with its size, angle, camera move and lighting settings.
  3. Copy the promptClick "Copy prompt" in the details to copy the English prompt for that shot, then paste it into your video AI.

Building a storyboard

  1. Add shotsClick "+ Add to storyboard" in the list or details, and the frame appears in "Build a storyboard". "Insert a basic sequence" adds seven cuts at once, opening wide, moving in, and pulling back out at the end.
  2. Reorder and swapUse ← → to change the order, and the dropdown to swap in a different shot. The durations and scene descriptions you edited stay as they are.
  3. Edit durations and scenesSet the length (1–60 seconds) and rewrite the scene description for each frame. Start and end times for every frame, plus the total length, are calculated for you.
  4. ExportUse the buttons at the top right to copy the prompt, save the storyboard as PNG, or save JSON for the Video Scenario Maker.

Your storyboard is saved automatically in your browser. To continue on another device, export a PNG or JSON.

What's in a prompt

Each shot's prompt is three short English sentences: the scene, the camera and the lighting.

A close-up of a woman by a rainy window as she slowly starts to smile. Camera: close-up, eye-level angle, static camera. Lighting: natural daylight.

When you copy the whole storyboard, it opens with the total length and number of shots, plus an instruction to keep characters and visual style consistent. The timed shots follow in order, as [0:00–0:04] Shot 1: ….

Export formats

FormatBest for
Prompt (one shot)Generating a video one cut at a time. Copy it from the details.
Prompt (whole storyboard)Generating several connected cuts in one go. You get a single timed prompt.
PNGA storyboard for pitch decks, meetings or chat. Photos, numbers, timings and scene descriptions laid out on a three-column sheet.
JSONOpening with "Open JSON" in the Video Scenario Maker to add dialogue, reference images and music.

Categories

Establishing (5), Shot Size (6), Relationships & Dialogue (6), Angle & Viewpoint (7), Camera Movement (8) and Effects & Transitions (6), for 38 shots in total. They range from basics like aerial shots, medium shots, over-the-shoulder, low angles and dolly-ins to shots that link scenes, such as Dutch angles, rack focus, inserts and empty shots.

FAQ

Is it free?

Yes. All shots and the storyboard builder are free with no sign-up. You can use the copied prompts and exported storyboards in commercial video work.

Which video AI tools does it work with?

Any video AI that takes English text instructions. Each prompt is three short sentences: the scene, the camera (shot size, angle, movement) and the lighting, so add or trim wording to suit your tool.

Can I use the shot photos?

The photos are composition examples. They were generated with AI and do not show real people. You can include them in storyboard PNGs for pitch decks and meetings.

Is my storyboard saved?

The order of your shots, plus their durations and scene descriptions, is saved automatically in your browser. Nothing is sent to a server. It does not carry over to other browsers or devices, so export a PNG or JSON if you want to keep it.

How is this different from the Video Scenario Maker?

Storyboard Shots helps you decide which shots to use and in what order. The Video Scenario Maker is where you add dialogue, reference images and music to finish a scenario for video AI. JSON saved here opens directly with "Open JSON" in the Video Scenario Maker.

What is a storyboard?

A blueprint for a video. Before shooting (or generating), you lay out frame by frame which cuts to use, at what size, angle and camera movement, and for how many seconds each.

Related tools

Open Storyboard Shots