While not required, if you're interested in becoming a storyboard artist, here are some materials that will help you on your journey!

Books

100 Tuesday Tips: by Griz and Norm (2015)

Created by Disney storyboard artist and illustrator couple, Normand Lemay and Griselda Sastrawinata, this book contains tons of practical tips from the pros for storyboarding and making your illustrations stronger. This book was built through posts on Instagram, so as a plus, it's mostly pictures and only a few words!

Professional Storyboarding (2012) by Sergio Paez and Anson Jew.
Storyboarding Essentials: SCAD Creative Essentials (How to Translate Your Story to the Screen for Film, TV, and Other Media) (2013) by Benjamin Reid Phillips and David Harland Rousseau.
Animated Storytelling (2019) Liz Blazer
Superpowers of Visual Storytelling (2018) by Laura Stanton and David LaGesse
The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation (1981) by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston

If you are going into animation and you have never read "The Illusion of Life," I cannot recommend it enough.

Free Storyboard Programs:

If after this course, when you no longer have access to our programs, but you want to continue your storyboard journey on the cheap, consider these options:

Storyboarding software comes in many shapes and sizes, and caters to varying abilities.

If you're more comfortable drawing stick figures, you likely won't need the same features as a professional storyboard artist. When looking at different storyboard software options, consider whether you'll use the features you're paying for. For example, Toon Boom Storyboard Pro or Frameforge offer very different features compared to Storyboard That. Maybe you could start with a free storyboard template, then consider storyboard software at a later date. Sometimes, less is more.

Will you be working with other people?

Will you be making storyboards with other people? If so, you might want to stay clear of Mac, Windows, or iPad storyboarding software. Instead, look for an online storyboard creator which will allow you to collaborate with other people in real-time. Making changes is much easier when you can all access the same storyboard.

How will you use your storyboard?

Storyboarding is just one part of the pre-production process. If you're involved in animation or video production, you'll likely make an animatic after your storyboard is completed. In that case, you'll want to find storyboard software which integrates with the other tools in your workflow. Adobe's After Effects is a popular choice of animation software, and caters to everything from complex transition effects to character animation.

Do you need a drawing tool?

Your storyboard will need images. There are two options; draw them yourself, or look for storyboard software with an image library. If a sophisticated drawing tool is a high priority, you should consider specialist image editing software. Adobe's Photoshop is the gold standard for many, but new tools like Procreate for iPad offer a great image editing experience too (sadly procreate isn't available for Android users yet). But, be warned! Software like Photoshop isn't set up to deal with storyboarding out of the box. Simple tasks like re-arranging frames can quickly become tedious.

What's your budget?

As a rule, storyboard software falls into two camps when it comes to price. One-time purchase desktop software for Mac & Windows, or online storyboard software, paid for with a subscription (there are also some open source options available). Traditionally, storyboard artists tend to use desktop software, although this has changed in recent years.

Storyboard Software Directory

Boords	The collaborative storyboarding app for creative teams	Free Free trial Web based Collaboration
Storyboard Fountain	Open-source screenplay visualizer	Mac Desktop Free Open Source
Storyboard That	Online digital storyboarding focussed on education	Free Free trial Web based
Storyboarder	Storyboarder makes it easy to visualize a story as fast you can draw stick figures.	Mac iOS Free Open Source
Studio Binder	Video, photo, TV & film production management software	Web based Free trial
Make Storyboard	Online storyboard software with commenting	Free trial Web based Collaboration
Plot	Online storyboard creator with script editing	Web based Free trial Paid
Canva	Online design tool offering some storyboard templates	Free trial Free Collaboration Web based