Storyboard Template

Six panels that plan a scene before you shoot or generate it: the shot, what happens, the camera and the time. Filled in with a real example, then blank.

Use this template

FitsOne scene of 15 to 60 seconds
IncludesFilled example and blank
CostFree to copy

Updated 14 October 2026

A six panel pencil storyboard: a rainy bus stop, a girl with an umbrella, a kitten in a box, her brother stepping off the bus, her smile, the two sharing the umbrella

A six panel color anime storyboard of a girl and her grandfather launching a red kite on a sunny green hill

A six panel color anime storyboard of two swordswomen on a bamboo bridge at night and a lantern falling into the river

Storyboards made in Ziztu from one sentence each.

The template

The example is the bus stop storyboard above, written out panel by panel. Every row has one shot size, one action and one time, which is all a storyboard needs to be useful.

Storyboard

The rainy bus stopYour title here

Scene card

The header of the page. Write it before you draw or generate a panel.

Scene: The rainy bus stop
Place and time: A rural bus stop in the rain at dusk
People: A girl with an umbrella. Her little brother, who steps off the bus with a cardboard box.
What changes: She is waiting alone, and at the end she is not.
Look: Black and white pencil sketch

Panels

One shot per panel. Change the shot size every panel or two, so the scene does not look like one picture.

Panel	Shot	What we see	Camera	Time
1	Wide establishing	A rural bus stop in the rain at dusk, empty road, one shelter.	Still	3 s
2	Medium	A girl waits under an umbrella, checking the road.	Slow push in	3 s
3	Close-up insert	A kitten looks out of a cardboard box on the ground.	Still	2 s
4	Medium wide	The bus doors open and her little brother steps off holding the box.	Still	3 s
5	Close-up	The girl's face as she realises, then smiles.	Still	2 s
6	Wide	The two of them share the umbrella and walk away from the stop.	Slow pull back	4 s

Shot variety check

A scene with these six kinds of shot can be cut many ways.

1A wide to openPanel 1 shows the place and the weather.
2A close-up insertPanel 3 is the kitten, with no people.
3A facePanel 5 is the turn, in her expression.
4A wide to closePanel 6 pulls back to leave the scene.

Scene card

The header of the page. Write it before you draw or generate a panel.

Scene: [Name of the scene]
Place and time: [One place, one time of day]
People: [Who is in it]
What changes: [The difference between the first panel and the last]
Look: [Style of the panels]

Panels

One shot per panel. Change the shot size every panel or two, so the scene does not look like one picture.

Panel	Shot	What we see	Camera	Time
[Number]	[Size and angle]	[One action, in plain words]	[Still or moving]	[Seconds]
[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]

Shot variety check

A scene with these six kinds of shot can be cut many ways.

1A wide to open[Which panel shows where we are?]
2A close-up insert[Which panel is a detail?]
3A face[Which panel shows the change in a face?]
4A wide to close[How does the scene end?]

Paste it into Google Docs, Word, Notion or any text editor. It is free to copy and use.

The fastest way to use it

On your own

Copy the template into a document and fill it in.
Find an image tool, a video tool and a voice tool, and move your work between them.
Keep the same faces, places and style yourself, shot after shot.

In Ziztu

The idea box opens with the example already written. Change the names and press go.
Studio plans the shot list, makes every shot and adds the music, in one place.
Character sheets keep the cast looking the same in every shot.
40 free credits, no card: write the script, cast your characters, draw the storyboard and hear the voices. Video starts at $12.

Use this template

How to fill it in

01
Fill in the scene card
Write the place, the people and what changes by the end. If nothing changes between the first panel and the last, the scene is not ready.
02
Plan six panels
Give each panel one shot size, one action and a time. Start wide, add a close-up insert and finish on the change.
03
Check the variety and the time
Make sure no two panels in a row have the same shot size, then add the times up to the length you want.

What makes it work

Change the size every panel

Wide, medium and close-up in turn keep a scene moving, even when the action is quiet.

Add one shot with no face

A hand, an object or an animal gives the editor a cutaway and gives the viewer a clue.

Time it as you write

A panel with no time is a panel that will get too long. Two to four seconds is a good default.

More templates

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StoryboardAnime storyboardThe ekonte format: cut, picture, action, sound and timing in eight cuts.

An anime music video frame: a girl with a red scarf rides a bicycle through a rainy neon city at night

StoryboardMusic video storyboardA shot for every line of the song, with time, camera and look.

A bride in an ivory gown walks down the aisle of a sunlit stone chapel past full pews

ScriptMicro drama scriptAn episode card, a shot list and the script, filled in with a real episode.

Frequently asked questions

What is a storyboard template?

A storyboard template is a page with a row or a frame for each shot, where you note what the viewer sees, how the camera behaves and how long the shot lasts. It lets you plan a scene before you film or generate it.

How many panels should a storyboard have?

For a scene of 15 to 30 seconds, six to eight panels is usual. The example here has six panels and 17 seconds. Longer scenes need more, but each panel should still show one action.

What should be in each storyboard panel?

A shot size and angle, the action, any camera move, any dialogue or sound and the time. A small drawing helps, but the text is what keeps a team or a model working from the same plan.

Can I use this for video and animation?

Yes. The same table works for live action, anime and cartoons. The example is a pencil storyboard, but you can plan it in color, in anime style or as cinematic frames.

Can I make the storyboard with AI?

Yes. Press Use this template to open the idea box with the six panels written out, or try the AI storyboard generator to get a six panel sheet from one sentence. In Ziztu Studio you plan every shot and keep the cast the same.

Is the template free?

Yes. Copy it as text, download it as a Markdown file or print it to PDF without an account.