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storyboard-creation

101-skills/superpowers

Create visual storyboards with AI image generation, shot vocabulary, and continuity rules for film and video planning.

What is storyboard-creation?

Storyboard Creation helps you plan videos, films, and animations by generating visual panels with proper shot types, camera angles, and continuity rules. Use it during pre-production to visualize scenes, plan camera movements, and ensure spatial consistency across shots.

  • Generate storyboard panels using AI image generation (Flux) with consistent cinematic style
  • Reference shot types (ECU, CU, MS, LS, WS, etc.) and camera angles (high angle, low angle, Dutch angle, OTS)
  • Apply continuity rules including the 180-degree rule, match-on-action, eyeline match, and screen direction
  • Annotate panels with shot type, camera movement, duration, dialogue, sound effects, and music cues
  • Stitch multiple generated images into a horizontal storyboard layout
  • Create shot lists and panel layouts (2x3, 3x3, 2x2 formats) before generating visuals

How to install storyboard-creation

npx skills add https://github.com/101-skills/superpowers --skill storyboard-creation
Prerequisites
  • Install the belt CLI skill: npx skills add belt-sh/cli
  • Run belt login to authenticate with inference.sh
  • Access to inference.sh API for image generation
Claude Code
Cursor
Windsurf
Cline

How to use storyboard-creation

  1. 1.Write a shot list with scene numbers, shot types (WS, MS, CU, etc.), and descriptions
  2. 2.Define a consistent style prompt suffix for cinematic look (e.g., 'cinematic film still, slightly desaturated, 35mm lens')
  3. 3.Generate each panel using belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora with your shot description and style
  4. 4.Review generated images for continuity, camera angles, and spatial relationships
  5. 5.Stitch panels together using belt app run infsh/stitch-images with horizontal direction
  6. 6.Annotate each panel with shot type, camera movement, duration, action, dialogue, sound effects, and music cues

Use cases

Good for
  • Planning a commercial or advertisement with multiple camera angles and transitions
  • Pre-visualizing a music video with specific shot sequences and camera movements
  • Storyboarding an animated sequence to ensure consistent character positioning and movement
  • Mapping out dialogue scenes between characters while maintaining the 180-degree rule
  • Creating a pitch deck with key visual moments from a proposed film or video project
Who it's for
  • Film and video directors planning pre-production
  • Advertising creatives developing commercial concepts
  • Animation directors blocking out scenes and camera work
  • Video producers planning shot sequences and transitions
  • Students learning cinematography and visual storytelling

storyboard-creation FAQ

What shot types should I use for dialogue scenes?

Use Medium Close-Up (MCU) for head-and-shoulders framing in interviews, Medium Shot (MS) for waist-up general dialogue, and Over-the-Shoulder (OTS) for conversations to position the viewer with one character looking at the other.

How do I maintain continuity when cutting between two camera angles?

Follow the 180-degree rule by keeping the camera on one side of an imaginary line between characters, use match-on-action to continue movement seamlessly, and maintain eyeline match so characters look at objects from consistent angles.

Can I generate storyboards with camera movement indicated?

Yes, describe camera movements in your prompts (e.g., 'slow dolly in', 'pan left') and indicate them in the panel annotations. In the visual panels, you can suggest movement with arrows or multiple frames showing the progression.

What panel layout should I use for action sequences?

Use a 3x3 (9 panels) or 2x3 (6 panels) layout for action sequences and montages to show rapid cuts and dynamic movement. Single panels work for hero shots or critical moments.

How do I avoid crossing the 180-degree rule in conversation scenes?

Imagine a line between the two characters and keep all cameras on one side of that line. Only cross intentionally by inserting a neutral shot (like a wide shot) in between or showing a visible camera move that makes the crossing clear to the viewer.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from 101-skills/superpowers.


name: storyboard-creation description: "Film and video storyboarding with shot vocabulary, continuity rules, and panel layout. Covers shot types, camera angles, movement, 180-degree rule, and annotation format. Use for: video planning, film pre-production, ad storyboards, music video planning, animation. Triggers: storyboard, storyboarding, shot list, film planning, video planning, pre production, shot composition, camera angles, scene planning, visual script, animatic, storyboard panels, video storyboard" allowed-tools: Bash(belt *)

Install the belt CLI skill: npx skills add belt-sh/cli

Storyboard Creation

Create visual storyboards with AI image generation via inference.sh CLI.

Quick Start

Requires inference.sh CLI (belt). Install instructions

belt login

# Generate a storyboard panel
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
  "prompt": "storyboard panel, wide establishing shot of a modern city skyline at sunset, cinematic composition, slightly desaturated colors, film still style, 16:9 aspect ratio",
  "width": 1248,
  "height": 832
}'

# Stitch panels into a board
belt app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
  "images": ["panel1.png", "panel2.png", "panel3.png"],
  "direction": "horizontal"
}'

Shot Types

AbbreviationNameFramingWhen to Use
ECUExtreme Close-UpEyes only, a detailIntense emotion, revealing detail
CUClose-UpFace fills frameEmotion, reaction, dialogue
MCUMedium Close-UpHead and shouldersInterviews, conversations
MSMedium ShotWaist upGeneral dialogue, action
MLSMedium Long ShotKnees upWalking, casual interaction
LSLong ShotFull bodyCharacter in environment
WSWide ShotEnvironment dominantEstablishing location, scale
EWSExtreme Wide ShotVast landscapeEpic scope, isolation, transitions

Generating Each Shot Type

# Close-Up — emotion focus
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
  "prompt": "close-up shot of a woman face showing concern, soft dramatic lighting from the left, shallow depth of field, cinematic film still, slightly desaturated",
  "width": 1248,
  "height": 832
}'

# Medium Shot — dialogue scene
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
  "prompt": "medium shot of two people talking across a table in a cafe, warm afternoon light through windows, natural composition, cinematic film still, 35mm lens look",
  "width": 1248,
  "height": 832
}'

# Wide Shot — establishing
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input '{
  "prompt": "wide establishing shot of a futuristic laboratory interior, dramatic overhead lighting, long corridor with glass walls, sci-fi atmosphere, cinematic composition, anamorphic lens style",
  "width": 1248,
  "height": 832
}'

Camera Angles

AngleEffectWhen to Use
Eye LevelNeutral, naturalDefault for most scenes
High AngleSubject looks small, vulnerableShowing weakness, overview
Low AngleSubject looks powerful, dominantAuthority, heroism, threat
Bird's EyeGod-like overviewMaps, establishing geography
Worm's EyeExtreme power, aweArchitecture, towering figures
Dutch AngleUnease, disorientationTension, madness, action
Over-the-Shoulder (OTS)Viewer positioned with characterConversations, POV

Camera Movement

MovementDescriptionEmotion
PanCamera rotates horizontally (on tripod)Scanning, following, revealing
TiltCamera rotates vertically (on tripod)Revealing height, power
DollyCamera moves toward/away from subjectIntimacy (in), distance (out)
TruckCamera moves laterallyFollowing alongside, revealing
Crane/JibCamera moves up or down verticallyGrand reveals, transitions
ZoomLens focal length changes (camera stays)Focus shift, dramatic emphasis
Steadicam/GimbalSmooth handheld trackingImmersion, following action
HandheldDeliberate camera shakeUrgency, documentary feel, chaos
StaticCamera doesn't moveStability, observation, tension

In storyboards, indicate movement with arrows drawn on panels.

Continuity Rules

The 180-Degree Rule

Imagine a line (axis) between two characters in conversation. The camera must stay on ONE side of that line.

         Character A        Character B
              ●─────────────────●
             /                   \
           /     CAMERA ZONE      \
         /     (stay on this side)  \
       📷          📷          📷
     Camera 1   Camera 2   Camera 3

Crossing the line confuses the viewer about spatial relationships. Only cross intentionally (with a neutral shot in between or a visible camera move).

Match on Action

When cutting between two angles of the same action, the action must continue seamlessly:

Panel A: Hand reaches for door handle (medium shot)
Panel B: Hand grabs door handle (close-up)
         ↑ Action continues from same point

Eyeline Match

When a character looks at something, the next shot should show what they're looking at, from their approximate point of view.

Panel A: Character looks up and to the right
Panel B: The object they see, framed from slightly below-left

Screen Direction

If a character moves left-to-right in one shot, they should continue left-to-right in the next. Reversing direction implies they turned around.

Panel Layout

Standard Formats

LayoutPanelsUse For
2x3 (6 panels)6 per pageDetailed scenes, dialogue
3x3 (9 panels)9 per pageAction sequences, montages
2x2 (4 panels)4 per pageKey moments, presentations
Single1 per pageHero shots, critical moments

Panel Annotation Format

Each panel should include:

┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SCENE 3 — SHOT 2                   │ ← Scene and shot number
│                                    │
│   [Generated image here]           │ ← Visual
│                                    │
├────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Shot: MS, eye level                │ ← Shot type and angle
│ Movement: Slow dolly in            │ ← Camera movement
│ Duration: 4 sec                    │ ← Estimated duration
│ Action: Sarah opens the letter     │ ← What happens
│ Dialogue: "This changes everything"│ ← Any spoken lines
│ SFX: Paper rustling, clock ticking │ ← Sound effects
│ Music: Tension builds              │ ← Music cue
└────────────────────────────────────┘

Storyboard Workflow

Step 1: Shot List

Before generating images, write a shot list:

SCENE 1 — OFFICE, DAY

1.1  WS  - Establishing shot of office building exterior, morning
1.2  MS  - Sarah walks through office, carrying coffee
1.3  CU  - Sarah's face, notices something on her desk
1.4  ECU - An envelope on the desk, unfamiliar handwriting
1.5  MS  - Sarah picks up envelope, opens it
1.6  CU  - Sarah's eyes widen as she reads
1.7  ECU - Key phrase on the letter (insert text)

Step 2: Generate Panels

Use consistent style across all panels:

# Establish a consistent style prompt suffix
STYLE="cinematic film still, slightly desaturated, warm color grade, 35mm lens, shallow depth of field"

# Panel 1.1 — Wide establishing
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
  \"prompt\": \"wide shot of a modern glass office building exterior, morning golden hour light, people entering, $STYLE\",
  \"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait

# Panel 1.2 — Medium shot
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
  \"prompt\": \"medium shot of a professional woman walking through a modern open office, carrying coffee cup, morning light through windows, $STYLE\",
  \"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait

# Panel 1.3 — Close-up
belt app run falai/flux-dev-lora --input "{
  \"prompt\": \"close-up of a woman face looking down at her desk with curious expression, soft office lighting, $STYLE\",
  \"width\": 1248, \"height\": 832
}" --no-wait

Step 3: Assemble Board

# Stitch panels into rows
belt app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
  "images": ["panel_1_1.png", "panel_1_2.png", "panel_1_3.png"],
  "direction": "horizontal"
}'

belt app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
  "images": ["panel_1_4.png", "panel_1_5.png", "panel_1_6.png"],
  "direction": "horizontal"
}'

# Then stitch rows vertically for full page
belt app run infsh/stitch-images --input '{
  "images": ["row1.png", "row2.png"],
  "direction": "vertical"
}'

Style Consistency Tips

  • Use the same style suffix across all panels (lens, color grade, lighting)
  • Use FLUX LoRA if you need consistent characters across panels
  • Keep the same aspect ratio for all panels
  • Generate more panels than you need and select the best
  • If a panel doesn't match the style, regenerate with adjusted prompt

Common Mistakes

MistakeProblemFix
Crossing the 180-degree lineConfuses spatial relationshipsStay on one side or use neutral shot
All same shot typeVisually boring, no rhythmVary between CU, MS, WS
No establishing shotViewer doesn't know where they areStart scenes with WS or EWS
Too many shots per scenePacing drags5-8 shots per scene is typical
Inconsistent style between panelsLooks like different projectsUse same style prompt suffix
Missing annotationsPanels are ambiguousAlways note shot type, movement, action

Related Skills

npx skills add inference-sh/skills@ai-image-generation
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@ai-video-generation
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@video-prompting-guide
npx skills add inference-sh/skills@prompt-engineering

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