storyboarding software

[Alexandre Lucena]

I need advice on storyboarding software. I learned some are sofisticated to
the point where you can choose furniture, hair style and add dialogue and
soundtrack. Is there any freeware version?

[Shawn Redford]

FrameForge 3D Studio has a demo version that is crippled but free as follows. You can download it at http://www.frameforge3d.com/ - Here is the screen that shows when you run the demo. Overall it's pretty nice software.
--------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for taking the time to try out FrameForge 3D Studio.
Due to this being a demo, it has the following artificially imposed limitations:
1. It only contains a small subset of the full object library that
ships with the full program.
2. You can add no more than 12 objects per set.
3. You can store no more than 20 shots per storyboard.
4. All Shots will print/export with a Demo Watermark.
The full program, of course, allows you to store as many shots as you need and to place as many objects on a set as the scene dictates (subject only to the limitations of your computer's processing power).
We HIGHLY recommend you read the Quick Start Manual (click the HELP menu then QUICK START MANUAL) as it contains some introductory tutorials which will help you make the most of your time with the program.
If you have any additional questions, please check out our community web site which is accessed by clicking HELP, then FRAMEFORGE ONLINE COMMUNITY or feel free to email support@frameforge3d.com
Would you like to view the Quick Start manual now?

[Giroud Francois]

Frankly, after having played with some of these programs, i have found that you can simply use your video camera or a digital camera.
You can use some friend to stand as characters, place them in a place that looks like the one that is in the scenario (or even better in the real location, so you got all the details, background, sun location ...). with most storyboard programs you can add pictures as background, so you will need anyway to go on location to get these background.
Finally if you like the "hand drawing style" for a storyboard, you just print the pictures, use a transparent paper and a pencil to transform your pictures into drawing. Pretty nice professional look without being an artist.
then you can rescan everything into the computer or simply make photocopy and use the scissor and glue.
It seems a tedious job, but you would get a real professional look, and you really capture what will be seen on camera, anticipating problems you would not see by just placing cliparts onto a pc screen.

[A.J. Briones]

i've always found pencil and paper to be the best way to get storyboards done.

i actually do this for a living also, albeit for videogames, and we draw them by hand or via photoshop (or get them hand-drawn by an outside artist), then i scan them in and make animatics via fcp. if i need to animate something, i just split the drawing into separate elements and keyframe those individually.

most recently, i did this on cinematics for a snoop doggy dogg videogame directed by john singleton. what an awesome and fun project that was.

[Carlos Ferrao]

I use frameforge 3d because I can't draw (especially perspectives) and sometimes you don't have the time and resources to get people to help you out as models.

[Joe Carney]

You can enter 'free storyboard software' in google and come up with lots of free or low cost anwers.

Here is one link thats been around for awhile
http://members.madasafish.com/~iantopeg/index.htm

[Quito Washington]

I use it all the time...mostly because I work with other people in realizing their films...FF3D allows me to get their script, do up a storyboard, email it to them, they can adjust it and send it back, and we can keep doing that on the fly as we needed...
brilliant
Q

[David Priestley]

I use a Mac so my advice is a bit Mac centric but have you tried FinalDraught6, it is mainly for producing scripts but it has slots into which you can insert any info at all.
Have you tried VersionTracker, even if you don't have the orignal of the update that version tracker is reporting it will have links back to the parent site, it also deals with a lot of freeware.
With photoshop or coraldraw you could create a storyboard application, the same applies to Hypercard & Supercard.

Using photoshop you can edit stock photos, so they reflect your needs, then line them up in runing order and show as a slide show.

I hope some of these ideas are of use -David