12 Best Online Storyboard Creator Tools
While you can create storyboards using old-fashioned methods like pen and paper or digital software, online storyboard creator tools offer a simpler and faster option. In this article, we'll check out the top contenders in this area, giving you a full rundown of the best choices out there.
1. StoryboardHero
StoryboardHero is an online tool that simplifies storyboard creation, also known as an AI storyboard generator. By harnessing the power of AI, it enables you to craft a storyboard in minutes, making it ideal for video agencies looking to streamline their pre-production workflow.
Key Features:
Concept and Script Generation: StoryboardHero assists in concept and script development. By providing your project brief, the platform generates tailored concepts and scripts. These generated scripts and actions are customizable to suit your preferences. Alternatively, if you already have scripts, you can easily import them for further editing.
AI Image Generation: Effortlessly create scene images by selecting your preferred art style and clicking the generate button. You can also add detailed descriptions in the prompt field to ensure accurate outcomes for each scene.
Premium Sketch (Optional): Enhance professionalism by opting for Premium Sketches crafted by skilled artists.
Effortless Revisions: Simplify the revision process with StoryboardHero. With just a few clicks, you can regenerate your storyboard until it meets your requirements.
Share Your Storyboard Online: Share your storyboard online with optional password protection for privacy. Allow guests to provide feedback on individual scenes or generate a final storyboard in PDF format for easy distribution.
For hassle-free, affordable, and quality storyboards created in no time, StoryboardHero is the ideal choice. With its AI-powered generation and customization options, it's the perfect solution for quickly and efficiently bringing your ideas to life.
2. Canva
Canva, a well-known graphic design platform, has expanded its offerings to include storyboard creation among its diverse range of features.
Key Features:
User-Friendly Interface: Canva boasts an intuitive interface with easy drag-and-drop functionality, catering to both novice users and experienced designers.
Templates: With a wide selection of templates tailored to various needs, Canva streamlines the storyboard creation process. Choose from an extensive collection of templates designed for different industries and styles.
Simplified Storyboard Creation: Easily craft simple storyboards using templates and Canva's extensive stock image library. This feature is particularly advantageous for beginners venturing into visual storytelling.
While Canva prioritizes simplicity, some users may find its storyboard creation features to be quite basic. Its straightforward approach may limit users seeking more advanced customization options.
3. Milanote
Milanote is a user-friendly tool crafted to assist in organizing ideas and projects into visual boards, with a particular focus on storyboard creation.
Key Features:
Drag and Drop Functionality: Milanote's intuitive interface allows for effortless arrangement and rearrangement of elements within your storyboard using simple drag-and-drop actions.
Templates: Choose from a variety of templates tailored to different storyboard styles and formats, providing a helpful starting point for your creative vision.
Built-in Images: Access a comprehensive library of built-in images to enrich your storyboard visuals, ensuring a diverse range of options to suit your needs.
Multimedia Support: Milanote goes beyond static images, offering support for videos, GIFs, files, and other multimedia elements to enhance your storyboard.
Collaboration Features: Collaborate seamlessly with team members by sharing your storyboard on Milanote. Engage in discussions, share feedback, receive notifications, and collaborate in real-time to refine your ideas.
Sketch Cards: Utilize Milanote's sketch cards feature to draw detailed scenes or quickly sketch concepts directly within your storyboard. This feature enables rapid visualization of ideas, aiding in the creative process.
4. Visme
Visme is an all-in-one marketing and design platform that includes a storyboard creator tool among its array of features.
Key Features:
Customizable Templates: Kickstart your storyboard creation process with Visme's customizable templates, offering a variety of styles and layouts to match different storytelling needs.
Searchable Stock Photo Library: Access a vast library of stock photos directly within Visme, simplifying the search for the perfect images to enhance your storyboard.
Text Boxes and Presenter Notes: Easily incorporate script details and presenter notes into your storyboard using text boxes.
Brand Integration: Maintain your brand identity by effortlessly integrating brand colors, icons, and shapes into your storyboard design within Visme's intuitive interface.
Drag and Drop Design Tools: Craft and arrange storyboard elements with ease using Visme's intuitive drag-and-drop design tools, enabling swift customization of your storyboard layout.
While Visme provides a user-friendly solution for crafting captivating storyboards, individuals in search of a platform solely devoted to storyboard creation might discover that Visme's broad range of features lacks the specialized focus they desire.
5. Miro
Miro serves as a visual workspace designed to support workflows across all business stages, including storyboarding.
Key Features:
Pre-designed Storyboard Templates: Miro expedites storyboard creation by offering a variety of pre-designed templates. These templates act as a springboard for creativity, allowing users to customize them to suit their specific needs.
One Shared Space: Collaboration is central to Miro's ethos. Teams can seamlessly collaborate within a single shared space, facilitating the capture and organization of ideas in real-time.
Limitless Board Features: Miro empowers users with limitless creative possibilities. From sketching out scenarios to integrating images and crafting visuals, the platform provides a diverse range of tools to animate your storyboard.
While Miro offers unparalleled customization options, its interface may appear less structured to users accustomed to conventional storyboard layouts. Assembling the elements to create a cohesive storyboard may require some exploration.
6. Creately
Creately offers an intuitive storyboard maker that facilitates collaboration, planning, designing, and creating storyboards.
Key Features:
Diverse Storyboard Templates: Creately presents users with various storyboard templates to kickstart the visualization process. Whether you're crafting a film, animation, or advertisement, there's a template tailored to your requirements.
Versatile Shapes, Styles & Text Formats: Personalize your storyboard with an extensive range of shapes, styles, and text formats.
Freehand Drawing Functions: Sketch shots with precision using Creately's user-friendly freehand drawing functions. This feature seamlessly integrates hand-drawn elements into your storyboard.
Advanced Text and Annotation Tools: Describe scenes in meticulous detail using Creately's advanced text and annotation tools. From dialogue to stage directions, every aspect of your storyboard can be annotated for clarity.
Multiple Import Options: Enhance your storyboard with visuals and graphics by importing them directly onto the canvas. Creately supports multiple import options, ensuring effortless integration of external elements.
Real-Time Collaboration: Collaborate with teams in real-time, facilitating easy sharing and discussion. Creately's collaborative features enable teams to work together seamlessly, regardless of their location.
Despite Creately's robust features, some users may find its interface challenging to navigate, especially when starting out. The abundance of features and customization options may require time to fully grasp, potentially making it less accessible to those seeking a simpler, more straightforward solution.
7. ThePlot
ThePlot is a versatile online storyboard creator, prioritizing mobile readiness for on-the-go accessibility.
Key Features:
Direct Scene Insertion: Seamlessly insert new scenes directly from your scripts, ensuring your storyboard remains editable and adaptable to any changes that may arise.
Illustration Tools: ThePlot offers a diverse array of brushes, shapes, and clipart to assist in creating detailed illustrations that breathe life into your storyboard.
Image Flexibility: Whether you opt to upload your own images or copy and paste from various websites, ThePlot provides the flexibility to incorporate visuals from multiple sources.
Collaboration: Collaborate with team members by sharing your storyboard on ThePlot. Work together in real-time to refine ideas and make necessary revisions.
However, unlike some competing platforms, ThePlot does not offer pre-made templates or access to stock images. Users are required to provide their own resources, potentially limiting convenience for those accustomed to using templates or stock imagery. Its reliance on user-generated content and lack of predefined structures may render it more suitable for skilled storyboard artists comfortable working without preset frameworks.
8. StoryboardThat
StoryboardThat provides an intuitive platform coupled with an extensive asset library, simplifying storyboard creation for professionals and educators alike.
Key Features:
Templates: Access a vast collection of over 200 templates, providing a variety of starting points for your storyboard creation journey.
Scene Customization: Tailor your storyboard by handpicking scenes featuring characters of diverse ages and professions. Personalize character attributes such as accessories, attire, and hairstyles to align seamlessly with your narrative.
Enhanced Elements: Elevate your storytelling with additional elements like objects and speech bubbles. Effortlessly search for specific elements to enrich and refine your storyboard.
Save Functionality: Streamline workflow management with the save and exit option, seamlessly preserving your progress. Return to your storyboard later for further refinement or review.
Sharing Options: Share your storyboards online or download them as high-resolution images or PDF files for easy distribution.
9. Boords
Boords is an online storyboarding tool designed to assist video professionals in creating client-ready storyboards efficiently.
Key Features:
Custom AI Characters: Produce distinct characters that can be utilized across storyboard scenes, maintaining coherence throughout your project.
Unlimited Variations: Generate multiple iterations of each storyboard scene swiftly. Boords AI subtly adjusts expressions, poses, and composition to offer diverse options.
Script Generation: Access built-in features for generating scripts, facilitating the development of narrative content seamlessly.
Asset Library: Explore a stock illustration and photo library to enrich your storyboard visuals with a diverse range of elements.
Collaboration Capabilities: Engage in collaborative efforts with commenting, approvals, and real-time updates, enabling seamless communication and teamwork on storyboard projects.
10. StudioBinder
StudioBinder's storyboard creator comprises a suite of collaborative tools that span from scriptwriting to storyboarding, shot listing, and call sheets.
Key Features:
Script to Storyboard: Imported scripts are automatically transformed into storyboards for each scene, streamlining the transition from script to visual representation.
Shot Tagger: Instantly generate individual panels by selecting any line of dialogue or action from your script, ensuring an accurate representation of each scene.
Shot Specs: Choose from a menu of preloaded shot specifications, including all necessary details, to expedite the storyboard creation process.
Image Editing Tools: Utilize image editing tools to enhance sketches captured via webcam. Customize sketches with filters, color adjustments, exposure settings, text, and arrows for added clarity and visual impact.
Storyboard Groups: Organize scenes into customizable groups based on factors such as location, shoot days, or status, facilitating efficient project management and organization.
Export and Sharing: Export your digital storyboards as PDFs or mobile-responsive share links for seamless sharing and collaboration with team members and stakeholders.
While StudioBinder is a valuable tool, it does have one drawback: it lacks script generation functionality.
11. MakeStoryboard
MakeStoryboard is an online storyboarding software designed to facilitate quick and easy creation and sharing of storyboards. With its intuitive interface, users can bring their ideas to life frame by frame, crafting animated storyboards from scratch.
Key Features:
Customizable Frames: Tailor your frames to suit your project and team requirements. Whether adding custom fields or utilizing predefined ones, you have the flexibility to add, delete, rearrange, merge, or duplicate frames. Additionally, the platform offers automatic frame and version numbering for enhanced organization.
Flexible Aspect Ratios: Choose from a variety of aspect ratios, including popular formats like 16:9, 9:1, and 1:1, ensuring compatibility with different viewing platforms and devices.
Drawing Tools: Utilize a range of drawing tools such as brushes, pencils, shapes, and text to add artistic flair and detail to your storyboards.
Image Library: Access a vast image stock to fulfill all your specific visual needs. Whether you require illustrations, photographs, or graphics, you can add as many images as necessary to enhance your storyboard.
Text and Subtitles: Incorporate text fields for subtitles or scene descriptions within the animatic tool settings, providing additional context and clarity to your storyboard.
Share and Export: Share your creations seamlessly with others by exporting files in MP4 format, ensuring compatibility and easy viewing across different platforms and devices.
12. VistaCreate
VistaCreate is a versatile storyboard creator designed to assist in visualizing your ideas effectively.
Key Features:
Storyboard Templates: Choose from a variety of ready-made storyboard templates tailored for film, video, website, games, and more. These templates provide a starting point for your creative projects, saving you time and effort.
Editing Tools: Enhance your storyboards with a range of editing tools, including audio features, design objects, background remover for images, and other design features. These tools enable you to customize your storyboard according to your vision and requirements.
Font Library: Access an extensive library of fonts to add textual elements to your storyboard. Additionally, you have the option to upload your brand fonts, ensuring consistency with your branding.
Resizing Tools: Resize your designs into different formats effortlessly. Whether you need to adapt your storyboard for various platforms or devices, VistaCreate provides resizing tools to accommodate your needs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, every storyboard creator brings its own set of distinctive features and functionalities to the table, catering to a diverse range of preferences and needs. Whether you prioritize simplicity, extensive customization, collaborative tools, or multimedia integration, there's an online storyboard creator tailored to meet your requirements. Don't shy away from exploring various tools to discover the one that seamlessly aligns with your workflow and empowers you to manifest your creative visions. With these versatile resources at your fingertips, you're poised to elevate your storyboarding endeavors to new heights.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Can these online storyboard creator tools be used for free?
Most of the tools listed offer free versions with limited features or trial periods. However, some may require a subscription or one-time purchase for full access to all features.
Are these tools suitable for professional projects or only for personal use?
Many of the mentioned tools cater to both professional and personal needs, offering features tailored to video agencies, filmmakers, animators, and designers. Users can create storyboards for various projects, from commercial advertisements to personal creative ventures.
Do these tools support collaboration among team members?
Yes, collaboration features are common among these tools, enabling team members to collaborate in real time, share feedback, and make revisions together. Some platforms even offer options for guest commenting and sharing with password protection for privacy.
What distinguishes digital storyboard software from online creators?
Digital storyboard software is downloaded and installed on a device, offering comprehensive features for a fee. Online creators, on the other hand, are web-based platforms accessible via a browser, providing convenience and collaboration features.
Which online storyboard creator tool is considered the best?
Preferences may vary, but StoryboardHero stands out as an excellent choice due to its AI-powered generation, customizable options, and user-friendly interface.