# Animation vs Live-Action Storyboards: What Changes

Canonical URL: https://www.cineoboard.com/blog/animation-vs-live-action-storyboards

Animation boards time a reel; live-action boards plan coverage. Character libraries, leica reels, and which fields still belong on both.

Published: 2026-09-10 · 7 min read · Craft

Both are sequences of pictures with time on them. The production question is different.

## Live action

You are buying **setups**. [Coverage](/glossary/coverage), [180](/glossary/180-degree-rule), weather, talent hours. The board is an argument about the day. [Film storyboard](/film-storyboard).

## Animation

You are buying **frames of work**. The [animatic](/glossary/animatic) (leica) is the edit. Layout and posing come after. Character turnaround consistency matters more than eyeline grammar — until you cut like live action, which many shows do.

## What you can share

- Beats before pretty
- Durations that sum
- A reusable character / location library so the lead does not mutate
- Notes the next department can read

CineoBoard is built as a production record. It will not replace Harmony. It will hold the reel and the notes. [For animation](/for/animation).

## FAQ

### Should animation use shot sizes like WS/CU?

Yes if you cut. No if you are boarding a continuous layout pan. Label what the next person needs, not what a live-action textbook requires.

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