# Film storyboards that a 1st AD can schedule

Canonical URL: https://www.cineoboard.com/film-storyboard

How a film storyboard differs from an ad board: sluglines, coverage, 180-degree line, shooting vs presentation boards, and how to hand off a shot list.

Last updated: 2026-09-13

A film storyboard is a coverage document, not a comic of the plot. If the 1st AD cannot tell which setups are unique, you drew a presentation board and called it a shooting board.

## Presentation board vs shooting board

- **Presentation** — sells the scene to a financier or a client. Pretty, few setups, often cheats geography.
- **Shooting** — lists every camera setup the day will need. Masters, overs, inserts, repeats. Ugly is fine.

Feature and short work needs both, in that order. Do not shoot off the pretty one. Longer note: [what is a shooting board](/blog/what-is-a-shooting-board).

## What a film frame must show

- Scene heading (`INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT`) on the footer, imported from the script
- Shot code (`12-A`) that does not change when you reorder playback
- Size, lens, movement
- Whose coverage it is (master / A-side / B-side / insert)
- Continuity: [eyeline](/glossary/eyeline) and [180-degree line](/glossary/180-degree-rule)

Script import: [Fountain and Final Draft](/blog/fountain-and-final-draft-to-storyboard).

## Coverage, not one panel per line

Dialogue is edited from angles, not from a picture of every sentence. Minimum useful set for a two-hander:

1. Master wide enough to recut
2. Over / single on A
3. Over / single on B, eyelines matching
4. Inserts you cannot steal from the master

[Camera shot sizes](/blog/camera-shot-sizes-for-storyboards) and the [glossary](/glossary).

## Hand-off to the shoot

The board should export a [shot list](/shot-list-template) the AD can sort by setup, not by story order. CineoBoard keeps those as one record so a reorder on the board does not invent a second truth. Call sheets still live in a logistics tool — we are not [StudioBinder](/vs/studiobinder); we own the picture.

## FAQ

### Do I storyboard every scene in a feature?

No. Board the scenes that have geography, stunts, VFX, or a client. Dialogue in a locked room can be a shot list plus two key frames.

### What software do film crews use?

Often a mix: a board for pictures, StudioBinder or Movie Magic for the day. Comparison: [CineoBoard vs StudioBinder](/vs/studiobinder). Product: [storyboard software](/storyboard-software).

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