/scripting-and-storyboarding

name: scripting-and-storyboarding
description: >-
  The pre-production system — turn a video idea into a shootable, editable plan: the two-column AV
  script, the storyboard as a decision document, the numbered shot list, the batch-shoot plan, and
  the paper edit. Use when shoots are chaotic, edits drag, videos feel static ("just me
  talking"), someone wants to batch-film a week of content in one session, needs a storyboard but
  can't draw, is planning a multi-shot AI video sequence, or scripts keep running long. Uses the
  SCENE framework. Reads idea-generation-and-ideation + short-form-video-script or the long-form
  skill + brand-profile first. A words-only script plans half the video; the storyboard is a
  decision document, not art; the shot list grouped by setup enables batch shooting. The agent
  writes the plan; the HUMAN shoots/generates and judges; WoopSocial publishes. Never stages
  candid-as-real moments or lifts another creator's script. Distinct from short-form-video-script,
  talking-head-and-piece-to-camera, capcut/descript, luma.
version: 1.0.0

scripting-and-storyboarding

The **pre-production system** — start from the spine, write both columns, envision every beat, number the shots, and edit on paper first. The agent writes the plan; the **human shoots and judges**; **WoopSocial publishes** the finished video. (Craft skill — no tool file.)

The POV: videos are won in pre-production — the cheapest edit is on paper

Chaotic shoots and endless edits are a pre-production deficit, not a talent deficit: the plan is "where you catch problems before they become expensive fixes on set or in post." Four truths carry this skill. **(1) A words-only script plans half the video** — the visual half gets improvised, and improvisation defaults to a static talking face; the **two-column AV script** (audio | visual) writes what's *seen*, beat by beat, so the change-every-few-seconds rhythm is planned, not hoped for. **(2) The storyboard is a decision document, not art** — its only question is "what's on screen at this beat?", answered by a shot table, stick figures, or AI previz frames (2026 pipelines make character-consistent boards in minutes — the tested benchmark: 12 frames from ~3 hours to 40–60 minutes, with explicit camera intent and a character bible as the craft rules). **(3) The shot list regrouped BY SETUP is the batching trick** — two weeks of content in one afternoon comes from sorting shots by location/framing/outfit, never by video. **(4) Runtime math doesn't negotiate** — ~130–150 wpm means a 300-word script is a 2-minute video; the stopwatch pass and the paper cut happen *before* the shoot. And the 2026 twist: **AI video sequences need more pre-production, not less** — every panel becomes a generation's shot brief, and previz frames cost cents where generations cost credits.

Read these first

1. **idea-generation-and-ideation** — the idea being productionized. 2. **short-form-video-script** (or the long-form skill) — the retention spine this turns into production. 3. **brand-profile** + **design-and-templates** — visual language, end cards.

The framework: SCENE

(Depth: `references/the-scene-framework.md`.)

• **S — Start from the spine:** one job, audience, format target, beat outline — before any words.
• **C — Columns: audio + visual:** the two-column AV script with [VO]/[SFX]/[Action] tags; if the visual isn't

written, it will be improvised; no "me talking" twice in a row.

• **E — Envision every beat:** the cheapest board that answers "what's on screen" — shot table → stick figures

→ AI previz frames (explicit camera intent, character bible + ref image, micro-beats, directional not final); skip boards honestly where a shot list suffices; for AI video, each panel = the shot brief.

• **N — Number the shots:** shot list with setups → **regroup by setup** for batching (sequence setups, buffer

takes on hooks, label footage `vid#-shot#`); runtime math + feasibility pass.

• **E — Edit on paper first:** table read with a stopwatch, cut the middle not the spine, the honesty pass

(no staged-as-candid, no lifted scripts) — then hand off to the shoot, the edit, and WoopSocial.

The reality (verify-quarterly)

Stable craft: the two-column AV script (broadcast standard), ~130–150 wpm runtime math, the storyboard-as-decision-document, the by-setup batch regroup. The 2026 AI layer (attribute): script→board pipelines matured (Boords — free tier, sign-off layer; Storyboarder.ai — 250K+ creators, animatics; LTX, mStudio, Studiovity; free Wonderunit); character consistency is now baseline; the practitioner benchmark cut 12-frame boards from ~3 hrs to 40–60 min using LLM-beats → visual directives → seeded frames — with tags ([VO]/[SFX]/[Action]), explicit camera intent (*"the AI will guess — don't make it"*), locked palette, and a character bible; boards stay directional; traditional illustration runs ~$50–300/frame (the economics behind the shift). AI-video sequences: panel = shot brief (luma's DREAM); board first, generate second. **Attribute all; verify-quarterly.** Full detail: `references/scripting-and-storyboarding-2026-reality.md`; the templates and two worked examples: `references/templates-and-examples.md`.

Honest scope (never violate)

• **The agent** writes every planning artifact (beats, AV script, board/briefs, shot list, batch plan, timing

pass, footage map); the **human** shoots/generates, judges every take, and approves — the agent cannot see footage or operate a camera and never fabricates "that take works." **AI previz** follows the image rules (no unpermitted likeness; original/consented characters; disclosure if frames publish).

• **Production integrity:** no staged-as-candid content (actors posing as unaffiliated strangers = deceptive

endorsement; skits are fine **disclosed**); no lifted scripts (structure study yes, verbatim no); honest runtime/feasibility. **WoopSocial publishes** the finished video; it does not script,