Planning - Storyboard

When Nicole and I started discussing that we would create a storyboard for our brief, I knew I needed to find a good template like the ones we had used in class. I went online and found this one on Canva that had the analysis portion on the top with sections for plot, characters, themes, and emotions. That really helped us get a better understanding of what details to consider, and we fell in love with our idea once we had everything organized visually.

Blank storyboard from Canva

Connecting Back to My Research

Creating this storyboard made me realize how much my research on Anyone But You and The Fall Guy actually influenced our creative choices. I chose the park setting because it reminded me of the glowy, romantic golden hour scenes from The Fall Guy that I analyzed. That warm, natural lighting during Colt's moments thinking about Jody showed me how important location and time of day are for creating the right romantic atmosphere. I also made Audrey and Mattias, my main characters, argue right from the start because I really liked the passive-aggressiveness in the opening club scene from Anyone But You, where Bea and Ben's hostility was immediately entertaining and created tension that made you want to keep watching.

            The Fall Guy                                     Anyone But You

Originally, I was thinking of doing a beach setting because I really liked it when I saw my partner's opening analysis of Ticket to Paradise. The beach had that relaxed, vacation romance vibe that felt perfect for rom-coms. But after thinking more about our characters, Audrey transforming for her birthday and Mattias being a hockey player, the park made more sense because it's a realistic place where someone would go for a workout. It also gave us more flexibility with our filming since we have several parks nearby that would work well, whereas the beach posed hazards such as distance, the sand, and the water. 

Ticket To Paradise

Breaking Down Our Opening Sequence

Our storyboard follows this shot-by-shot breakdown:

Shot 1: Audrey walking/jogging in the park during golden hour with warm, peaceful lighting. We're using a smooth tracking shot to follow her movement and establish her as our protagonist.

Shot 2: Close-up of Audrey checking her phone or calendar and noticing her birthday is coming up. We'll use a static shot or slight push-in to emphasize this realization.

Shot 3: Hockey stick or ball flying toward her from off-screen. This will be a fast tracking shot or whip pan following the object's movement to create sudden energy.

Shot 4: Object hits Audrey, and we capture her reaction going from surprise to anger. Static close-up shot to show her full emotional shift.

Shot 5: Mattias appears in his hockey gear, initially looking apologetic. We'll use a slight tilt up as he enters the frame to reveal him.

Shot 6: Audrey recognizes Mattias and gets angrier as they start arguing. Shot-reverse-shot with static framing during their dialogue exchange.

Shot 7-9: The physical comedy of them fighting over the hockey stick/ball, pulling and pushing. We'll use handheld camera or slight shake to add chaos and energy to these dynamic medium shots.

Shot 10: The object flies toward the camera from their struggle. We'll zoom in or dolly in as the object approaches for dramatic effect.

Shot 11: They stumble and fall into each other's arms in slow motion. The camera stabilizes and holds steady, using rule of thirds with the couple out of focus in the lower left corner while the object is sharp and larger in the upper right corner, with the title on it.

Technical Considerations

Working on the storyboard forced me to think practically about how we'll actually execute each shot. For the tracking shot following Audrey, we'll need to figure out if we're using a stabilizer or if we can get smooth enough movement just by walking carefully alongside her. The handheld energy during the argument should be achievable since we want it to feel slightly chaotic anyway.

The most technically challenging shot will be the final composition with the rule of thirds and shallow depth of field. We'll need to make sure we have the right lens and camera settings to get that effect where Audrey and Mattias are soft and out of focus while the hockey equipment stays sharp. This is something I'll need to test before our actual filming day to make sure we can achieve it with our equipment.

I used a mix of Canva images and some hand-drawn sketches to visualize what I'm thinking for each shot. The hand-drawn ones helped me figure out exactly where characters should be positioned in the frame and how the rule of thirds would work for that final shot. Seeing it drawn out made me realize we need to be really intentional about where we place the hockey stick/ball in the foreground to make sure it doesn't completely block Audrey and Mattias in the background.

Effectiveness

Our storyboard captures all the essential rom-com elements I researched: the meet-cute that's both funny and creates immediate conflict, the warm color grading from golden hour lighting, the physical comedy that builds chemistry, and the unexpected romantic moment when they fall into each other's arms. By planning it out shot-by-shot, Nicole and I can see exactly how the technical elements like camera movements, framing, focus will work together to tell the beginning of this story. 

What I'm most excited about is that this opening establishes Audrey and Mattias as rivals immediately, which sets up the enemies-to-lovers dynamic that will carry through the rest of the hypothetical film. The audience will understand right away that these two have history and tension, and that physical moment when they end up in each other's arms will be the first hint foreshadowing that their rivalry might turn into something else.


This is what our storyboard looks like filled out:

Links used:
https://www.canva.com/create/storyboards/