First Exercise: Practice Storyboard (Stills)

For our first task, we were given a digital camera, and were told to produce a practice storyboard, in order to get used to the different camera angles and shots that are used within the film industry. What follows is a simple story, about a couple of drug addicts who don't pay the dealer.


Our first shot is an establishing shot, used to introduce the characters and the scenario. Here we see two males waiting for the dealer, in a somewhat rough area.

I then chose a long shot to show the actual deal...


...followed by a medium shot to closer show what's happening.


This three shot was to show the dealer asking the man on the floor about the money owed.
After the dealer leaves, we see the one male help the other up, to portray their comradeship.


This next shot shows one of the addicts walking into a toilet to take the drugs, and I feel that this mirror shot frames our character nicely. Also, as the shot isn't directly on the character, it gives the impression that the audience is somewhat spying on the addict.


For the shot showing the addict actually taking the drugs, the original plan was to have a close up on his face. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough room in the cubicle, but I decided this medium shot, hiding the character's face, was also good to portray the grime of the drug scene.


This shot shows the two drug users walking up a flight of steps. The shot will open with an empty flight of stairs, before the two males enter from the right, walking up the stairs. The camera will then follow them until the top of the stairs.


These four shots are continuity shots, showing the dealer approaching the two addicts, to "enquire" about the money issues. The second shot, an "over the shoulder" shot, give you the scenario from the dealer's perspective.


These shots now show a standard fight scene between the dealer and the user; to show a struggle with the dealer eventually coming out on top. As the blonde male is shown to have taken the drugs previously, I decided to have him lying on the floor, unable to put up a struggle, as this would fit in with the continuity.



For the final shot, we see the dealer walking away from the scene:



For our first exercise, I feel that this was a worthwhile effort, and we have included quite a few good shots.