Correction, 2026-10-01: the first version of this page said a music bed on Lyria 2 costs 13 credits and the whole soundtrack stays under 30. Lyria 2 makes a 30-second clip for 13 credits, so a 60-second bed is two clips (26) and the soundtrack with narration is 39. It also said a complete explainer leaves room for a second version inside a Starter month; at up to 579 credits it leaves room for retakes, not a full second version. The narration pace now cites its source, and three claims we have not measured (every first-draft script is 25% too long, failing explainers spend 60% on setup, a person on screen holds attention noticeably better) are now framed as advice.
Storyboard an explainer from the script, never the other way round. Write the voiceover first, time it by reading aloud, then board against the words, because in an explainer the picture serves the sentence. Boards built first produce videos where beautiful visuals arrive two seconds after the line they were meant to illustrate, and the viewer, who is doing the work of understanding, drops out.
Setup
You need one sentence describing what the viewer should be able to do or believe afterwards, the two or three things they currently misunderstand, and a hard runtime. Explainers expand without a runtime cap, and a 90-second explainer that should have been 60 is a familiar version of this format.
The four-part structure
| Part | Share of runtime | Job |
|---|---|---|
| The situation | 15% | The world before, stated in the viewer's language |
| The problem | 20% | The specific friction, named concretely |
| The mechanism | 45% | How the thing works. This is the video |
| The outcome and next step | 20% | What changes, and what to do |
The mechanism section carries almost half the runtime. A common failure is spending most of the runtime on situation and problem, arriving at the mechanism with fifteen seconds left, and gesturing at it.
Step by step
1. Write the script and read it aloud with a timer. The National Center for Voice and Speech puts average US English speech at about 150 words per minute, so a 60-second explainer is about 150 words, which is shorter than everyone expects. Your own read is the number that counts.
2. Cut the script by a quarter. First-pass explainer scripts tend to run long, so plan to cut about a quarter. Cut before boarding, not after, because you will not cut pictures you have already made.
3. Break the script into beats of one to two sentences. Each beat gets one visual idea. More than one visual idea per beat and the viewer chooses which to follow.
4. Board each beat with the words underneath. Literally: the frame and the line it serves, together. This is the check that catches picture-and-word drift.
5. Mark the one visual metaphor. Good explainers have exactly one and repeat it. Explainers with four metaphors are four explanations.
6. Time the board against the read. Sum the beats and compare to the narration. Mismatch here is an easy defect to ship and an easy one to catch at this stage.
Where explainers lose people
Front-loading the problem. The viewer already has the problem, which is why they clicked.
Abstract visuals during the mechanism. Floating shapes and connecting lines while the voiceover explains something concrete. If the mechanism is real, show the real thing.
Jargon in the first fifteen seconds. Explainers earn vocabulary; they cannot open with it.
No one on screen. Not mandatory, but a person gives the viewer someone to follow. If you are choosing between a presenter and pure motion graphics, test both.
The production math
Explainers are unusually well suited to generated production, because the visuals are mostly context and metaphor rather than a specific physical product.
8frame credit prices, with a credit at $0.01 in a top-up pack: a 60-second explainer is roughly eight to ten beats. Generated at 8 seconds each on Veo 3.1 Lite with audio (720p, 54 credits a clip), that is 432 to 540 credits, about $4.32 to $5.40. Narration through ElevenLabs TTS is 13 credits per started 1,000 characters, and a 150-word script is usually under 1,000 characters, so it is one charge of 13. Lyria 2 makes a 30-second music clip for 13 credits, so a 60-second bed is two clips, 26 credits. The whole soundtrack is 39 credits.
A complete generated explainer lands at about 470 to 580 credits, inside the 1,000 credits of a $19 Starter month with about 420 to 530 left for retakes. The labor is the script, which is where it should be.
FAQ
How long should an explainer video be? 60 to 90 seconds for most products. Under 60 if the mechanism is simple, and never over two minutes unless the audience is already committed.
Should an explainer have a voiceover? Usually, plus captions, so the video still works for anyone watching with the sound off. Write for both: the captions carry the load when the audio does not.
Animation or live action? Whichever shows the mechanism more honestly. Software explains better on screen recordings; physical products explain better in hand.
How much does a generated 60-second explainer cost on 8frame? About 470 to 580 credits ($4.70 to $5.80 at pack rate): eight to ten 8-second Veo 3.1 Lite clips with audio, one ElevenLabs narration charge, and two Lyria 2 music clips.
Sources
- Speaking rate: National Center for Voice and Speech, Voice Qualities ("about 150 words per minute"), checked 2026-10-01
- 8frame credit prices (Veo 3.1 Lite, ElevenLabs TTS, Lyria 2) and plans: the 8frame tool registry and content fact sheet, checked 2026-10-01
Script, beats, and generated frames sit better on one surface where the words stay under the pictures.
Try it without signing up: the 8frame canvas opens on a real board. The canvas is free and unlimited; generation is paid from $19/month.