On 8frame the storyboard and the video can live on the same board: each panel of the Storyboard template gets a still from an image node, each still feeds a video node, and the arrows you drew for the cut order tell you how to join the clips. Two limits catch people. The duration you wrote under a panel has to be a length the chosen video model can make, and the Montage node that joins the clips uses only 5 seconds of each clip unless you raise it (up to 15).
TL;DR
| Step | Node or model on 8frame | Price in credits | Needs as input |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Plan the shots | Storyboard template (panels, notes, arrows) | none, it is a planning board | A script or scene list |
| 2a. One still per panel | Nano Banana 2 (the Nano Banana node's default) | 11 at 1K | A prompt from the panel note, optional references |
| 2b. Or a sheet of nine | ShotGrid (beta) | 42 per 3x3 contact sheet at 4K | Prompt up to 5,000 characters, 1 to 10 references |
| 2c. Cheap drafts | Seedream 5 Lite | 6 | Prompt, up to 14 references |
| 3. Animate a panel | Kling v3 Standard | 57 for 5 s silent, 86 with sound | The panel still as start image |
| 3b. Panel to panel | Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro | 48 for 5 s | Two adjacent panels as first and last frame |
| 3c. 1080p with sound | Kling 2.6 Pro | 95 for 5 s with sound, 47 silent | A prompt from the panel note |
| 4. Rough cut | Montage (Merge Videos) | 10 per run | 2 to 10 clips |
| 5. Sound and captions | Video Editor timeline | none for the editor | The clips, your audio |
The board, node by node
1. Start from the Storyboard template
The seeded Storyboard board has panels in a 16:9 row and a 9:16 row, notes under each panel for the action, the dialogue or voice-over, the camera move and the duration, and arrows for the order. Each panel can hold a sketch, an uploaded reference or a frame from an image node. Keep the row you deliver in and delete the other, as the template says.
The choice of row is also a choice of models. ShotGrid is square (1:1) in the canvas picker, so its nine frames fit neither row as they are: use a sheet to compare compositions, then make each chosen panel at 16:9 or 9:16 with an image node. A square or 4:5 delivery is a crop or a different model, decided now rather than after the clips exist.
Write the duration note as a real number of seconds. It drives step 3.
2. Fill the panels with stills
Connect the empty image node next to a panel and turn the panel's notes into the prompt: shot size, subject, action at the moment of the frame, light. Two ways to work:
- One still per panel. The Nano Banana node opens on Nano Banana 2, 11 credits at 1K (8 at 0.5K, 17 at 2K). Nano Banana Pro is 21 at 1K or 2K. For a recurring character or product, pass the same reference images into every panel: Nano Banana and GPT Image 2 take up to 10, and Seedream 5 Lite takes up to 14, the most of any image model on 8frame.
- A sheet of nine. ShotGrid returns one 4K image holding nine frames in a 3x3 grid, for 42 credits, from a prompt of up to 5,000 characters and 1 to 10 reference images. It is quick for blocking a sequence. Each frame is one ninth of the sheet, so regenerate the panels you keep as single stills before animating them.
If the boards need relighting or a material pass before anyone sees them, the STORYBOARD → RELIGHT → DETAIL template on the workflows page is built for that step.
Review the stills with comments on the panels before you spend on video. A still that is wrong is wrong in every frame of the clip made from it.
3. One video node per panel
Connect each approved still to a video node as the start image. Read the duration note and pick a model that can make that length, from the table in the next section. For a shot that has to land on the next panel's composition, use the two panels as first and last frame on a model that takes both (for example Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro, 48 credits for 5 seconds). Our page on first and last frames covers what the pair is good for.
Keep the video node next to its panel on the board. When the client asks to change shot 4, you change the still and the node sitting under shot 4, and nothing else moves.
4. Join the clips in the order of the arrows
The arrows record the cut. Connect the clips to a Montage node in that order and check the merged file against the board. Montage joins 2 to 10 clips for 10 credits a run, with transitions in three styles (cinematic, hyper, clean), and uses at most 15 seconds of each clip, 5 by default. If a panel note says 8 seconds, raise the clip length on the node, or the shot is cut to 5. A board with more than ten shots needs more than one Montage run, or the Video Editor.
The merged file has no sound. Montage joins the picture only, so dialogue, voice-over, music and sound effects go on the Video Editor timeline (8frame's separate Video Editor mode, with video, text, caption and sound layers) or into your own editor.
5. Finish on the timeline
In the Video Editor, "Generate captions" turns a pasted script into a caption layer timed at an estimated 160 words per minute; it does not transcribe audio and does not export SRT. Paste the dialogue notes from the panels and adjust the timing by hand.
Which model for which step
Match the panel's duration note and delivery ratio to what each model makes on 8frame:
| Model | Price on 8frame | Lengths | Ratio and resolution | Start and end frame |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kling v3 Standard | 57 for 5 s silent, 86 with sound, 171 for 10 s with sound | 3 to 15 s, billed per second | 720p | Start image required, no end frame |
| Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro | 48 for 5 s, 95 for 10 s | 5 s and 10 s priced here | 1080p measured | Start and end frame |
| Seedance 2.0 | 108 for 5 s at 720p, 216 for 10 s | 4 to 15 s | 480p or 720p | End frame with a start image |
| Seedance 2.5 | 157 for 5 s at 720p, 313 for 10 s | 4 to 30 s | 480p or 720p | End frame with a start image |
| Kling 2.6 Pro | 95 for 5 s with sound, 47 silent; 189 for 10 s with sound | 5 s and 10 s priced here | 1080p measured | Works from text; no end frame on the canvas |
| Wan 3.0 | 24 / 48 / 95 for 5 s at 480p / 720p / 1080p | 2 to 30 s | Up to 1080p | One start image |
| Grok Imagine | 48 for 5 s at 720p | 1 to 15 s | 720p or 480p | Reference mode: 1 to 10 images |
Two consequences for a storyboard:
- A 2-second panel fits Wan 3.0 (from 2 s) or Grok Imagine (from 1 s) directly; on a model whose shortest clip is longer, generate the shortest and trim on the timeline.
- An 8-second panel fits Seedance, Wan 3.0 or Kling v3 Standard (3 to 15 s), which take lengths in that range; on Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro or 2.6 Pro, make 10 seconds and trim on the timeline. Montage would still cut it to 5 at its default.
No price here is a total for a board. Each node shows its own price before you run it.
Where it breaks
- Panel to panel consistency. Separate generations drift in face, wardrobe and props. Use the same references in every panel and compare panels side by side.
- ShotGrid frames are small. A ninth of a 4K sheet is not a panel-sized still; regenerate it before animating.
- 720p ceilings. Seedance and Kling v3 Standard return at most 720p. No video model on 8frame outputs 4K, and there is no video upscaler, so pick a 1080p model for panels that need it.
- Kling v3 needs a start image and takes no end frame. Text-only panels go to a model that works from text.
- Montage drops sound and trims. Picture only, 5 seconds per clip by default, ten clips at most per run.
- Close-up faces on Seedance can be refused as references (the E005 error).
- Rejected takes cost credits. Failed generations are refunded automatically; finished clips you do not use are not.
For the sequence of animating panels into an animatic with temp voice-over, see the AI animatics workflow; for shot structure by format, how to storyboard an explainer video and how to storyboard a trailer.
FAQ
Can AI turn a storyboard into a video? Yes, panel by panel. Each panel's still becomes the start image of a video node; the clips are then joined in cut order. Each clip is a separate generation, so check consistency between them.
How long can each storyboard shot be? As long as the model allows: Seedance 2.0 4 to 15 seconds, Seedance 2.5 4 to 30, Wan 3.0 2 to 30, Grok Imagine 1 to 15, Kling v3 Standard 3 to 15, and Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro and 2.6 Pro 5 or 10. When you join clips with Montage, raise its per-clip length above the 5-second default for longer shots.
Why is my merged storyboard video silent? Montage joins the picture only and its output has no sound track. Put dialogue, music and effects on the Video Editor timeline instead.
Should I use ShotGrid or one image per panel? ShotGrid gives nine frames on one 4K sheet for 42 credits, which suits blocking. For panels you will animate, regenerate each as a single still.
Can I make the shot move from one panel to the next? Use the two panels as first and last frame on a model that takes both, such as Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro or Kling O3; the full list is on our first and last frame page.
Sources
- 8frame Storyboard template (panels in 16:9 and 9:16, notes for action, dialogue, camera and duration, arrows for order, empty image node): the 8frame template, checked 2026-11-09
- 8frame prices, defaults and limits (Nano Banana 2 and Pro, Seedream 5 Lite, GPT Image 2 references, ShotGrid, Kling v3 Standard, Kling 2.5 Turbo Pro, Seedance 2.0 and 2.5, Kling 2.6 Pro, Wan 3.0, Grok Imagine, Montage, Video Editor captions, end-frame support): the 8frame app, checked 2026-11-09
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.