The Difference Between Storyboards & Keyframes in Animation

We love animation. Whether it's for ad campaigns, corporate videos, instructional videos or five-movie franchises about toys that come to life, animation allows people to tell certain stories that wouldn’t be possible with live action. Animation allows for greater creative control, but in order for our clients to exercise that control in a way that keeps the project moving, it’s important for us to get clear direction at certain points in the animation process.

Even if you’ve never been involved with any kind of video project before you’ve probably heard terms like “storyboards” and “keyframes,” and it can be easy to get the two, and their purposes, mixed up. The distinction is significant, and that’s why we’re here to disambiguate. For a high-level overview, storyboards establish what happens, while keyframes establish what those critical moments will look like in the finished animation. Reviewing each stage for its intended purpose helps the production team address major decisions in the right order. It also reduces unnecessary revisions once artwork has been finalized and animation is underway.

Storyboards: Focus on the Story

A storyboard is the visual plan for a video. It breaks the script into a sequence of shots and shows how the story will progress from beginning to end. This isn’t a step we take for every animation project, but for especially long and complicated videos, it may be necessary to make sure no detail is missed and that the story flows exactly how you want it to.

If we do make a storyboard, it’s important to go into the review process with the right expectations about what you’re going to see. Storyboard drawings are intentionally rough. They may use simple sketches, basic shapes, temporary reference images, or loosely drawn characters. These images are not intended to represent the quality, color, or detail of the final animation. Their purpose is to communicate the idea behind each shot as clearly and efficiently as possible.

When reviewing a storyboard, clients should focus on the structure of the video. Consider whether the story is easy to follow, whether the scenes appear in the correct order, and whether the visuals support what is being said in the voiceover. This is also the time to identify missing information, inaccurate actions, confusing transitions, unnecessary scenes, or moments that may require a different camera angle.

Pacing should also be considered during storyboard review. Even though the drawings are static, the sequence should provide a sense of how quickly the story moves. A section may feel repetitive because too many shots communicate the same idea, while an important concept may need additional screen time or a clearer visual explanation.

This is the best stage for major structural feedback. Changing a location, replacing a visual concept, introducing another character, reordering scenes, or revising how a product is demonstrated is relatively manageable before the final artwork is created. Once those scenes have been designed and animated, the same changes can require substantial portions of the project to be rebuilt.

The storyboard is essentially the blueprint. Clients should approve it with confidence that the correct story is being told before focusing on how polished the final images will look.

Keyframes: Focus on the Visual Direction

Once the storyboard is approved, the production team develops keyframes for critical scenes. These are polished images that demonstrate how the final animation will look.

Keyframes establish the illustration style, character appearance, environments, colors, lighting, typography, texture, branding, and overall composition. While a storyboard may show a rough character standing in a generic office, the corresponding keyframe shows who that character is, what the office looks like, how the scene is lit, and how every visual element works together.

Client feedback should now shift from the sequence of events to the visual execution. Consider whether the imagery feels consistent with the organization’s brand, whether the color palette creates the intended mood, and whether the characters appropriately represent the audience. Products, uniforms, equipment, signage, architecture, and other factual details should also be reviewed carefully.

This is the right time to adjust a character’s appearance, revise the environment, correct brand colors, refine typography, or change the artistic tone. Clients should also consider whether each scene has a clear focal point and whether the most important information is immediately understandable.

Because keyframes provide the visual foundation for the remaining scenes, approval at this stage carries significant weight. A detail that seems minor in one image may be repeated throughout the entire animation. Identifying those concerns before animation begins prevents the production team from applying an incorrect design across dozens of shots.

Animation Review: Focus on Movement and Timing

After the story and visual direction have been approved, we get to drafts of the final product.

Once we get close to putting a final product out into the world, it’s of course essential to make sure that every aspect of it is to your liking. However, hopefully through the scripting, storyboard, and keyframe steps, we’ll have snuffed out any issues with story or art style earlier in the process, leaving you to focus on how the animation itself moves and feels.

Consider whether character actions feel natural, whether transitions are smooth, and whether camera movements support rather than distract from the story. Significant information should remain on screen long enough to be understood, while simpler moments should not linger unnecessarily.

Clients should also review how the animation works with the voiceover, music, and sound effects. A movement may need to begin earlier to match a spoken phrase, a transition may need more energy, or a character expression may need to remain visible slightly longer.

Requests to speed up a transition, soften a movement, hold a scene longer, or improve synchronization are appropriate at this stage. Requests to replace a character, change the setting, or restructure the story may require the project to return to previously approved work.

Review Each Stage for Its Intended Purpose

The animation process is structured to resolve decisions in the most efficient order. Storyboards determine what happens. Keyframes determine what it looks like. Animation review determines how it moves.

Clients should always raise legitimate concerns, regardless of when they notice them. However, understanding what each stage is designed to accomplish makes it easier to provide focused, actionable feedback before changes become complicated. The right feedback at the right time leads to fewer surprises, a more efficient approval process, and a stronger finished animation.

Ready to get started on your own animated video now that you know all the jargon? Schedule a meeting below and we can start drawing up a plan (Haha, do you get it? You probably get it).