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Previs
aka Previsualization · Pre-vis
Previsualization - rough animated or storyboarded versions of sequences built before the shoot to plan camera, staging and timing.
Previs is the practice of building a rough, moving version of a sequence before production - from simple animatics to fully animated camera blocking - so the director, DP and VFX team can agree shot design, timing and feasibility before a single setup is lit. It is standard on action, VFX-heavy and effects sequences, and increasingly on commercials and music videos where every second counts. StoryboardCanvas turns a storyboard into a playable animatic in one click, with 27 camera-move presets and timing, so previs is no longer a separate specialist budget line.
In StoryboardCanvas
See Previs live in /animate
Every previs we generate stays linked to the rest of the project - change a scene heading and the previs updates automatically. No re-import. No copy-paste. One project file from script to wrap.
Get startedRelated terms
Animatic
A timed sequence of storyboard frames cut against dialogue, scratch music, and sound effects - the closest thing to seeing the film before you shoot it.
Storyboard
A sequence of drawn or AI-generated frames that visualise the film shot-by-shot before principal photography.
Shot List
The director's per-scene list of every shot to be captured - shot number, type, angle, movement, lens, and any special notes.