How to Build Custom AI Storyboarding Tools

TL;DR

Build project-specific creative tools by combining Codex and GPT-5 with image and video APIs, then expose only the controls artists need. The demonstrated storyboard application converts sketches and prompts into selectable black-and-white or high-fidelity frames while preserving human direction, visual consistency, production history, bulk workflows, and exportable audit records.

Transcript

Great to have you here. Hi everyone. I'm Chad Nelson. I'm a creative director here at OpenAI. Stop. Stop. Stop. We'll keep it casual, but no, this is going to be a fun talk. Uh so in my career I've made a lot of content, films, video games, television shows and in all my experiences there's been one common kind of through line which is how am I goi... Read More

Key Insights

• Custom creative software is most useful when it is designed around the requirements of an individual project and workflow. The Storyboard application focused specifically on moving from rough sketches toward higher-fidelity renders and potential final frames instead of providing a broad collection of generalized features.
• Human-led production is a core requirement for the Critters team. Artists supply sketches, prompts, character references, location images, props, and final selections, while the AI models generate alternatives that support the artists' decisions rather than independently determining the film's visual direction.
• Traditional storyboarding can take about a year, according to the creative team involved in the project. Such a long process allows only a few opportunities to revise the movie's visual plan, making faster generation and selection valuable for exploring more interpretations before production advances.
• GPT Image 1 receives both text and image inputs through its edit endpoint. The application exposes a high input fidelity parameter so character, location, and prop references can influence the generated frame while the shared style guide instructs the system to retain the original sketch's position and composition.
• Generation presets support different stages of creative development. The turbo preset produces black-and-white marker and ink storyboard renderings without color, while the high-fidelity preset produces full-color, highly realistic movie scenes styled as 35mm photography for a more finished visualization.
• Multiple generated options preserve room for artistic choice. The demonstration produced four alternatives for frames, allowing the artist or audience to select the rendering that best matched the intended vision and confirm it for download rather than accepting a single automated result.
• Reusable controls improve visual continuity across a project. Characters, locations, and props can be uploaded, described, and selected for particular frames, while GPT-5 can generate short character descriptions that are added with the reference images to the final image-generation prompt.
• Production history provides traceability for generated artwork. The application records the original sketch, generated images, selected character, prop, and location references, and the associated prompt, then allows the team to export this information as a CSV for complete storyboard auditability.

Questions & Answers

Q: How can Codex help build a custom storyboarding tool?

Codex can accelerate development of an application tailored to a specific creative workflow. In the demonstrated project, ChatGPT-5 and Codex were used to design a focused storyboarding tool that accepts sketches and prompts, exposes image-generation controls, manages reusable assets, produces several visual alternatives, and helps artists move from rough drawings toward high-fidelity renderings and potential final frames.

Q: How does the Storyboard application turn sketches into rendered scenes?

An artist uploads a storyboard sketch, adds a written description of the scene, and selects any relevant character, location, or prop references. Those text and image inputs are sent to the GPT Image 1 edit endpoint. Shared project instructions guide composition and style, after which the application returns multiple images that the artist can review, select, confirm, and download.

Q: What is the difference between the turbo and high-fidelity presets?

The turbo preset is configured to create a black-and-white storyboard-style rendering made to resemble marker and ink, with no color. The high-fidelity preset creates a full-color, highly realistic movie scene with a 35mm photography aesthetic. Together, the presets support both rapid visual exploration and more finished representations of a frame within the same application.

Q: How do character, location, and prop controls work?

Characters, locations, and props are managed as reusable assets in the project's setup. For each frame, the artist selects the references that should influence the result, such as a particular critter, an underwater photograph, or crystal sunglasses. The application includes the selected images and their descriptions in the generation prompt, helping the output reflect the intended production elements.

Q: How does the tool preserve an artist's original composition?

The project style guide supplies instructions that apply to every generation. In the demonstration, those instructions told the system to transform a storyboard sketch into a detailed scene while maintaining the position and composition of the initial drawing. Artists also control the written scene description, reference assets, generation preset, and final choice among several outputs, keeping their intent central to the workflow.

Q: Why does the application generate four image options?

Image models allow some creative variation, so the application produces four alternatives rather than treating one output as final. This gives artists an opportunity to compare interpretations and choose the rendering that best fits their vision. During the demonstration, preferred images were selected from the available options and confirmed for download, showing how human judgment remains part of each frame's approval.

Q: What information does the storyboard history tab record?

The history tab records the initial sketch, the generated images, the prompt associated with each result, and whether characters, props, or locations were used as references. The creative team identified this traceability as important. The application can also export the recorded information as a CSV, giving the production team an auditable account of its generated storyboard frames.

Q: How does the custom tool support large production workflows?

Film storyboarding can involve hundreds of images rather than a single frame. The application supports this scale by letting artists generate several frames, select preferred results, confirm them, stage them for download, and move them into other creative tools. Shared presets, style instructions, reusable assets, and exportable history also help maintain consistency and traceability across the broader production workflow.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• OpenAI collaborated with Native Foreign and Vertigo Films on Critters, an animated feature whose creators wanted artists to remain in control of AI-assisted production. Because conventional storyboarding can take about a year and limit opportunities for iteration, the team explored whether a custom application could make the workflow faster and more flexible.

• The resulting Storyboard application was designed with ChatGPT-5 and Codex for a narrowly defined production task. Artists upload sketches, describe scenes, select reference characters, locations, and props, then generate multiple alternatives through GPT Image 1. Turbo presets create black-and-white storyboard drawings, while high-fidelity presets produce realistic, full-color movie scenes.

• Project setup applies shared aesthetic instructions across every generation and manages reusable production assets. A history view records source sketches, prompts, references, and generated results, while CSV export supports auditability. Artists can choose preferred outputs, stage them for download, process hundreds of images, and continue working in other creative tools.