AI shorts generator
AI shorts generator: faceless Shorts drawn and narrated from your script
AnimatedBoard is an AI shorts generator for drawn, faceless videos. Paste a script of 80 to 160 words, or give our AI a topic, and it splits the text into scenes, draws each one in time with the narration and renders a vertical 1080×1920 MP4 for YouTube Shorts, TikTok or Instagram Reels. There's no camera, no stock footage and no timeline to edit, and your first minute is free.
No card required. Your first minute of video with AnimatedBoard is free.
Facts and third-party prices checked on September 26, 2026
Made with AnimatedBoard from a plain-text script. Nothing edited by hand.
Read the transcript
Why is the sky blue and not white? Sunlight looks white, but it's a mix of every colour.
When it enters the air, it bumps into tiny gas molecules, and those molecules scatter short wavelengths, like blue, much more than long ones, like red. So blue light bounces all over the sky and reaches your eyes from every direction.
At sunset, the light crosses much more air. Most of the blue is scattered away before it reaches you, and the reds and oranges are what's left.
So, what colour would the sky be on a planet with no air?
Faceless Shorts with AI that don't look like every other Short
Scroll through faceless Shorts for a minute and the same recipe keeps coming back: a synthetic voice over stock clips or generated footage, with big captions in the middle of the screen. It's quick to make, and viewers have learned to swipe past it.
A drawn Short works differently. The picture is made for your sentence and appears while the sentence is said: in a whiteboard look, a hand draws each element when the voice names it; in an illustrated story look, each panel arrives with the line it illustrates. Instead of footage that could belong to anyone, the viewer watches your idea being drawn.
The Short at the top of this page, "Why is the sky blue?", was made that way, in the Spark look at 9:16. It runs about 40 seconds: it asks one question, answers it and ends by asking the viewer another. That is most of what a good Short needs.
How long can a YouTube Short, a TikTok or a Reel be?
Upload limits on each platform, checked on their official help pages in September 2026. They change often, so check again before you plan a series.
| Platform | Longest upload | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube Shorts | 3 minutes | The video must be vertical or square. The 3-minute limit applies to Shorts uploaded since October 15, 2024. |
| TikTok | 60 minutes | That's for uploaded videos. Videos recorded inside the TikTok app can be up to 10 minutes. |
| Instagram Reels | 20 minutes | Instagram says Reels over 3 minutes won't be recommended to new audiences. |
| AnimatedBoard | 15 minutes per video | Vertical 9:16 at 1080×1920 or square 1:1 at 1080×1080, so any length a Short allows fits. |
How many words for a 30, 45 or 60-second Short
Word counts at the measured pace of our voices. A Short script is shorter than it looks: 60 seconds is one paragraph. For any other length, use our script length calculator.
| Short length | American English voice (~160 wpm) | British English voice (~140 wpm) | Spanish voice, Spain (~163 wpm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 seconds | 40 words | 35 words | 41 words |
| 30 seconds | 80 words | 70 words | 82 words |
| 45 seconds | 120 words | 105 words | 122 words |
| 60 seconds | 160 words | 140 words | 163 words |
| 90 seconds | 240 words | 210 words | 245 words |
| 3 minutes | 480 words | 420 words | 489 words |
If the closing scene is on, it adds 3 to 5 seconds. Our AI drafts scripts of 1 minute or more, so for a 30 or 45-second Short, write the script yourself or trim a 1-minute draft.
How to write a Short script: a hook, one idea, a last line
The first sentence decides whether the rest gets heard. Open with the question or the claim the Short exists for, not with a greeting or "in this video". "Why do onions make you cry?" works far better as a first line than as a title nobody reads.
Keep one idea per Short. If the script has a "secondly", it's two Shorts. Give that idea one concrete example the hand can draw, such as a glass of water, a price tag or a ladder, rather than "various factors". Objects are easy to draw; abstractions are not.
End on a line that pays off the opening, then stop. By default our AI adds a 3 to 5-second closing scene that sums up and says goodbye; on a Short you may prefer to switch it off, so the video ends on your own last line.
- Weak opening: "Today we're going to talk about saving money." Stronger: "Your coffee isn't why you can't save. This is."
- Weak opening: "Let's look at a study technique." Stronger: "Close your notes. What do you remember? That's the whole technique."
- Write for the ear: short sentences, one number at most, and no lists of five things.
How to make a YouTube Short with AI, step by step
Six steps from topic to MP4. Writing and splitting the script are free; minutes are spent when the drawings and the voice are generated.
Start a 9:16 project
Choose 9:16 when you create the project, or start from the "Short for social" template in My videos, which sets up a vertical project in the Spark look with a one-minute target and notes that ask for a hook in the first sentence. Decide now: the format is fixed per project, and switching it later redraws every image and spends minutes again.
Write the script, or have our AI draft it
Paste your own 80 to 160 words, or give our AI the topic, a 1-minute length and notes such as "for teenagers, playful tone". Edit the draft until it sounds like you: from then on it's your script, and the Short says it word for word.
Pick the look and the voice
Spark for bold outlines and bright colours, Midnight Chalk for science, Margin Notes for study tips, or an illustrated story look if you want burned-in captions. Then pick one of the six AI voices for your accent.
Check the scenes before generating
"Scenes only" splits the script for free, so you can read every scene and what will be drawn before you spend anything. Or use "Create video", which shows the estimated cost and then does everything in one run.
Preview and fix
Each scene has a free preview. Redraw a scene, mark part of a drawing and describe the change, or rewrite a sentence. Paid plans include 10, 25 or 60 free scene changes a month.
Download and post
Download the MP4 with no watermark and upload it yourself to YouTube Shorts, TikTok or Reels. Music, the title and any extra captions go on in your editor or in the app you post to.
Looks that read well on a phone screen
Real 30-second samples of our looks, narrated and uncut. They're shown in landscape; in a 9:16 project the same look is drawn for the tall frame. All 13 looks are on every plan, free included.
Spark
Bold outlines and bright colours with a playful personality.
Products & socialMidnight Chalk
White chalk on a blackboard. Detailed diagrams that develop gradually.
Science and explanationMargin Notes
Blue ballpoint, red annotations and observational sketches on cream paper.
Learning and studyChalk Lights
Cyan, pink and lime on black. Luminous, expressive diagrams.
Connected conceptsLittle Worlds
Simple, expressive characters in a warm illustrated world.
Stories & charactersPaper Mosaic
Sophisticated shapes, expressive silhouettes and a magazine illustration look.
Brands & narratives
Faceless Shorts ideas by niche
Shorts that play to the drawn format, with the look that fits and a first line to start from. Each one is a single idea, which is the whole point of a Short.
| Niche | Look that fits | First line of the Short |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday science | Midnight Chalk, Spark | "What actually happens when you crack your knuckles?" |
| Money, one idea at a time | Idea Atlas, Whiteboard | "Compound interest, explained with one jar of coins." |
| Study tips | Margin Notes | "Stop rereading your notes. Try this instead." |
| Psychology and habits | Freehand Flow | "Why is starting so much harder than finishing?" |
| History in one scene | Ink Heritage, Paper Mosaic | "One morning in the life of a Roman baker." |
| Tech explained | Blue Draft | "What happens in the second after you press Send?" |
| Tips for a small business | Quiet Lines, Spark | "Three questions every customer asks before paying." |
| Micro-stories and fables | Little Worlds, Wax & Wonder | "The cloud that wanted to be a sheep." |
Your first Short is on us
The free minute is enough for a first Short. Paste a script, choose 9:16 and download it without a watermark. No card needed.
What this AI shorts maker doesn't do
Better to know before your first render than after it.
Captions on drawn looks
Whiteboard and the other drawn looks have no captions. If your viewers watch with the sound off, choose an illustrated story look, which can burn captions into the video, or add captions in your editor or in YouTube Studio.
Background music
None is added. If your Shorts use music, add it in your editor.
Clipping long videos
It doesn't cut an existing long video into Shorts. Each Short is made from its own script: to reuse the best idea of a long video, paste that part of its script into a new 9:16 project.
Posting for you
There's no direct upload to YouTube, TikTok or Instagram, and no title or thumbnail generation. You download the MP4 and post it yourself.
Switching format
The format is chosen per project. Turning a finished landscape video into 9:16 redraws its images and spends minutes again, so make the Short as its own project.
Resolution
9:16 renders at 1080×1920 and 1:1 at 1080×1080. Landscape 16:9 renders at 1280×720.
What a month of Shorts costs
You pay for the seconds of video generated. Writing, splitting into scenes and rendering are free.
| Plan | Price | Minutes | 45-second Shorts, roughly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 1, once, no card | 1 |
| Starter | $29/month ($20 on yearly) | 30 a month | About 40 |
| Creator | $79/month ($55 on yearly) | 100 a month | About 130 |
| Pro | $149/month ($104 on yearly) | 250 a month | About 330 |
| Minute packs | $19 or $59, one-off | 15 or 50, never expire | About 20 or 65 |
Estimates assume the closing scene is off and no scene is redrawn. Each scene counts at least 4 seconds, or 8 if its drawing uses a reference image, and plan minutes expire at each renewal.
Frequently asked questions
What is an AI shorts generator?
A tool that produces a short vertical video from text: it takes or writes a script, creates the visuals, adds a voice and exports a file for YouTube Shorts, TikTok or Reels. AnimatedBoard draws each scene as a whiteboard or storybook illustration in time with the narration, instead of using stock clips.
How long can a YouTube Short be?
Up to 3 minutes, in a vertical or square format, for Shorts uploaded since October 15, 2024 (YouTube Help, checked September 2026). AnimatedBoard videos can run up to 15 minutes, so any Short length is possible; most Short scripts are 80 to 160 words.
How many words is a 60-second Short?
About 160 words with our American English voices, 140 with a British English voice and 163 with a Spanish voice from Spain. A 30-second Short is roughly half that. Our script length calculator converts any script into seconds.
Can AI turn my long YouTube video into Shorts?
Not with AnimatedBoard: it doesn't clip existing videos. It makes each Short from its own script, so take the strongest idea of your long video, paste that part of the script into a new 9:16 project and trim it down to one idea.
Is there a free AI shorts generator without a watermark?
AnimatedBoard's first minute is free, once, with no card and no watermark, which covers a first Short. After that, Starter costs $29 a month for 30 minutes, and no plan adds a watermark.
Can you make money with AI Shorts on YouTube?
Yes, once the channel meets the YouTube Partner Program requirements and the content is original. YouTube's monetization policies also apply to Shorts, and they list AI-generated videos made from generic templates that look mass-produced, without the creator's own insight, as inauthentic content (checked September 2026). Write your own hooks and ideas, and vary them from one Short to the next.
Do the Shorts have captions?
Only the illustrated story looks, which can burn captions into the video; you can switch them off. Whiteboard and the other drawn looks have no captions, so add them in your editor or in YouTube Studio if your viewers watch without sound. There's no subtitle file export.
Your next Short, drawn as it's said
Create a free account, paste a 100-word script and download your first Short.
Make my first Short for freeNo card required. Your first minute of video with AnimatedBoard is free.