How Did You Start Using Atoms Crowd VFX in Rome Animation Studio?

Me, (Diego Viezzoli), the CG Supervisor Leonardo Dell’Agli, and the Production Manager Barbara Nicolai had been wanting to try this software for a long time at Rainbow CGI. We were offered the chance to test it from its very first release, but at that time, we didn’t have any shows with major crowd sequences that would justify studying a new tool compared to the methods we used for shots with only a few dozen similar characters, with simpler movements and interactions.

Finally, in 2023, the show Mermaid Magic, produced by Rainbow and Netflix, featured several episodes with these kinds of requirements. So, we decided to start using this powerful tool. Around 300 shots included crowd contributions out of a total of 5,000 in the first season.

Everything started with a sequence featuring the large school garden populated by students. With this initial setup of assets, we had fifteen male and fifteen female variants available. We created several groups that walked, ran, or stood talking, both standing and sitting. Through this first block of work, we figured out how to organize the production workflow between the asset-building, animation, and, of course, FX artist departments specializing in this work.

Next came the turn of the sea monsters—completely fictional creatures. Together with the animators, we had to determine how to make them swim in the ocean and walk on land before filling the relevant scenes with dozens and dozens of them.

The sequences with the largest crowds are set on the vast beach and in the city of Mertropolis. In these locations, crowds always serve as a backdrop to the main characters’ actions. Perhaps the sequence where the crowd is truly the “protagonist” is the party scene with Merlinda and Nerissa performing for all the inhabitants of Mertropia, who dance both in and out of the water.

A Second Opportunity: Gormiti: The New Era.

While completing this animated show, another opportunity arose to use this powerful tool for the visual effects of a live-action series: Gormiti: The New Era, produced by Rainbow and coming on BBC iPlayer the April fourteenth 2025

Here, the relevant sequences involved the “Skav,” the soldiers of the forces of evil, who, at times, became quite numerous. Unlike the traditional keyframe animation process used in Mermaid Magic, for these crowds, we used motion capture, just as we did for all the CG combat scenes involving the main characters.

For both productions, we used Atoms Crowd VFX in Maya. However, it’s essential to note that everything we did could have also been achieved—or reused—in other major software like SideFX Houdini or Unreal Engine. The latter is widely used on all Virtual Production sets due to its ability to render in real-time alongside live shooting.

A Dedicated Workshop at Rainbow Academy

In 2011, Rainbow CGI founded Rainbow Academy, a computer graphics school with the primary goal of training new digital artists for the major international productions we work on. Now, after these two significant case studies, we are preparing a dedicated Atoms Crowd workshop for former students or FX TDs who want an overview of the workflow required to work with this tool.

We would like to thank the ToolChefs staff for this incredibly effective tool: Atoms Crowd, but also for the outstanding support they offer their clients. It’s rare to receive responses and solutions so quickly. Thank you!

[ The Rookies article about the Rainbow Academy. ]