ATM-X

Redesigning the sky.

A 3D animated explainer of the most significant transformation in U.S. air traffic management in decades, completed under an accelerated timeline after a prior production team could not finish the work.

CLIENT

NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate

PARTNERS

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

DELIVERABLE

2:45 broadcast animation, 1920×1080 / ProRes 422

7Scenes completed under V! Studios

2:45Final runtime (min:sec)

102Production days, all new scenes

24fpsBroadcast-quality delivery

THE CHALLENGE

A stalled production, a hard deadline, and a subject that matters.

The ATM-X program represents NASA’s most ambitious contribution to U.S. airspace modernization: a research initiative developing the next generation of air traffic management technology in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration. Translating that work into a clear, visually compelling animation required both technical accuracy and production discipline.

The project had been started. Scenes had been scripted, storyboarded, narrated, scored, and partially animated. Then, for reasons outside NASA’s control, the original production team could not complete the work. The scripts, storyboards, narration tracks, music, and an existing library of 3D assets were handed to V! Studios with a clear directive: finish it, and finish it right.

Picking up mid-production on someone else’s work is a different challenge than starting from scratch. The existing assets had to be assessed, reconciled with approved storyboards, and rebuilt or extended where the prior work fell short. Every new scene had to match the established visual language while meeting V! Studios’ own production standards.

THE SUBJECT

America’s airspace is changing. This is the explanation.

The national airspace system moves over 45,000 flights a day across U.S. skies. It is one of the most complex and consequential pieces of infrastructure in the world and is operated by the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA owns the airspace. NASA’s role is to develop the research and technology that make that airspace safer, more efficient, and better equipped to handle what is coming: more aircraft, more automation, more complexity.

ATM-X is NASA’s vehicle for that research. The program is developing new decision-support tools, data-sharing protocols, and automation architectures designed to reduce controller workload, improve traffic flow, and integrate new entrants, such as commercial drones and urban air mobility vehicles, into the existing system. None of that is simple to explain to a general audience.

The animation’s job was to make it simple without making it wrong. That means working closely with both NASA’s aeronautics research teams and the FAA’s operational context, making sure every visual representation of airspace structure, traffic flow, and system architecture reflects how the system actually works. The FAA’s contribution to this program is central. Their airspace. Their controllers. Their standards. The animation reflects that partnership throughout.

The FAA owns the airspace. NASA develops the tools to manage it better. Accurately showing both sides of that relationship was not a design choice. It was a factual requirement.V! STUDIOS PRODUCTION TEAM

AGENCY PARTNERSHIPFederal Aviation AdministrationU.S. Department of TransportationThe FAA operates the National Airspace System and is NASA’s primary partner in the ATM-X program. All airspace structures, traffic flow patterns, and operational procedures depicted in the animation reflect FAA standards and operational context. Their expertise and their airspace are central to what ATM-X is working to improve.

PRODUCTION APPROACH

Four stages, one standard throughout.

Every scene produced by V! Studios followed the same structured review process, giving NASA’s ATM-X project team clear checkpoints and feedback opportunities at each phase before resources were committed to final rendering.

013D Scene BuildEach 3D model was rendered with final colors, textures, and materials for NASA review and approval before animation began.	02AnimaticsShot timing, camera movement, and element choreography were roughed and reviewed as animatics. Client feedback was incorporated before committing to full production.
03Draft ReviewLow-resolution rough cuts incorporating all elements were delivered for review. Only minor adjustments were accommodated at this stage.	04Final DeliveryFull-resolution output with color grading, delivered as a ProRes 422 archive master and an H.264 web/presentation version with 508-compliant subtitles.

DELIVERY

Two formats. One standard: 508 compliant, broadcast-ready.

The completed animation was delivered in two formats. The archive master was produced as a ProRes 422 file at 1920×1080 resolution, 24 frames per second, suitable for broadcast and archival use. A companion H.264 MP4 was produced for web and presentation deployment. Both versions include 508-compliant subtitling, meeting federal accessibility requirements.

Every shot produced by V! Studios was matched to the visual language, color palette, and timing of the previously approved scenes, ensuring the finished animation reads as a single, unified piece of work.

CAPABILITIES APPLIED3D modeling and animationScientific and technical visualizationAnimatic production and review1080p broadcast delivery508-compliant subtitlingAsset library integration and extensionMid-production handoff and continuity

DELIVERABLESProRes 422 archive master (1920×1080, 24fps)H.264 MP4 web and presentation version508-compliant subtitled versionScene-by-scene review renders (animatics)Per-shot still renders for NASA approval

ABOUT ATM-XThe Air Traffic Management Exploration (ATM-X) project is a NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate initiative developing next-generation air traffic management technologies. The program addresses traffic complexity, automation integration, and new entrant vehicle classes including urban air mobility and commercial drone operations.