Mainframe Studios

Background
Mainframe Studios (formerly known as Rainmaker Entertainment from 2007-2020) is a Canadian computer animation and design company founded in 1991, with headquarters in Vancouver and Los Angeles. They are best known for producing the first ever half-hour CGI animated TV series ReBoot, as well as the acclaimed Transformers spin-off Beast Wars. Since 2001, they have also produced most of the Barbie film series for Mattel.

In September 2003, Digital Production Solutions (DPS), a division of IDT Corporation, acquired a majority stake in Mainframe Entertainment, which made the studio a subsidiary of IDT Entertainment (later Starz Distribution). On July 31, 2006, RNK Capital Limited Partnership, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rainmaker Income Fund, acquired 62% of Mainframe from Starz with Rainmaker acquiring 38%. A month later, RNK and Rainmaker announced a merger, with RNK acquiring Rainmaker's 38% share in Mainframe, and by February 2007, the studio was renamed to Rainmaker Entertainment. The Mainframe label was later revived in 2014 as Rainmaker's television division.

On October 26, 2016, Rainmaker acquired Burbank-based animation studio Frederator Studios, with both companies becoming part of their new holding company, known as WOW! Unlimited Media Inc. In March 2020, the Mainframe name was fully reinstated, replacing and retiring Rainmaker in the process.

1st Logo (September 16, 1996-March 13, 1998)
Nickname: "The Cursive M"

Logo: On a black background, with a ball of light at the top-right corner, we see a  board and a  plate (which are tilted on their sides) turning clockwise to face forward. Just as it begins to turn, the light ball swoops down from the top-right corner, carving the board with a cursive black "M", while the word "MAINFRAME" softly lands letter-by-letter on the board, followed by a line and the small words "ENTERTAINMENT INC. ©" below it appearing and slightly pushing out of the board. The result reads "MAINFRAME ENTERTAINMENT INC. ©", with "MAIN" and "FRAME" forming a 90 degree angle right with each other, and "ENTERTAINMENT INC. ©" below the line. The light ball swoops to the right, causing the logo to shine slowly.

Variant: Sometimes, the logo is still.

FX/SFX: All CGI which was quite ahead of its time and still holds up today.

Music/Sounds: An intense synth percussion tune accompanied by whooshes (composed by Robert "Bob" Buckley) or the closing theme of the show. On some occasions, the music was slowed down, but the whooshes were left intact at normal speed.

Availability: Rare. Seen on the first two seasons of Beast Wars: Transformers and season 3 of ReBoot on Teletoon Retro and on DVD.

Editor's Note: Despite having really great effects, the whole thing looks like it was done using Softimage in 30 minutes.

2nd Logo (September 16, 1998-May 9, 2006)
Nickname: "Mainframe in Space"

Logo: On a space background that slowly pans to the left, we see the words "MAINFRAME ENTERTAINMENT INC.".

Bylines:
 * 2003-2006: "AN IDT ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY"

Variants:
 * Sometimes, there is no text at all.
 * An opening variant exists where the text "A MAINFRAME ENTERTAINMENT INC. PRODUCTION" is seen in the background. This variant appears at the beginning of Mainframe's movies from the time.
 * Sometimes, the website address (www.mainframe.ca) is seen below the text.
 * A longer version also exists. We start off with a white screen fading in, which quickly fades to the logo, with a translucent shadow of the name zooming out.
 * A medium-length variant also exists where we start off with the name's shadow zooming out as we fade to the logo.
 * Sometimes, the background is just plain black. This variant can be found on season 2 episodes of Beast Wars: Transformers.

FX/SFX: The background panning, the company name fading in.

Music/Sounds: None or the opening/closing theme.

Availability: Common. Seen on the two Scary Godmother TV movies, Shadow Raiders, Weird-Oh's, season 4 of ReBoot, the final season of Max Steel, Action Man, Spider-Man: The New Animated Series, Hot Wheels World Race, the final 2 seasons of Beast Wars: Transformers, Beast Machines: Transformers, Heavy Gear: The Animated Series, and some of the Barbie films. Also seen at the end of Casper's Haunted Christmas.

3rd Logo (September 1, 2015-September 7, 2017)
Logo: On a white background, we see the Mainframe logo (similar to the last logo) except the font is bolder. A Rainmaker byline is added to the logo. Below the logo is the Canadian funding.

Variant: On most international prints of Bob the Builder, the logo is in-credit.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None or the ending theme for the in-credit variant.

Availability: It was only seen on Bob the Builder (2015 reboot).

4th Logo (March 30, 2018-)
Nickname: "The Return of Mainframe" Logo: Same as the 3rd Rainmaker logo, except "MAINFRAME" replaces "RAinmAkER" and their swirly hand logo (both in their respective fonts).

FX/SFX: Same as the 3rd Rainmaker logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 3rd Rainmaker logo.

Availability: Current. Debuted on ReBoot: The Guardian Code, and is expected to be seen on future shows from Mainframe.

1st Logo (March 13, 2007-January 17, 2017)
Nickname: "Swirly Hand"

Logo: On a black background, a shining swirl is drawn by itself before zooming out. As it does, a border is formed in the same color, revealing it to be an outline of a hand. Then a huge flash occurs, causing the swirl to change into and the hand into white, while also creating a background at the bottom of the hand in the same color as the swirl. "RAinmAkER" in a crunchy scope font appears below in white. After the flash ceases, the byline "WHERE WORLDS ARE CREATED" flashes in matching the color of the swirl and background.

Trivia: The company's name and logo were adopted from Rainmaker Digital Pictures, an authoring company which also operated in Vancouver and Los Angeles.

Variant: At the end of some Barbie films, Escape from Planet Earth, Ratchet & Clank, Open Season: Scared Silly and Surf's Up 2: WaveMania, the logo is in-credit, still, and sometimes a different color. The byline "WHERE WORLDS ARE CREATED" is also sometimes absent and replaced with "ENTERTAINMENT" sometimes as well.

FX/SFX: The swirl and hand forming, the zooming out, the full logo flashing in, and the byline appearing.

Music/Sounds: A synth note the swirl makes when being formed, a flute piece accompanied with sticks, a quiet flash, and a drum piece when the byline appears.

Availability: Seen on post-2007 DVD releases from Rainmaker, such as ReBoot. The in-credit version appears on a number of Barbie movies and Rainmaker's other feature films.

2nd Logo (February 15, 2013-January 31, 2017)
Nicknames: "Swirly Hand II", "Ting"

Logo: On a space background, there is a twinkling star that starts to fly, which actually turns out to be Ting (one of the mascots of Rainmaker), who projects the glowing logo from his body. He then pops out behind the logo, waves and flies away to the left.

Variant: On Barbie and the Secret Door, the logo is still.

FX/SFX: Really nice and fluid CGI animation done in-house.

Music/Sounds: Some twinkling and buzzing sounds.

Availability: This logo is seen on Rainmaker's feature-length films, such as Escape from Planet Earth, Ratchet & Clank, and Barbie and the Secret Door.

3rd Logo (September 17, 2017-March 16, 2020)
Nickname: "Swirly Hand III"

Logo: On a white- gradient floor, we pan as the 3-D swirly hand logo and the company name "RAinmAkER" (with "STUDIOS" below) push up releasing their shadows. After moving up with everything right-side up, we zoom away from it. The byline "A DIVISION OF WOW! UNLIMITED MEDIA" is seen below the logo.

FX/SFX: A 3D pushup from the gradient background with a little bit of on the bottom of the screen shading at the end.

Music/Sounds: Heavy echoing clings. Sometimes, it's the closing theme, or silence.

Availability: No longer current. It was used in tandem with the 4th Mainframe logo. Also seen on Barbie: Dolphin Magic.