All Rails Lead to Rome
Well... where else would all rails lead?
Watch the Music Video:
Introduction
The Make a Scene 2026 competition challenged entrants to tell a story within a small footprint.
Rather than recreating history, I wanted to create something that felt completely believable... right up until you realised what you were actually looking at.
The Scene
What if a railway line had been built straight through the middle of the Roman Colosseum?
Gladiators continue battling for glory while modern trains pass through the arena as though nothing could be more ordinary.
The diorama combines historical architecture with model railways to create a deliberately absurd miniature world where two thousand years of history quietly ignore each other.
Building the Scene
The Colosseum began as a 3D printed model before being transformed into a unique railway scene.
The project involved laying track and ballast, creating custom scenery, designing a Roman-style name plaque and individually painting the tiny gladiators scattered throughout the arena.
To complete the project, I also created an original AI-generated soundtrack for the extended music video, giving the gladiators an unexpectedly epic anthem while the trains quietly get on with their day.
Although the idea is absurd, every part of the model was built with the same care and attention as a traditional model railway display.
After all, if the Romans could build roads across Europe, adding a railway was the obvious next step.
