The absolute most basic directing you can do for crowd scenes would be using the default positions such as;
@/CHAR stands back far left/right
@/CHAR stands back left/right
@/CHAR stands screen left/right
@/CHAR stands upscreen left/right
@/CHAR stands screen center
Simple spot directing with actual coordinates is indeed time consuming, however the result leaves you with a more appealing “crowd” of people, as only using these default spots can look a little awkward sometimes.