Filmhub
In Development
Role
Product Designer
Responsibilities
Product Planning, User Research, UX Strategy, Visual Design, Design System, Copywriting
Mission
Filmhub’s mission is to become the operating system of the currently inefficient and fragmented film industry by removing unnecessary complexity and expediting time-intensive processes with technology. In order to facilitate a more efficient distribution cycle, we created the world’s first fully transparent platform to enable streaming channels to license titles from filmmakers through a single revenue share model. As a result, filmmakers could stay in control and watch Filmhub distribute their title to the world.
Filmmaker context
The scope of our first project was reimagining the supply of our marketplace: creating the filmmaker experience.
Distributors are notorious for doing backdoor deals and hidden accounting without the knowledge of filmmakers. We set out to flip this trend on its head and create the first transparent platform where filmmakers could remain in the driver’s seat - a logged-in experience where they could watch channels pick up their titles, remove licenses, and review clear earnings reports.
Lifecycle of a title
Fortunately, we weren’t starting from scratch. Our team was currently managing a V1 that facilitated the basics but was built on Rails and relied heavily on HITs (human intensive tasks). Since we were building V2 on a modern Java stack, we had the opportunity to redesign the front end as well.
Before pushing pixels and reimagining the experience, we needed to collect and align all the steps that facilitated the full distribution of a title. Mapping each step by its user type (one of three: Filmmaker, Team, or Channel), we were able to prioritize which were necessary for a V2 MVP.
Creating a title
It’s extremely common for titles and their assets to live between multiple spreadsheets, computers and hard drives. The first step was uploading all meta data and assets so Filmhub could become a single source of truth.
Uploading 20GB+ master video files was easily the most time-consuming step, taking hours for slower internet speeds. We purpose-built our forms to allow our video uploader to work behind the scenes, even if they accidentally closed the tab or their computer turned off.
Submitting to QC
Filmhub has its own internal QC team dedicated to reviewing every title for technical errors and channel content policy requirements.
As opposed to months with a normal distributor, this process takes Filmhub only a few days. We prioritized communicating precise time windows to set clear expectations with our filmmakers.
Collecting earnings
Rather than holding funds and paying out once a quarter like the rest of the industry, Filmhub processes sales reports and pays out filmmakers the next business day. It’s hard to overstate how revolutionary this is and how grateful filmmakers are to receive accurate, on-time payments.
Yet again, transparency and speed was our key differentiator. Thankfully, design just needed to follow best practices and clearly communicate the work of Filmhub’s finance ops team.
Removing licenses
As with any transaction, there are either mistakes that occur or decisions that change. The key is that each party has the ability to control their stake.
After channels license a title, both the filmmaker and channel representative can reference the current license status or remove it altogether.
Wrapping up
With the filmmaker experience wrapped up, we were free to design for channel users and finally our internal team accounts. Fortunately, we had a strong design system in place and these next steps went much quicker thanks to the foundation we laid.