Beyond the algorithm: discover movies you'll actually love

An iOS app that makes it easier to pick movies and TV shows while giving you more choices to personalize your preferences.

Despite the sheer number of movies and series that are available on various platforms, people still feel overwhelmed with finding interesting content that matches their preferences.

Users feel that current platforms provide generic recommendations that don't accurately reflect their individual moods and tastes at a particular moment and with particular people.

Design an app that allows people to find content that matches their tastes, suits their current mood, and fits a particular situation.

The idea of this app surfaced when I caught myself spending more than an hour looking for a movie to watch. The problem kept repeating in different situations when I wanted to watch some content myself, with friends, or with my partner.

Then I decided to ask people who love to watch movies and series whether they faced such problems in their lives or not. I realized that 4 out of 5 respondents often encounter such problems and spend a lot of time searching for some movie or TV show on the web. Moreover, such situations frustrate them.

I conducted 5 interviews to get information about user’s problems, needs, and frustration.

Throughout that process, I pointed out some key insights:

Users feel that many platforms provide generic recommendations that don't accurately reflect their individual tastes and preferences at a particular moment. They struggle to find content that suits their current mood or specific atmosphere.

Finding a movie with a partner or friends might be really challenging because of the different preferences. Users often spend a lot of time trying to find the perfect match, but can’t find anything and end up not watching a single movie.

Complex UI often causes a reluctance to use an app further

Users don’t like to write long reviews but often check them to analyze content. Also, they often watch trailers to understand the plot.

Without a sense of engagement or gamification, users might lose interest in the platform over time.

In crafting the brand identity, I wanted to focus on combining the nostalgia of classic movies and a contemporary thread of innovation. I preferred not to use the black and red color palette, despite the fact that people usually recall these colors while thinking about movies and cinema.

Along with that, I wanted to keep a dark background and avoid using light and bright colors. It helps to prevent eyestrain while using the app in low-light conditions.

The logo depicts the metaphor of flipping through a list of movies, searching for that perfect film. It also refers to the primary section on the Home screen, where users scroll through films handpicked by the application.

Throughout the onboarding journey, the application requests information on the user's prior movie-watching history and their personal preferences, including favorite genres. This enables the application to curate a selection of movies and series based on the provided information, resulting in more personalized recommendations.

Each day, the user has the option to select genres and topics that align with their mood or situation. Categorizing movies and series not just by genre but also by topic will empower the user to quickly find the right movie or series.

This feature offers a convenient method to explore movies or series suitable for both the user and their friend. Leveraging personal preferences, ratings, and viewing history, the application carefully curates content to align with their shared tastes. Furthermore, this list may be fine-tuned to perfection through the thoughtful application of filters.