THE AcTIFF STORY: The first app with AI (Artificial Intelligence) for TIFF movie buffs, brought to you by Informal School of IT

It changed the definition of the word “selfie,” managing to revolutionize the classic method of giving feedback. Simply put: AcTIFF. An app through which a movie buff's selfie instantly transmits their review of the film they've just watched. Premiering at TIFF 2018, brought to you by Informal School of IT, AcTIFF is a novelty in the experience of film lovers at this year's edition of the festival.

Daniel Costea tells us more about the app from behind the scenes, in the leading role. A mentor at Informal School of IT, a programmer for over 16 years, a lifelong movie buff and the man behind AcTIFF, he coordinated the entire process of building the app – from a simple idea to a product.

You scan your face and give instant feedback on the films screened at TIFF 2018

 

1. How does the AcTIFF story begin?

Once upon a time there was a society built on the consumption of information, in which people had become very selective and could no longer keep their attention on any one thing for long. One day, AcTIFF was born. A simple idea, turned into a new formula.

Traditional feedback forms (on paper or in digital format) collect information within a time window that exceeds the threshold we, today, are willing to set aside. That's where the need for this app came from.

At the invitation of the organizers of the Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF) to build an app involving Informal School of IT graduates, my colleagues identified this need and together we decided to turn the solution into a cool app.

2. How does the app work?

Experimentally, the app will let users express their opinion about the TIFF 2018 screenings using, no more and no less, than their own facial expression. All you'll need to do is scan your face to give instant feedback on the film that just played. The cool, novel element that makes the app easy to use was inspired by AI (Artificial Intelligence), which allows emotions to be identified by analyzing the user's face and essentially shortens the time it takes them to rate the films they've watched. Right up the “selfie generation's” alley.

3. Some technical details, from behind the scenes?

The app is built on the latest technologies, among which I can mention: ReactJS, WebAPI 2.2, ASP.NET MVC 5. For face analysis we turned to the Artificial Intelligence services offered by Cognitive Services from Microsoft Azure. The face analysis function is experimental at this point, but we want to polish it into a version that will be released for the next edition.

An app built with the involvement of Informal School of IT graduates

4. Who are the people involved in the project team and what was their motivation?

The team that worked on building this web version has 11 members, predominantly graduates of the educational programs offered by Informal School of IT. Given the very short time available, native versions of the app for mobile (Android and iOS) are still in progress, and we still have a few more colleagues involved there. The team's motivation is based exclusively on the energy of Informal School of IT graduates, which was channeled into creating a modern, useful product.

5. How many hours of work are we talking about?

The actual development time for the web app totaled about 200 man-hours, a very short time. However, a lot of discussions were needed to refine the idea, along with brainstorming, analysis, and commitment. The app's architecture is designed as a web service to be consumed by different types of clients (the current web app, a feedback management app for administrators, and the native apps – which are in progress).

6. What was, for you, the coolest experience your role gave you?

The fact that I was there. The Software Architect role let me fully explore what I know and what I like to do. I got directly involved in every stage: from specifications, devops, and coding, to making the logo or the graphic design. I'm someone who likes “to get the hands dirty.” Among people, not above people, because I believe passion is what unites us to make things happen.

The rest comes naturally.

7. A memorable moment during the AcTIFF team's work process?

All the moments of victory. Those moments we all felt when we managed to overcome a particularly tough technical difficulty. That's what we became IT people for, I think.

8. How many films will be ratable through the app?

The AcTIFF app allows feedback to be given on the spot or retroactively, for all the films screened during this edition of the TIFF festival. Regardless of location or screening day. There's just one condition: that the film has already been screened.

9. What's the next step in developing the app?

This was just the start. Even though we started working on it only two months ago, we already have ambitious plans for the next edition. These involve developing native apps for mobile (Android and iOS) and a new version of the web app.

As I mentioned, the app's features were implemented experimentally. So we expect the face-scanning feature, activated through the camera, not to be supported on all smartphones. For these situations, at this point, we have an alternative solution, through which the user will be able to select their rating from a predefined set of emojis.

A message for TIFF festival-goers, from the team behind AcTIFF:

There's a line of code that reads you instantly. Skip the words and show us how you experienced the film.  We'll be waiting for you at www.actiff.ro.

Your feedback matters to us. We hope the AcTIFF app becomes an indispensable companion for you at future TIFF editions.