Apply4 is the largest film and event booking application in the world, issuing permits to TV and film production companies on behalf of local authorities and controlling impact on communities.
Challenge
Following the initial success of their flagship product, filmapp.org, Apply4 were beginning to encounter growing pains. Having used a succession of agencies to create their original offering, the company wanted to expand the product and establish a long lasting relationship with a digital partner in order to extend their reach internationally.
The brief was to maintain the existing software filmapp.org and simultaneously rebuild the whole system into an intuitive app that could easily be sold to, and used by, clients around the world.
With budget an important factor Apply4 were searching for an experienced team, who understood the process of taking an MVP (minimum viable product) and, once validated, transforming it into a commercial strength application.
Solution
We assigned one .NET developer to the existing platform filmapp.org to maintain the system for its 10,000 plus users and add functionality as required.
Simultaneously, we launched the rebuilding process, with an initial technical audit of the app to really get under the skin of the platform and discover any potential limitations of the current solution’s technical debt.
Our first MVP was an app, built using Ruby on Rails, to manage road closures for the City of Atlanta in Georgia. We completed the product within four weeks at the beginning of 2015 and it’s still in use today managing thousands of applications a year.
Once completed and validated we used this initial project as a base to begin roadmapping future work, taking into consideration workflows, user stories and improved functionality, ensuring scalability and a seamless customer experience.
Working in an agile framework, on a sprint by sprint basis, we continue to maintain and improve the functionality and user experience of the Apply4 platform. A permanent team of 3 Evolved developers and a dedicated project manager are supplemented, when necessary, from our pool of experts for UI and UX consultancy.
Impact
Apply4 is now an integral part of civic planning and management in cinegenic locations across more than 20 cities in the UK and USA.
Most London boroughs now use the system, along with authorities in Manchester, Cardiff and Liverpool. In America Pittsburgh, Seattle and Atlanta have been early adopters, while a role call of productions using the platform includes Harry Potter, James Bond, Hunger Games, Paddington Bear and the Walking Dead.
Over the last 3 years Apply4 has become the ‘go to’ app for government organisations to control the impact of film and TV production on local communities.
Testimonials
Andy Pavord - Apply 4
I could easily say that all this would not have happened without the cooperation of Evolved Teams.
Future
Apply4 remains very much a work in progress, with Evolved Teams being the company’s preferred development partner.
In 2018 we plan to launch in over 50 new locations across the US and UK. We will be rolling out a series of new features, including an updated super admin interface, multilingual functionality and a number of front end UX improvements.