As part of the recruitment process with Tigerspike in Dubai, I was asked to perform a timeboxed design exercise. They asked for it to be for a local film festival, Android-first and for me to present my progress after 8 hours. Now, for me to complete as much as possible - and as intelligent and efficient as possible - I decided to timebox my usual design process as follows: Ideation (0.5 hr), Discovery (1.5 hrs), Sketch (1.0 hr), Design (4.0 hrs) and Presentation (1.0 hr).
Although my ideation spurred a multitude of ideas - such as enabling logging in via Netflix to get recommendations based on one's ratings and viewing history, or that the organization could host special members-only screenings to help promote membership signups - I opted to focus on the following ideas since they would apply to everyone: 1) Pick Your Seat - Similar to a concert or a show, it would be great if the user could pick their seat. This way, they’ll know what’s available, what to expect, and leave extra room for them to get popcorn instead of standing anxiously in line; and 2) My Tickets - In our day of age, this is almost a necessity. However, to make the screen seem less transactional, I replicated the look and feel of an actual movie ticket, which they would be able to use in the theater.
I won't go too much into the designs, as they are early works-in-progress, but I focused on clarity, consistency and kept thinking what possible iterations and synergies there could be now. Also, I rushed to show how similar the experience could be on an iPhone, which basically would be the same but with some slight alterations in the native controls.
The outcome? I got the job with Tigerspike! It was a fantastic opportunity with amazing people, but we had to return because of lacking resources for our 5-year old son who has autism. It was a great learning experience though, and I got to spearhead an initiative for Dubai Tourism and the Sheikh of Dubai.