I conducted user research to gain insights into theatre operators' and employees' needs and preferences.

I interviewed theatre managers, employees, and industry experts to understand their current methods for monitoring and preventing piracy attempts. My research revealed that current anti-piracy measures are time-consuming, often requiring manual monitoring of every screening. As a result, resources can be stretched to the limits, and employees may experience burnout. I also learned that there needs to be more visibility into historical piracy attempts, making it difficult to track patterns and identify potential threats.

Based on my findings, I created an empathy map to gather and organize relevant information and better understand the user's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors as a theater employee trying to combat piracy. In addition, this empathy map allowed me to develop a persona, which was used as a reference throughout the design decision-making process.

I conducted research on piracy trends and identified key demographics, motivations, and behaviors of employees. With this information, I developed a persona that represents a typical staff member, including their age, gender, occupation, and interests.

After conducting research, I began brainstorming and developing concepts for Omni. I aimed to design a mobile application that would provide a proactive solution to piracy prevention while streamlining theatre operations and reducing the burden on employees.

I started by sketching out initial ideas on paper and exploring different approaches to the user interface and functionality. I then created wireframes of the most promising concepts, which allowed me to test and refine my ideas before investing too much time and resources into the design.

My initial concepts focused on features such as real-time monitoring of screenings, automated system responses to piracy attempts, and historical tracking of piracy attempts. I also explored features that would improve theatre operations, such as staff management tools and real-time data analytics.

I continued to refine the application's features by iterating on designs and applying feedback from colleagues, using sketching, wireframing, and user testing to create a solid foundation for the final design.

Building on the insights gained from my research and ideation phases, I began designing the user interface and experience for Omni. I started by creating a visual design language for the application, including typography, color palettes, and iconography. The design language was influenced by the theatre industry, with a focus on bold and dramatic visuals.

Next, I created high-fidelity mockups of the application, which allowed me to refine the user interface and experience in detail.

Finally, I tested the mockups with a group of theatre employees, gathering feedback and making revisions as necessary. One of the critical design challenges I faced was balancing the need for a powerful and feature-rich application with simplicity and ease of use.

In conclusion, I created Omni, a mobile application that prevents real-time piracy attempts while managing theatre operations. My research, ideation, design, testing, and iteration phases helped me develop a practical and user-friendly application. 

Omni was recently nominated and awarded at the American Advertising Awards, receiving a Silver Addy in the App (Mobile or Web-based App) category and a Bronze Addy in the Digital Creative Technology category.