SetScout Connect
A two-sided marketplace that connects production teams with property owners to discover, shortlist, and book film-ready locations.
Client
SetScout
Duration
22 weeks
Key Result
70% faster location discovery
70%
Faster location discovery
500+
Listed locations
3×
More host inquiries
<2s
Search response time
Gallery
A closer look at the project
Project Overview
The Challenge & Opportunity
Location scouting has long relied on fragmented spreadsheets, cold outreach, and opaque booking workflows that slow productions and frustrate property owners. SetScout Connect unifies discovery, communication, and reservations in one platform—helping filmmakers find distinctive backdrops faster while giving hosts a professional channel to list and monetize their spaces.
Business Goals
- Build a searchable marketplace for production-ready locations across regions
- Streamline inquiry, messaging, and booking with transparent pricing
- Give property owners self-service tools to manage listings and availability
- Support productions of all sizes—from indie shoots to commercial crews
- Reduce manual coordination and hidden costs in the scouting process
Challenges
- Modeling diverse location types with flexible metadata and media galleries
- Designing trust and verification flows for both filmmakers and hosts
- Handling real-time availability, holds, and booking conflicts at scale
- Integrating secure payments and payouts across multiple stakeholders
- Delivering fast search and map-based discovery over a growing catalog
Our Solution
We architected a domain-driven microservices platform on ASP.NET with a Next.js and React frontend for high-performance browsing and host dashboards. MongoDB stores flexible listing profiles and search indexes, while Stripe powers deposits, booking payments, and host payouts. CI/CD pipelines enable rapid iteration as the marketplace expands into new markets.
Tech Stack
Technologies Used
Features
What We Built
Advanced search and map-based location discovery
Rich listing profiles with photos, specs, and production notes
In-platform messaging between crews and property owners
Transparent booking workflow with availability calendars
Stripe-powered payments, deposits, and host payouts
Host dashboard for listings, inquiries, and reservation management
Role-based access for producers, location managers, and owners
Process
How We Delivered
Discovery
Interviewed location managers, producers, and property owners to map end-to-end scouting workflows.
Domain Design
Defined bounded contexts for listings, bookings, messaging, and payments using DDD principles.
Development
Built microservices API, Next.js marketplace frontend, and host tools in parallel sprints.
Integration
Connected Stripe billing, notification services, and search indexing for production readiness.
Launch
Onboarded pilot hosts and production partners, then expanded catalog coverage region by region.
Outcomes
Results That Matter
- Production teams replaced manual outreach with a centralized scouting workflow.
- Property owners gained steady inbound interest without broker intermediaries.
- Booking transparency reduced last-minute location conflicts and budget overruns.
“SetScout Connect cut our location search from weeks to days. The booking flow is clear for both our crew and property owners.”
Elena Vasquez
Head of Production, Northline Media
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