28/01/2009

The UK Film Council (UKFC) has launched FindAnyFilm.com, a free film search engine that will allow users to find out when, where and how a film is available in the UK – legally and across all formats and platforms. The site has 30,000 film records in different world languages and is expanding daily.

Peter Buckingham, head of Distribution and Exhibition at the UKFC said, “This new site is going to transform how consumers find the films they want to watch – we will soon wonder how we ever coped without it. We have turned what was often an incredibly time-consuming, frustrating process into one that makes it much easier for film fans to see films in the UK. FindAnyFilm.com does exactly what it says on the tin and is the fastest place to find a film to watch in any format, if it’s legally available in the UK.”

Lord Puttnam, the president of the Film Distributors Association, said, “I am delighted that the UK Film Council has developed this innovative and user-friendly site to make it that much easier for people to find films in a digital age.”

Since there is no standardised feed format across the film industry, the site works off custom feed aggregation software that automatically updates when new content is available. FindAnyFilm is based on the Google Search Appliance technology and aggregates data in XML feed format from over 1,200 different sources.

Buckingham adds, “The launch of FindAnyFilm.com comes at a time where everything points to the massive popularity of film, with UK box office takings growing five per cent to a record £949 million last year. FindAnyFilm.com will help more people find and enjoy more films.”