Here's My Theory: TV & Film Theory Builder
Summary
Here's My Theory is a theory-building platform inspired by detective-style investigation boards, designed for users who actively analyse TV shows and films as they watch. The product allows users to create structured 'case files' where they can log theories, attach evidence such as notes, images, or video references, and connect ideas visually. Unlike traditional discussion forums, Here'sMyTheory focuses on structured thinking and evolving narratives, enabling users to refine, discard, and rebuild theories over time. The long-term vision extends beyond personal tracking into a shared platform where users can explore, publish, and compare theories across shows, episodes, and alternative story interpretations.
The Challenge
The core challenge is designing an interface that balances flexibility with structure. The system must allow users to think freely and build complex connections between ideas without becoming overwhelming or difficult to navigate. There is also a technical challenge in modelling relationships between theories, evidence, and evolving states, while ensuring performance remains smooth as boards grow in complexity. From a product perspective, the challenge is transitioning from a single-user creative tool into a scalable community platform without losing clarity or usability.
Product Rationale
Visual thinking over text threads
The product replaces traditional discussion formats with a visual, node-based system that better reflects how users connect ideas and build theories.
Evolving narrative tracking
Users can refine, branch, and discard theories over time, mirroring how real-world thinking changes as new information becomes available.
Structured evidence system
Separating evidence from theories allows users to build more coherent arguments and avoid unstructured, hard-to-follow speculation.
Community-driven expansion
The long-term vision introduces shared boards, discoverability, and collaborative theory-building, transforming the product into a content platform.
Tech Stack
Key Decisions
Node-based interaction model: Adopted a visual graph approach using connected nodes to better represent relationships between ideas compared to traditional linear text formats.
Local-first MVP approach: Initial development focuses on single-user functionality with local storage to validate the interaction model before introducing backend complexity.
Phased platform evolution: The product is intentionally designed to evolve from a personal tool into a shared ecosystem, reducing early complexity while supporting long-term scalability.
Media-light evidence handling: External links (e.g. YouTube) are prioritised over heavy media uploads in early stages to simplify infrastructure and improve performance.
Project Notes
No two projects solve the same problem, so each case study emphasises different aspects of delivery depending on what was most relevant to the challenge. Supporting visuals and implementation details are included here to provide additional context behind the final outcome.
Visuals
