ZANOA: Film Platform — Design & Development in 8 Months
Product Development · ZANOA · Launched February 13, 2026
From idea to platform — in 8 months
ZANOA is a modern film collaboration platform that connects filmmakers, actors, and creatives. DeViLink took full responsibility for design, development, and infrastructure — as development partner and co-investor.
What is ZANOA?
ZANOA is a platform for the modern film industry — a hub that brings together filmmakers, actors, producers, and creatives. With over 4 million integrated film credits from The Movie Database (TMDB), ZANOA gives professional filmmakers a unique way to digitally showcase their portfolio, build connections, and develop projects together.
The idea came from Joshua Kantara — actor and visionary, who identified the gap in the industry: there was no modern platform tailored to filmmakers that combined portfolio management, collaboration, and networking. Together with Dr. Andrea Speidel as investor and DeViLink as development partner, that vision became reality.
The partners behind ZANOA
Joshua Kantara
Actor and founder of ZANOA. Joshua brought deep industry knowledge, a strong network and a clear product vision — from first-hand experience as a professional filmmaker.
Dr. Andrea Speidel
Investor and strategic partner. Dr. Speidel contributed entrepreneurial expertise and capital — with the goal of establishing ZANOA as the leading platform for the European film industry.
DeViLink
Development partner and co-investor. DeViLink took full technical ownership — design, frontend, backend, infrastructure — and accompanies the platform as a long-term partner through every growth phase.
Our role: full product ownership
With ZANOA, DeViLink wasn't just a service provider — we took complete technical product responsibility. From the first UX sketch to the production Kubernetes cluster.
Complete design system, user experience research, prototyping and final UI design for iOS and Android — one full-time designer on the team throughout the entire project.
Native mobile app development with React Native — a shared codebase for both platforms, with native performance and App Store release.
Robust backend in Java Spring Boot, REST API, PostgreSQL database design, TMDB integration (4M+ film credits) and additional external services.
Kubernetes cluster on OVH, fully managed by DeViLink. CI/CD pipelines, automated deployments, monitoring and scalability for future growth.
Coordination between Germany and Vietnam. Agile sprints, weekly reviews with the partners, transparent stakeholder management.
Since the launch on February 13, 2026, the team continuously develops ZANOA further — new features, growing user base, infrastructure scaling.
The tech stack
ZANOA was built on a modern, scalable stack — designed to iterate quickly while preparing the infrastructure for a growing user base.
📱 Frontend
- → React Native (iOS & Android)
- → Cross-Platform Codebase
- → Native App Performance
- → App Store & Play Store
⚙️ Backend
- → Java Spring Boot
- → PostgreSQL
- → REST API
- → TMDB Integration (4M+ Credits)
☁️ Infrastructure
- → OVH Cloud
- → Kubernetes (managed by DeViLink)
- → CI/CD Pipelines
- → Automated Monitoring
👥 Team
- → 2 Full-time developers (Vietnam & Germany)
- → 2 Flexible on-demand developers
- → 1 Full-time designer
- → PM in Germany
From idea to launch — 8 months
We started with project setup in June 2025. On February 13, 2026, ZANOA went live — in the App Stores and ready for the first users.
Kick-off, UX research, requirements analysis, architecture decisions. Team formation and development environment setup.
Complete design system in Figma, interactive prototypes, user testing with early filmmakers.
App development in React Native, backend in Java Spring Boot, TMDB integration, PostgreSQL setup. First internal test builds.
Closed beta testing, bug fixing, performance optimization, App Store review process for iOS and Android.
ZANOA goes live — available in the App Store and Google Play. The platform opens for the first cohort of filmmakers.
The team continuously develops ZANOA — new features, growing community, infrastructure scaling.
The cost breakdown
ZANOA is a complete product — design, mobile app, backend, infrastructure, 8 months of development. What would this have cost at a typical German digital agency?
What makes ZANOA special
ZANOA is not a generic social media app. The platform is designed from the ground up for professional filmmakers — with features no other platform offers.
Integration with The Movie Database (TMDB): filmmakers can link their real production credits to their ZANOA profile, authentically documenting their professional career.
Not an Instagram-like feed — but a structured, professional portfolio that puts the strengths and experience of each filmmaker front and center.
Filmmakers can search for other creatives, build connections and work on projects together — the hub for the modern film industry.
iOS and Android app with native performance — built with React Native for a shared codebase without compromising user experience.
Germany meets Vietnam: how the collaboration worked
The ZANOA project demonstrates how seamlessly collaboration between Germany and Vietnam can work — when processes, tools and communication are right.
Germany: PM & Strategy
Project management, stakeholder coordination, sprint planning and direct contact with Joshua Kantara and Dr. Andrea Speidel.
Vietnam: Core Development
Full-time developers and designer in Vietnam — fast, reliable and significantly more cost-effective than comparable resources in Germany.
On-Demand Scaling
For peak phases and specialized tasks, two additional developers were flexibly brought in — exactly when the demand required it.
Do you have a product idea we should build together?
ZANOA shows what's possible when experienced project management from Germany and strong development capacity from Vietnam come together. Whether app, web platform or enterprise software — we develop your product from idea to launch.
Design, development, infrastructure — everything from one source. No coordination between different agencies.
Through our Vietnam team, we significantly reduce development costs — without compromising quality or project transparency.
Like with ZANOA, we accompany your product beyond launch — as a partner, not a temporary service provider.
