Project: Sofia Film Fest

Sofia Film Fest is one of the most recognisable international film festivals in Bulgaria and the wider region. The project brings together an extensive programme, news, archives, galleries, partners, teams, and multiple festival initiatives, all of which need to be presented clearly to audiences, partners, guests, and participants.

The project required the development of an integrated system consisting of four websites managed through a single central administration panel. The main challenge was to create a stable platform capable of handling a large volume of content, archiving information by year, providing individual control over each website, and supporting the team’s fast-paced work during the active festival period.

What Did We Develop?

We developed a custom multisite system that allows several connected festival websites to be managed through one administration panel.

The platform was designed around the specific requirements of Sofia Film Fest, where content is updated frequently, the programme changes with each edition, and the archive plays an important role in preserving the festival’s history and public presence.

The system provides individual control over each website, supports different types of content, and automatically organises information by year and website.

Key Features

The system includes:

• a complete structure of four connected websites;
• one administration panel for managing all websites;
• individual control over each website;
• automatic archiving of information by year and website;
• role-based access permissions;
• creation and management of programmes for individual events;
• management of news, pages, galleries, partners, and content sections;
• responsive design for the public-facing websites;
• responsive design for the administration panel;
• automated image resizing based on the required resolutions.

Key Technical Logic

One of the most important parts of the project was the development of a central administration panel capable of managing four separate websites while preserving individual control over each one.

This allows the team to work in a more organised way, maintain the different festival initiatives, and update information from one central location.

Another essential feature is the automatic archiving of content by year and website. This is particularly important for a festival platform, as each edition has its own programme, news, events, participants, galleries, and partners.

The system keeps this information organised and accessible without requiring the team to transfer and restructure content manually after every festival edition.

How Did We Support the Organisation?

The system provided Sofia Film Fest with a stable digital environment for managing a large volume of festival content.

The solution enabled the team to bring several websites into one manageable structure, maintain clearer control over the individual festival initiatives, and keep information about programmes, news, archives, and events up to date.

The platform reduced fragmented work across separate websites and improved organisation during both the preparation and delivery of the festival.

Role-based permissions allow responsibilities to be distributed across the team, while the automated archive creates long-term value by preserving the history of each edition.

Technologies Used

The project was developed using:

• PHP;
• HTML5;
• CSS3;
• SASS;
• JavaScript;
• jQuery;
• responsive UI;
• a custom administration panel and public-facing websites.

The technical architecture was designed with a focus on stability, efficient management of large volumes of content, flexible control over individual websites, and future expansion based on the festival’s evolving requirements.

The Result

Through this development by the WEBiDEI team, Sofia Film Fest received a complete multisite system combining four websites, a central administration panel, programme management, archives, role-based permissions, and automated image processing within one stable digital environment.

The solution provided the team with improved organisation, easier content management, and clearer control over each festival initiative.

The platform established a technical foundation that supports the daily management of the websites and the long-term preservation and presentation of Sofia Film Fest’s history.