PÖFF has developed first-ever AI assistant and film recommender to the festival audiences

The brand new AI assistant and film recommender Susi knows the PÖFF programme inside out. Susi is dedicated to helping you find the films in the festival programme that match viewer's unique preferences.

The Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) is setting a groundbreaking precedent as one of the first film festivals in the world to adopt AI technology to enhance audience engagement. By integrating an AI-powered personal recommendation system, PÖFF is revolutionizing the festival experience, allowing viewers to navigate the festival's extensive film offerings in a more personalized and efficient way.

"One of the biggest challenges for A-category film festivals with over 250 feature films is that it's really time-consuming and complicated for a festival-goer to go through the entire festival programme and create a personal festival plan. Our AI film assistant makes this easier and fun," explains Mikk Granström, the Head of Administration at PÖFF.

The innovative approach taps into AI's ability to understand individual preferences, suggesting films tailored specifically to each attendee’s taste and requirements. "Therefore, a festival-goer can now avoid the overwhelming task of manually browsing through the schedule and instead let the AI recommend films based on their interests and previous favourites," says Granström.

The AI solution called Susi helps users not only discover new films but also select events from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event’s extensive conference and business programs​. Guests who attend our Industry events will be able to describe their topics and interests to AI, which will then make its recommendations on possible panels, events, workshops, etc to attend. 
  
Granström believes that using the benefits of AI technologies brings substantial growth, media attention, and a more streamlined experience for festival attendees​: "PÖFF is the first festival to provide such advanced AI-based assistance, making it a trailblazer in the global film festival scene. This AI system is not just a search tool but an interactive companion that communicates in multiple languages and offers insightful suggestions, making the festival more accessible to international audiences. That's why we call it Audience Intelligence, not Artificial Intelligence".

As AI optimizes marketing efforts by better understanding audience preferences, Granström also hopes to reduce advertising waste. "This leap into AI-driven festival experiences solidifies PÖFF's position as one of the world’s most forward-thinking and innovative festivals​," he proudly states. 

AI assistant Susi has been jointly created by PÖFF's IT department and the development company Acty with support from Tehnopol.