← The Film Reality

About

What this place is, how to use it, and why we built it. If something here is wrong or missing, tell us.

What is The Film Reality?

It's a place to keep track of every film, TV show, and soundtrack you've ever cared about. Log what you watch. Rate it. Write what you thought. Share it with people who actually pay attention.

If you've used Letterboxd, you'll find your way around in about thirty seconds. The big difference: we also track TV shows and soundtracks as first-class entries, not just films. So your Lana Del Rey-soundtracked rewatch of Lolita lives next to the Lana albums you've been spinning all year. Same shelf.

Getting started

Sign up with email or Google. Pick a username (it's the one in your URL, thefilmreality.com/@yourname). Set your favorite director, actor, review, and quote on your profile if you want. None of it's required. Then start logging.

If you'd rather take a guided tour of every feature before diving in, head to the Welcome page.

Logging things

How do I log a film, show, or soundtrack?

Hit the + ENTRY button in the top right. Search the title, pick a rating (or don't), add a review (or don't), and save. That's it. Films and shows come from TMDB; soundtracks come from Apple Music. If something's missing, search a slightly different spelling. If it's truly not in either database, email us and we'll get it added.

What are the diamonds?

Our rating system. Tap diamonds from 0 to 10, in half-point increments, so 7.5/10 looks like seven and a half filled diamonds. We use 10 instead of 5 because half-stars never gave us enough room. You can also leave the rating blank if you just want to log that you saw something without grading it.

Do I have to write a review?

No. You can log something with just a rating, or with neither, purely as a record of watching. Reviews can be a sentence, a paragraph, or a 2,000-word essay. Whatever fits.

What does "Watched with" do?

When you log a film, you can tag the friends you watched it with. They get a notification and can accept the tag. Once they do, the film appears in their diary too, linked to your review. Co-watched entries show both your faces on the review card.

Can I edit or delete an entry?

Yes. Go to your profile → tap the film/show/soundtrack → tap the three-dot menu → Edit or Delete. Deletes are permanent.

Lists, collections, watchlist

What's the difference between a collection and a watchlist?

Watchlist is the stuff you intend to watch. Collections are curated lists you build, like "Movies that ruined me in 2025," or "Films where someone gets shot in slow motion," whatever you want. Collections can be public or private. Watchlist is private to you.

Can I make a collection ranked?

Yes. When creating or editing a collection, toggle "Ranked." The order you arrange the entries becomes the order shown publicly.

Can I make a collection collaborative?

Not yet. Every collection has one owner. We're looking at adding co-curators later.

Soundtracks

Why soundtracks?

Because half of why a film hits is what's playing under it, and most places that track films don't take the music seriously. We do. Log scores, song-driven needle drops, the album someone built around a film, the same way you'd log the film itself.

Where does the music data come from?

Apple Music's iTunes catalog. Most major scores and album releases are there. If something's missing (usually deep-cut independent scores), let us know.

Discovery

How do I find stuff to watch?

Open the home page. Community Picks, Popular This Week, Films By Decade, Films By Color (yes, by color palette), and the Visual Media section if you want to browse stills and clips. The Community tab also surfaces what people you follow are watching.

Where can I actually watch a film I find?

On a film's detail page you'll see a "Where to Watch" panel. It lists the streaming services where it's currently available, based on your country. If none of your subscriptions have it, you'll see a "Not on your subscriptions" notice. You can edit which services you subscribe to in Settings.

Importing from Letterboxd

Can I bring my Letterboxd diary over?

Yes. On Letterboxd, go to Settings → Import & Export → Export Your Data. You'll get a ZIP. Then on The Film Reality, go to Settings → Data → Import from Letterboxd and upload the ZIP. Your diary, ratings, reviews, and watchlist all come across. The importer matches against TMDB, so a few obscure titles might need manual cleanup after.

What if my Letterboxd export has stuff that's in both my diary and my watchlist?

The importer cleans those up. Anything that's logged gets removed from the watchlist automatically. If you still see duplicates, sign out and back in to trigger a fresh sync.

Premium

Is The Film Reality free?

Yes. The core app (logging, rating, reviewing, lists, profiles, comments, watching activity) is free forever.

What does Premium give me?

A few things you'll feel: deeper statistics (your year-by-year breakdowns, genres, directors, decades), an ad-free experience, priority support, and a premium badge on your profile. We don't gate the basic experience behind it.

How do I cancel?

Settings → Premium → "Manage subscription." That opens the Stripe portal where you can cancel any time. You'll keep premium features through the end of the current billing period.

Community

Can I comment on reviews?

Yes, on reviews, articles, and other shared activity. Be civil. See our policies for the line.

How do I follow someone?

Visit their profile → tap Follow. If their account is set to private, they'll get a follow request and can approve or decline.

How do I block someone?

Their profile → three-dot menu → Block User. They can no longer find your profile, see your posts, or message you. They aren't notified.

How do I report a profile, review, or comment?

Three-dot menu on the offending item → Report → pick a reason → Send. Reports go straight to our moderation inbox. Most are reviewed within 24 hours. You can also email reports@thefilmreality.com directly with screenshots if it's complicated.

What happens to someone who breaks the rules?

Depending on what they did: their offending review text gets wiped (the rating stays), or the account gets suspended for 7 or 30 days, or terminated permanently. Terminated accounts can't be re-created using the same email through any sign-in method.

Account

Can I change my username?

Settings → Profile → edit "Username." Other people who linked to your profile will keep working. Old usernames redirect.

Can I make my profile private?

Yes. Settings → Privacy → toggle "Private profile." Only approved followers can see your activity.

How do I delete my account?

Settings → bottom of the page → "Delete account." You'll be asked to type your username to confirm. Your reviews, journal, lists, uploads, and profile are removed within 30 days. If you can't get into your account, email us and we'll handle it.

Will my reviews disappear if I delete my account?

Yes. Everything you posted gets removed. If you want to keep your reviews, export your data first (Settings → Data → Export).

Apps

Is there a mobile app?

The web app is built mobile-first. On iOS Safari, tap Share → "Add to Home Screen." You'll get an icon that launches like a native app, full-screen, no browser chrome. We're working on a real App Store release.

Does it work on Android, Windows, and desktop?

Yes. It's a web app, so anywhere with a modern browser. Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge all work.

Who built this?

A small team that watches too many films and listens to too many soundtracks. The product runs on Microsoft Azure (Canada Central), uses TMDB for film and TV metadata, and Apple Music for soundtracks. We're not VC-backed and we don't sell your data.

Anything else?

Email hello@thefilmreality.com for general questions, support@thefilmreality.com for bugs or billing, privacy@thefilmreality.com for data requests, or reports@thefilmreality.com for moderation.


© 2026 The Film Reality. See also: Welcome / Tour · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Support.