FW Editor: How and when did you start writing the code for Coollector? What inspired you the most? Do you plan to develop new software, or are you more focused on optimizing the current ones?
Pascal Baspeyras: More than 10 years ago, as a movie buff and a programmer, I've started creating myself a tool to track which movies I had watched, and how much I had enjoyed them. The data about each movie was downloaded automatically from the IMDb (the internet movie database). At that time, no program could do that. That kind of program would appear only several years later (and I didn't even notice immediatly). Anyway, as my program became more and more powerful, I've decided to share it with others. But I was afraid that by going public, I'd get into legal troubles with the IMDb. I had to rethink the concept of the program... I became an affiliate of Amazon and CDuniverse: they would provide me with movie information, and I would send them customers. A win-win situation, even for the users, who get a free program without being forced to shop if they don't want to. In its current state, I think the program is pretty decent. But it's nothing compared to the many improvements I have in mind. I will never develop another program, because Coollector has the potential to keep me busy until I'm old and retired.

FW Editor: Coollector is a unique concept. What determinate you to develop such a software?
Pascal Baspeyras: I think Coollector is unique because, right from the start, I did it my own way, without looking around. It's like a species that evolved apart from the other species. I regularly think to myself that I should force myself to survey the competing programs a little more, but the fact is that they don't interest me.

FW Editor: Coollector comes with an impressive movies collection. How many titles are stored in Coollector?
Pascal Baspeyras: We're currently at more than 70,000 movies and series. We add roughly 1,000 each month.

FW Editor: It is possible to play movies using Coollector?
Pascal Baspeyras: Yes, if you have video files on your computer, you can associate them with the corresponding movies. The program can even make the associations automatically for you. And once associated, you can launch the file by clicking the "play" icon, and it'll be played by your favorite video player. It's even possible to use the program as a media center, controlled with your PC remote.

FW Editor: Is there any customer support service for Coollector users?
Pascal Baspeyras: Yes, there's a support forum, where I try to always respond quickly. The feedback we get from our users is very important for us.

FW Editor: What is your favorite Coollector feature and why?
Pascal Baspeyras: It's not really a feature, it's rather the completely unique synergy of features that you can observe when using this swiss-army knife for movie lovers.

FW Editor: Can you tell us more about this feature? Why it is so important? Is Coollector the same without it?
Pascal Baspeyras: Well, while I manage my collection of videos, I discover new movies. While I rate movies, I discover that I'm a fan of this actor or that director, and that there's one of his movies that I'd like to see, and that there's a cheap DVD available, etc... Even for deciding what to watch on TV or in theaters, I use Coollector. I consider this synergy as the major strength of our concept.

FW Editor: Coollector is a one of a kind software. You did a great job in developing it. Thank you for your time and for this interview.
Pascal Baspeyras: Thank YOU for YOUR time. It's a great honor to be interviewed by FamousWhy.