Section 2.3: Custom Intake Forms

Organizations can build, customize, and publish Custom Producer Request Forms to streamline project intake. These forms allow external producers, corporate partners, or internal departments to submit project briefs and project parameters directly to your organization. Once submitted, requests arrive in your central inbox, where they can be reviewed, edited, approved, and converted into active projects.

1. The Custom Project Request Builder Interface

The Intake Form Builder is a visual workspace located under Organization Settings > Intake Form Builder. It features an interactive, real-time preview of the form alongside configuration panels to customize standard fields, add new custom questions, and set up field mapping.

Standard Fields Configuration

Standard fields are core project parameters that are pre-mapped to the primary project properties. Administrators can toggle whether each field is Enabled (visible on the form) and Required (mandatory to submit):

• Description / Scope of Work: A long text field for the requester to outline the project’s main objectives and details.
• Estimated Budget: A budget or number selector to define financial constraints.
• Target Start & End Dates: Date pickers to establish the requested project timeline.
• Target Start & End Times: Hour and minute selectors, particularly helpful for event-based shoots or scheduled broadcasts.
• Attachment / Project Brief: A file upload section allowing producers to attach PDFs, creative briefs, scripts, or reference materials.

Custom Fields & Layout Management

If the standard fields do not capture all the necessary details, administrators can add custom questions:

1. Interactive Controls: Click Add Custom Field to create a new question block in the builder.
2. Reordering & Deleting: Drag questions by their reorder handles to rearrange the form layout. Click the trash icon to remove a custom field.
3. Question Settings: For each custom field, administrators configure:
   • Question Label: The text shown to the producer (e.g., "What camera package do you prefer?").
   • Placeholder / Help Text: Ghost text inside the input or descriptions below the field to guide the requester.
   • Mandatory Toggle: Mark the field as required to prevent form submission with missing information.

2. Field Types & Configurations

The form builder supports four distinct field types, allowing you to collect structured data from requesters:

• Text: Best for short, single-line answers. Examples include contact names, reference codes, producer account numbers, or billing IDs.
• Number: Allows numbers only. Ideal for gathering quantifiable metrics, such as the number of crew members needed, the anticipated length of a shoot in hours, or quantity estimates.
• Paragraph: Provides a long text field. Recommended for open-ended questions, such as listing artistic references, detailing the background of a brand, or providing specific safety instructions.
• Dropdown: Restricts input to a defined set of options to ensure data consistency.
  • Configuration: Administrators enter options separated by commas or newlines in the builder settings.
  • User Experience: Requesters click the dropdown to choose from the specified options, preventing free-form entries and spelling discrepancies.

3. Domain Gating & Security Controls

To prevent spam and ensure only authorized corporate producers or internal users can submit requests, organizations can configure access control rules:

• Form Active Status: A global toggle that takes the form online or offline. If disabled, the public link displays a polite custom message indicating the form is currently closed to new requests.
• Restrict Email Domains: Restricts form submissions to specific email domains (e.g., producercompany.com, partnerstudio.org).
  • Configuration: Enter approved domains as a comma-separated list.
  • User Experience: When a requester enters their email, the system validates the domain. If it does not match the approved list, the form blocks submission and displays a clear message asking them to use their corporate email address.

4. Field Mapping & AI Requirements Scoping

One of the most powerful features of the Custom Intake Form is the ability to map custom questions directly to Project Requirements. This mapping allows the platform's AI engine to automatically scope, schedule, and match resources when a request is approved.

Mapping Targets

When creating or editing a custom field, administrators can select one of the following mapping targets:

1. Required Skills: Maps the selected answer(s) directly to the project's crew skills list. For example, if a dropdown question asks "What crew roles do you need?" and the requester selects "Director of Photography", that role is automatically added as a skill requirement. The AI engine then references this list to scan your internal roster and find available crew members.
2. Required Gear/Equipment: Maps responses directly to equipment requirements. This automatically checks the availability of cameras, lenses, or kits in your storage locations and locks them in to prevent double-booking.
3. Software Requirements: Maps tools or software suites (e.g., Premiere, Figma, DaVinci Resolve) to the project profile. The AI matching system uses this to suggest post-production specialists who are experienced in those specific tools.
4. On-site Locations: Appends physical addresses or venue names to the project's shoot locations.
5. Creative Styles: Appends style, genre, or mood tags to the project's visual details.
6. Description Only: Appends both the question and the user's answer to the bottom of the master project description.
7. Custom Information: Saves the input as custom project details, accessible in the project details panel.

AI Engine Scoping

When a form is submitted with mapped targets, the AI engine parses the inputs. Instead of manually creating crew slots, equipment lists, and software requirements, the AI engine processes these mappings to build a pre-configured project scope. This enables instant talent matching and equipment conflict checks as soon as the project is approved.

5. Shareable Public Request Page

Every organization is assigned a unique, public-facing portal link: https://app.abram.network/request/your-organization-name

• Auto-Fill Authentication: The form is publicly accessible. However, if an active team member or producer who is already signed in to the platform visits the page, their name, email, and company details are auto-filled.
• Secure Document Uploads: Files uploaded to the form are transferred to a secure storage workspace.
• Submission Reference ID: Upon successful submission, the system generates a unique reference number (e.g., Request #024) and displays a success screen to the requester.

6. Project Request Inbox & Conversion Process

All incoming submissions land in the central Project Request Inbox under Organization Settings > Request Inbox.

Reviewing Incoming Submissions

• Search & Filter: Search by requester name, project title, or reference ID, and filter requests by status (Pending, Approved, Rejected).
• Visual Inspection: Click any request to open a details pane displaying all standard fields, custom answers, and uploaded files.

The Conversion & Approval Workflow

When you decide to proceed with a request, click Approve & Convert to launch the automated project setup process:

1. Active Project Generation: The system creates a new project and places it in the Planning stage.
2. Assign Project Owner: The administrator is prompted to select a Project Owner from the organization's team members.
3. Description Formatting: All custom questions and answers are compiled and appended to the project's main description, divided by a clear layout separator.
4. Requirement Ingestion: Mapped answers (Skills, Equipment, Software) are extracted and populated into the project's active requirement boards.
5. Brief Integration & AI Memory:
   • Uploaded briefs and scripts are automatically saved to your project's secure documents folder.
   • The AI Assistant reads and understands these files immediately, allowing your team to ask questions and search the documents inside the project workspace.
6. Requester Notification: The request status is updated to Approved, and the platform sends a confirmation email to the requester, notifying them that their project is now active.