How It Works

spotlight.cam helps dancers at West Coast Swing events find recording partners and exchange competition videos. No more running around looking for someone to film your heat – let the platform do the matching for you!

Getting Started

1Create Your Account

Register with your email, choose a username, and verify your email address. You can optionally link your WSDC ID to auto-fill your profile with competition data from worldsdc.com.

2Complete Your Profile

Add your name, location, and social media links. Upload a profile picture so other dancers can recognize you at the event. The more complete your profile, the easier it is to connect with other participants!

Beta Testers: During our beta period, all new registrations automatically receive SUPPORTER status, giving you priority in the auto-matching system. Look for the ✨ badge next to your username!

At the Event

3Check In to the Event

Find your event in the Events list and click "Check In". This lets other participants know you're at the event and available to help. You can check in anytime during the event – even before it officially starts.

4Join the Event Chat

Once checked in, you can join the event chat room. This is where all the magic happens:

Getting Recording Partners

There are two ways to get someone to record your heats:

5AAuto-Matching (Recommended)

If the event organizer has set up competition heats in the system, you can use auto-matching:

  1. Go to the Recording tab on the event page
  2. Browse through your competition heats
  3. The system will automatically suggest recording partners based on:
    • Who's free when you're dancing (they're not competing at the same time)
    • Who hasn't been matched yet
    • Fair distribution – everyone helps, everyone gets help
  4. Accept a suggestion and you're matched!

Fairness System: The auto-matching algorithm tracks how many recordings you've done versus received. If you help others record, you'll get priority when you need someone to record you. It's all about community karma! SUPPORTER and COMFORT tier users get even higher priority.

5BManual Match Request

Prefer to choose your own partner? No problem:

  1. Go to the Participants tab
  2. Click on any participant's name to view their profile
  3. Click "Send Match Request"
  4. Wait for them to accept

You can send match requests to anyone who's checked in to the event. They'll get a notification and can accept or decline.

Recording & Exchanging Videos

6Chat with Your Match

Once matched, you get a private 1:1 chat with your recording partner. Use it to:

7Record the Heat

This is the fun part – you're helping a fellow dancer capture their competition moment! Record their heat on your phone, then head back to the platform.

8Send the Video (P2P Transfer)

Here's where spotlight.cam gets technical (in a good way):

  1. In your match chat, click "Send File"
  2. Select the video from your phone
  3. The platform uses WebRTC to send it directly from your device to theirs
  4. No uploading to servers, no waiting, no storage limits
  5. Progress bar shows how the transfer is going

Why P2P? Your videos never touch our servers – they go straight from your phone to your partner's phone. This means faster transfers, better privacy, and no file size limits. We've tested transfers up to 700MB+!

After the Exchange

9Rate Your Partner

Once you've exchanged videos, you can rate your experience:

Ratings help build trust in the community and let others know who's reliable, helpful, and easy to work with. Plus, it helps the fairness algorithm work better for everyone!

10View Your History

Check your History page to see:

Features Overview

Real-Time Chat

Smart Matching

P2P Video Transfer

Public Profiles

Tips for Success

Need Help?

If you run into any issues or have questions, check out:

Ready to get started? Create your account and join the community!