Senior Backend Developer (Java + Web) at Letterboxd · Auckland

About Letterboxd

Letterboxd is where film lovers connect. Often described as Goodreads for movies, we are a global platform for film discovery, discussion and community, with millions of members around the world using Letterboxd to track, rate, review and share their love of film.

We are proudly independent, product-led and thoughtful about how we grow. We care about craft, simplicity and building things well. Our team is made up of smart, curious people who enjoy solving meaningful problems together and creating a product that people genuinely love.

About the role

We are looking for a Senior Backend Developer specialising in Java and web development to join our engineering team.

This role is best suited to developers with strong backend Java and web development experience.

You will play a key role in developing and enhancing Letterboxd’s backend platform and web applications, building scalable, maintainable software and helping the team deliver high quality work consistently. You will also support planning, contribute to code quality and provide guidance to less experienced engineers.

This is a senior individual contributor role for someone who enjoys solving complex backend problems, with an eye for detail; writing clean code and working closely with others to build reliable products that last.

This role is unlikely to suit applicants whose experience is primarily front-end or broad full-stack development without deep backend Java capability.

What you’ll do

• Build and improve features across Letterboxd’s backend Java platform and web applications
• Write clear, scalable, maintainable, well-structured Java code that follows team standards and good engineering practice
• Design, develop and support backend services and APIs
• Work with relational databases as part of core product development, investigate and resolve performance and scaling issues
• Test your work, fix bugs and troubleshoot complex technical issues
• Contribute to releases and help ensure deployments run smoothly through environments
• Investigate production issues, identify root causes and deliver thoughtful fixes
• Take part in code reviews and provide practical support to other engineers
• Contribute to project planning and technical discussions across the engineering team
• Help capture learnings and technical decisions in a way that builds shared knowledge
• Collaborate with the wider development team to support integration across web and mobile platforms

What we’re looking for

You are a senior engineer with strong backend Java capability, working with the Java web stack and relational databases, and a track record of building production systems well. You care about maintainability, performance and quality and you enjoy helping others lift their game.

You’ll likely bring:

• 5 to 10+ years of commercial experience building production systems with Java and relational databases
• Strong experience designing and implementing APIs, including backend and client-side integration
• Solid experience with backend web technologies including HTTP, JSP/Servlets and JAX-RS
• Strong debugging and troubleshooting skills across complex systems
• Experience contributing to code reviews, planning and technical support for other engineers
• Good judgement, attention to detail and a practical approach to solving problems
• Strong communication skills and the ability to work well with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• The ability to manage priorities and work effectively in a fast-moving environment

Our current tech stack includes

• Java
• PostgreSQL
• JSP
• HTML
• JavaScript / TypeScript
• APIs and web services

Why join Letterboxd

• Work on a product with a passionate global community
• Join a thoughtful, highly capable team that cares about doing good work
• Have real influence on the quality and direction of what we build
• Work in an environment that values collaboration, curiosity and continuous improvement
• Enjoy flexibility and meaningful work with visible impact

Interested?

We’d love to hear from you. Click Apply Now!