Without A Box
Withoutabox was an online film festival submission platform, founded in 2000 and operated as an Amazon subsidiary, that connected independent filmmakers with festivals worldwide before ceasing operations on October 30, 2019.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersStudio City, United States
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Without A Box does
Withoutabox was an online film festival submission service founded in 2000 by David Straus and Joe Neulight, operating from Studio City, California. The platform functioned as a centralized marketplace where independent filmmakers could submit their films to multiple film festivals worldwide through a single application process, while festivals used the service to discover and curate talent from a global pool of submissions. The two-sided value proposition targeted pain points on both sides — reducing submission friction for filmmakers and broadening the discovery surface for festival programmers.
Withoutabox was wholly owned by Amazon and operated as a subsidiary ("An Amazon Company"), with its product tightly coupled to broader Amazon media properties including IMDb and Amazon Video Direct. The service appears to have monetized via submission fees paid by filmmakers to festivals, though no pricing model or revenue figures are disclosed in the source data. The underlying technology was a standard web-based submission management platform; no proprietary AI/ML capabilities, patents, or advanced technical components are documented.
In October 2018, Amazon announced the decision to phase out Withoutabox, and the service was officially discontinued on October 30, 2019. The shutdown page redirected filmmakers to IMDb Pro tools and Amazon Video Direct, indicating that the parent absorbed residual use cases into its existing properties rather than maintaining the standalone platform.
Without A Box firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Without A Box
- Legal name
- Withoutabox
- Website
- https://withoutabox.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Closed
- Short description
- Withoutabox was an online film festival submission platform, founded in 2000 and operated as an Amazon subsidiary, that connected independent filmmakers with festivals worldwide before ceasing operations on October 30, 2019.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Without A Box industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Film Festival Submission Platform
- NAICS
- Motion Picture and Video Exhibition (51213)
- SIC
- Services-Allied To Motion Picture Production (7819)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Film Festivals & Festival Organizers (MPADAKAD)
Keywords
Where Without A Box is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Studio City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Without A Box business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Without A Box product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Withoutabox operated an online application submission service that allowed independent filmmakers to submit their films to multiple film festivals worldwide through a single, centralized application process. The platform also enabled film festivals to discover, review, and curate talent from a global pool of submissions, integrating with Amazon's IMDb and Amazon Video Direct offerings for filmmaker profile management and distribution. The service was discontinued on October 30, 2019.
Product overview
Without A Box (Withoutabox) was a film festival submission platform that connected independent filmmakers with film festivals worldwide. The service was discontinued as of October 30, 2019, following an announcement in October 2018. The platform previously allowed filmmakers to submit their work to multiple festivals through a single application process and enabled film festivals to discover and evaluate talent. As an Amazon Company, the service also integrated with Amazon's video distribution offerings.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Withoutabox Film Festival Submission Platform Centralized online platform that enabled independent filmmakers to submit films to multiple film festivals through a single application process and allowed film festivals to discover, review, and curate global talent submissions. The service also linked to IMDb profile management and Amazon Video Direct distribution.
Companies that use Without A Box
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Without A Box technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Without A Box partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- AmazoncoreWithoutabox was an Amazon Company, operating as a subsidiary of Amazon. The platform served as a filmmaker submission service for film festivals and was owned by Amazon. The service was phased out in October 2019.
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights1 record
Without A Box competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Short of the Week: Short of the Week is a curated short-film discovery platform serving independent filmmakers seeking festival-style exposure, operating in the same indie filmmaker–film curator discovery niche.
- Coverfly: Coverfly operates a centralized submission platform for screenplays to contests, competitions, and fellowships, mirroring Withoutabox's submission-aggregation model for a different but adjacent creative community (screenwriters vs. filmmakers).
Direct peers
- FilmFreeway: FilmFreeway is the dominant film festival submission platform that grew into the role Withoutabox previously occupied, offering filmmakers a centralized interface to submit to thousands of festivals globally and providing festivals with submission management tooling.
- Festival Scope: Festival Scope offers online film festival screenings and a curated discovery platform for filmmakers and audiences, operating in the same film festival–filmmaker matchmaking niche that Withoutabox served.
- Eventive: Eventive provides all-in-one film festival management software covering submissions, scheduling, virtual screenings, and ticketing—overlapping with Withoutabox's submission-management functionality and extending into downstream festival operations.
Broad incumbents
- Vimeo: Vimeo is widely used by independent filmmakers to host, distribute, and showcase short films for festival circuits, providing overlapping functionality in filmmaker video hosting and festival discovery/submission tooling.
- IMDbPro: IMDbPro, the Amazon-owned professional service for filmmakers and talent, absorbed part of Withoutabox's intended user journey post-shutdown (career management, industry contacts) and represents the in-house Amazon replacement for portions of the workflow.
- Sundance Film Festival: The Sundance Institute operates one of the most prominent independent film festivals globally; festivals like Sundance were core destinations in Withoutabox's submission ecosystem and represent high-value customers on the supply side of the marketplace.
- Amazon Prime Video Direct: Amazon Prime Video Direct is Amazon's self-service film distribution platform, which was promoted on Withoutabox's shutdown page as the recommended downstream channel—signaling Amazon's preferred alternative for the filmmaker workflow.
Market position
Weaknesses3 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks4 records
Key highlights4 records
Customer concentration
Without A Box social profiles
Digital presenceWithout A Box financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Without A Box leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Without A Box funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Without A Box M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Without A Box
What does Without A Box do?
Withoutabox operated an online application submission service that allowed independent filmmakers to submit their films to multiple film festivals worldwide through a single, centralized application process. The platform also enabled film festivals to discover, review, and curate talent from a global pool of submissions, integrating with Amazon's IMDb and Amazon Video Direct offerings for filmmaker profile management and distribution. The service was discontinued on October 30, 2019.
Is Without A Box a public or private company?
Without A Box is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently closed.
When was Without A Box founded?
Without A Box was founded in 2000.
Where is Without A Box based?
Without A Box is headquartered in Studio City, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Without A Box's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Short of the Week and Coverfly. Direct peers are FilmFreeway, Festival Scope and Eventive. Broad incumbents are Vimeo, IMDbPro, Sundance Film Festival and Amazon Prime Video Direct.
Does Without A Box have an API?
No public API is recorded for Without A Box.
What industry is Without A Box in?
Without A Box's product category is Film Festival Submission Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPADAKAD, Film Festivals & Festival Organizers. Its NAICS code is 51213 and its SIC code is 7819.