rushes.cc is a new European, ad-free video hosting platform for filmmakers that hopes to fill the gap left by Vimeo's self-implosion, with community features, competitive pricing, no ads, and a definite line on AI.
Given the recent decline of the now Bending Spoons-owned Vimeo as a creative community (see Vimeo has Fallen), there is a definite hole in the market waiting to be filled. rushes.cc is one of the new pretenders to what was Vimeo's throne, a new video hosting platform for filmmakers and creative professionals, launched today by UK-based filmmaker Guy Loftus.
Loftus has 15 years of industry experience as a freelance editor, director, and DP, and is founder of production company Studio Future. He says he built rushes after Vimeo removed the curated feed and social features that had made it a go-to platform for UK and European filmmakers.
Billed explicitly as a European alternative, the platform is targeting freelancers, small production companies, and working professionals who need video hosting, review tools, and portfolio presentation without enterprise pricing or advertising.
“I got laid up after an operation in February last year and couldn’t work for about a
month," explains Loftus. "I started messing around with new tools and learning the basics of coding. I asked myself, what do I actually want to see? What do I actually want to make? And the honest answer was: I hate Vimeo, I don’t want to keep paying them hundreds of pounds every year, I’m going to build something else.”
The video player includes in/out point markers with clip saving to reference folders, freeze frame capture, and J/K/L keyboard shuttle controls. Subtitles can be customized, and videos can be re-uploaded to the same URL, a feature carried over from Vimeo.
Community features, always such a large part of the Vimeo experience, include a chronological following feed with no algorithmic filtering, and a Discover section showing trending videos by viewership. Curated playlists are planned as the platform grows.
rushes also takes a definite position on AI: user content will not be used to train AI models, and videos will not be ingested or analyzed for machine learning by rushes or third parties.
All features are available to all paid users. Plans start at $7.99 /£5.99 per month ($77 /£57 per year) for 200 GB of storage, with additional 100 GB blocks at $2.69 /£1.99 each. Storage tiers scale up and down automatically based on usage. Free accounts are available for browsing and reference tools, but video uploads require a paid plan.