O
OpenReel
Marketing · New York City, United States · Founded 2016
OpenReel utilizes proprietary technology to create custom HD video remotely MoreLess
OpenReel, founded in 2016 by Lee Firestone and Shijo Joe Mathew, provides a platform for remote video creation aimed at enterprise clients. The company's trajectory was shaped by the founders' previous experiences; Lee Firestone's background includes co-founding a video agency, which highlighted the challenges of traditional video production, while Joe Mathew brought expertise in engineering management and product development from his time at Baystone Media and Internet Brands. This combination of perspectives led to the development of a solution designed to simplify and scale video content creation.
The company's core offering is a patented technology platform that enables globally distributed teams to remotely control, direct, script, film, and collaborate on high-definition video projects. This is achieved through a user's mobile device or webcam, allowing for the capture of up to 4K video in over 125 countries. The platform is designed to bypass issues like poor bandwidth by recording content locally on the subject's device, ensuring high-quality output. Key features include a teleprompter function, the ability for directors to remotely control a camera's focus and exposure, screen recording, and AI-powered editing tools. The business serves a diverse clientele, from Fortune 500 companies and media organizations to marketing agencies, for uses such as client testimonials, internal communications, thought leadership content, and product demos. Revenue is generated through different pricing tiers, including Basic, Pro, and Enterprise plans.
OpenReel has secured significant financial backing, including a $19 million Series A funding round in March 2021, led by Five Elms Capital, which brought its total investment to over $23.9 million. Other investors include Las Olas Venture Capital, Alpine Meridian Ventures, and Forefront Venture Partners. In December 2024, it was announced that Banzai International, a marketing technology company, signed a definitive agreement to acquire OpenReel. This move is part of Banzai's strategy to build an AI-powered marketing technology platform, integrating OpenReel's video creation capabilities into its suite of marketing tools.
Keywords: remote video creation, enterprise video platform, video content creation, remote filming, 4K video capture, video collaboration software, AI video editing, corporate video production, marketing video, internal communications, client testimonials, product demos, video marketing, digital media production, brand-compliant video, video content management, B2B video, remote directing, mobile video capture, webcam recording, video production workflow, content scaling
Company overview
OpenReel company information
The essential company record, classifications and operating signals in one place.
- Status
- Acquired
- Founded
- 2016
- Headquarters
- New York City, United States
- Employees
- 15
- Open positions
- None listed
- Dealroom signal
- 61.2
Valuation & funding
OpenReel funding history
Company financing events and reported valuations.
| Deal type | Date | Amount | Valuation | Investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACQUISITION✓Exit | Dec 2024 | $0 | — | Banzai | ↗ |
| SERIES A✓Equity / VC | Mar 2021 | $19M | $76M | Five Elms Capital | — |
| EARLY VC✓Equity / VC | Nov 2019 | $1.6M | $6.4M | WorkerBee | — |
| DEBTDebt | Dec 2018 | $300K | — | Undisclosed | — |
| SEEDEquity / VC | Mar 2018 | $785K | $3.1M | Undisclosed | — |
| SEED✓Equity / VC | Feb 2017 | Brooklyn Bridge Ventures · Alpine Meridian Ventures | — |
Financials
Workforce over time
Available workforce history. Financial fields without reported data are omitted.
| Year | Employees |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 14 |
| 2025 | 21 |
| 2024 | 29 |
| 2023 | 29 |
| 2022 | 48 |
| 2021 | 59 |
| 2020 | 43 |
Growth signals
OpenReel website traffic
Latest recorded traffic for OpenReel is 11K monthly website visits, up 10% over the last three months. OpenReel's team declined 28.6% over the past year.
Comparisons
OpenReel compared with similar companies
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Talent graph
OpenReel's talent
Source: Dealroom Talent Intelligence.
Investors
6 investors on OpenReel's cap table
Sourced from Dealroom's funding and investor records.
Global footprint
Where OpenReel has talent and traffic
team presence
In the news
Latest news about OpenReel
Recent press, funding announcements, and product moves mentioning OpenReel — open to read from the original sources.
Market sentiment
What the market is saying about OpenReel
An AI-synthesized read of the highest-engagement posts about OpenReel on X over the past 7 days. We rank by likes & retweets, ignore corporate channels, and surface the themes that broke out from real people.
Reading the room on X — pulling top posts and synthesizing themes…
Source: X recent search ranked by engagement (likes + retweets) · Synthesis by Claude · Cached for 1 hour
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