First the small screen, now the big screen. Amazon’s entertainment ambitions come in all sizes.

After winning acclaim for one of its original television productions, Amazon announced Monday it would produce and acquire films for theatrical release and early distribution on its Prime Instant Video service.

Amazon original movies will be available for U.S. streaming four to eight weeks after they make their debut in theaters, a significant reduction of the window of 39 to 52 weeks that films normally play in theaters before becoming available for streaming.

The development is another step in Amazon’s ambitious plan to increase its entertainment offering to consumers and an escalation in Amazon’s rivalry with Netflix. It also signals both companies’ broader ambitions to revolutionize the so-called windowing system for TV and movies in the traditional entertainment industry.

In the fall, Netflix announced movie deals with comedian Adam Sandler and also said it would release a sequel to the movie “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” simultaneously across the globe and in a select number of Imax theaters.

Amazon said it was seeking to create 12 movies a year that “focus on unique stories, voices and characters from top and up-and-coming creators.” Production will start later this year.

In an email, Roy Price, vice president of Amazon Studios, described the projects as “indie” movies, with budgets between $5 million and $25 million.

Monday’s news comes one week after Amazon’s original series “Transparent,” a dark comedy about a family in which the father comes out as transgender, won a Golden Globe for television comedy. It was the first time a streaming service landed a best-series award in the television category at the Globes.

Also last week, Amazon announced it had reached a deal with filmmaker Woody Allen in which he would write and direct his first television series.

“Though a lot of the attention in the industry and press has been focused recently on television series, and it is indeed a new golden era in television, we think the death of film has been greatly exaggerated and films can and will continue to be a vital, brilliant and unique part of culture in America and throughout the world,” Price said in the email. “There is still a robust audience, certainly on Amazon, for interesting films.”