Ask HN: What freelancing platforms don't follow the bid/auction model?

I currently am in the email list of moonrise.works and am looking to find other alternatives that don't follow the model of bids and public auction like Freelancer or Upwork. I don't care about what my competition is bidding, or where they come from, or be tied to their time tracking software. I just want information about the project and client, be able to reach him after reviewing my background, and take it from there.

Toptal appears to be great for freelancers, but their application filtering process appears tough. The process is almost like applying to a regular full-time job.