Shaked Berenson And Jonathan Barkan Launch Genre Distro Label The Horror Collective
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EXCLUSIVE: Producer Shaked Berenson (Space Dogs, Jeruzalem, Tales of Halloween) has teamed with former Dread Central Editor-in-Chief, Jonathan Barkan to launch the new genre distribution label The Horror Collective. The banner will be under Berenson’s production/distribution outfit Entertainment Squad and Barkan will head the venture which plans to release 10-12 films per year.
Like the name of the distribution label suggests, The Horror Collective is building itself to become a destination that fosters independent horror filmmakers and connect their films to fans. It will also finance and produce original content. The outfit’s inaugural film will be Elza Kephart’s Slaxx, which was the first project financed Entertainment Squad and will be released by The Horror Collective and enter the festival circuit in Q1 2020. Berenson financed and executive produced the Slaxx with long collaborator, Anne-Marie Gélinas of EMA Films.
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“I want to make a home for genre creators to have their content made and to find the fans that connect to it,” Berenson said. “Movies like Big Ass Spider and Tales of Halloween, which, besides being a nostalgic love letter, was also a combined effort and collaboration of the horror community. That’s the attitude and goal I have with The Horror Collective, to keep doing that.”
“I’ve worked with Shaked over the past few years and we share the same mindset: do what’s right for filmmakers and create a brand that everyone can be proud of,” adds Barkan. “The Horror Collective is our way of bringing fantastic horror films from around the world to audiences here in North America, all while cultivating and nurturing a community that includes not only the filmmakers but also journalists and fans and everyone else. Everyone is important in a release and we want to prove that.
In addition, the label release Graham Denman’s thriller Greenlight starring Chase Williamson (John Dies at the End, Beyond the Gates) and Chris Browning (Westworld, Bright) in 2020. The Horror Collective will also release Giles Alderson’s The Dare starring Richard Brake (Rob Zombie’s 31, Doom, Game of Thrones). Rounding out the inaugural releases is the Paddy Murphy-directed Irish horror film The Perished.
Berenson co-founded Epic Pictures and exited the company in 2018. While there, he had produced and executive produced more than 30 films since it was founded in 2007. Epic launched the horror label Dread Central Presents after it acquired Dread Central Media.
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