Ben Barenholtz
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| Ben Barenholtz | |
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| Born | October 5, 1935  Kovel, Poland |
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| Occupation | Film distributor and producer |
| Salary | USD |
Ben Barenholtz (born October 5, 1935 in Kovel, Poland) is a key presence in the independent film scene – as an exhibitor, distributor, and producer – since the late 1960s, when he opened the Elgin Cinema in New York City.
Barenholtz secured his first job in the film business when he became assistant manager of a Brooklyn movie house in 1958. From 1966-68, he managed and lived in The Village Theater, which ultimately became the Filmore East. In 1968, he opened the Elgin Cinema. The theater became the world’s most innovative specialty and revival house, relaunching the films of Buster Keaton and D.W. Griffith, running a variety of independent films by young American directors, and screening cult, underground, and experimental films for the emerging countercultural audience. At the Elgin, Barenholtz originated the Midnight Movie with Alejandro Jodorowsky’s El Topo, John Waters’ Pink Flamingos, and Perry Henzell’s The Harder They Come.
Barenholtz formed the specialty distributor Libra Films in 1975. Libra launched and distributed, among others, George Romero’s Martin, John Sayles’ Return of the Secaucus Seven, David Lynch’s Eraserhead, Gothar’s Time Stands Still, and Jean-Charles Tacchella’s Cousin, Cousine, which earned three Academy Award nominations and was one of the most successful foreign films ever released in North America.
Barenholtz sold Libra Films to the Almi Group in 1982, but stayed with the company to become the President of Libra-Cinema 5 Films. In 1984, he left Almi and joined with Ted and Jim Pedas to form Circle Releasing. Among the films released by Circle were Morita’s The Family Game, Guy Maddin’s Tales From the Gimli Hospital, Vincent Ward’s The Navigator, John Woo’s The Killer, Alain Cavalier’s Therese, and Blood Simple, the first film by Joel and Ethan Coen.
He continued working with the Coen Brothers on the production of Raising Arizona, and as executive producer of Miller’s Crossing and Barton Fink, which won the Palme d’Or at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival, as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor. This was the first and last time the three top honors have all gone to the same film at Cannes.
Barenholtz produced Adele Drabinski’s Cheat, and executive-produced Gregory Hines’ directorial debut Bleeding Hearts and Ulu Grosbard’s Georgia, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Mare Winningham. He served as co-executive producer of Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream, which earned Ellen Burstyn an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in 2000.
He also produced Romero’s Bruiser, Anderson’s The Naked Man, and Kraning’s Distress.
Barenholtz appeared in the documentary The Hicks in Hollywood, had a bit role in Liquid Sky, and appeared as a zombie in Romero’s classic Dawn of the Dead. He was the main subject of Stuart Samuels’ 2005 documentary, Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream.
