About
Founded in 1997, Synapse Films specializes in preserving and restoring genre cinema's hidden gems. Our dedication to quality has made us a trusted name in cult film preservation.
Everything you ever wanted to know about the crazy Synapse guys…and more!
Synapse Films is a company started by Don May, Jr. in 1997. Partnering with his friend of fifteen years, Jerry Chandler and associate Charles Fiedler, the goal of Synapse Films is to release new, digitally remastered films in the Horror, Science Fiction, Cult and Independent genres on available Home Video formats.
“I love horror and science-fiction, ” says May. “They are my favorite kinds of movies and I think I am doing the fans a huge service by paying attention to them and treating them with the respect they deserve. I’ve been in the home video industry for a number of years and it used to be that only ‘important’ films received the ‘remastering’ and ‘Special Edition’ treatments, but no more. For the past few years, horror and science-fiction have been treated a lot differently on home video and I like to think I had a hand in setting this trend.”
- Don May Jr.
Graduating from Illinois State University with a degree in Broadcasting in 1990, May always had an interest in television and film. “I caught the laserdisc bug while working at a local laserdisc store while I was in college. I was selling laserdisc players and buying product and I pretty much spent every extra dollar I had on laserdiscs. I loved movies and the disc format and knew this was a business I wanted to be in.”
After quitting his job at the laserdisc retailer, he became part owner of Elite Entertainment. “I have a lot of good and bad memories from that experience, ” says May. “I never dreamed I’d be working on restoring great horror films like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Night of the Living Dead and Re-Animator. I had some of the best times in my life working on them. But, after a while, I became unhappy both personally and professionally. I’d just had enough and decided to leave. I will say I’m extremely happy with my decision to start my own company, Synapse Films.”
“Don and I have been friends for many, many years and we’ve always shared the same interests in horror films, ” says May’s new partner, Jerry Chandler. “I’ve loved horror even longer than Don because I’m ten years older (laughs). Horror films have been a favorite of mine since childhood and I’ve always wanted to work in this industry. I even had my own horror show in the basement of a punk rock bar in Detroit in the mid eighties. Knowing Don’s previous involvement with Elite Entertainment, which created many horror and science-fiction laserdisc products, choosing him as a partner was a natural decision. He knows more about horror films than anyone else I know…foreign and obscure classics…just about everything. He’s seen them all. He also knows a lot about film in general and has the knowledge and capability to continue remastering and producing excellent product. He produced supplements and did a lot of film transfers himself and I’ve seen his work. Don proved to me a long time ago that he was the one I wanted to get involved with and that’s why I didn’t partner with him until he left and got out on his own.”
- Jerry Chandler
Now, having worked in the Home Video industry for over seventeen years, May has brought his knowledge of film restoration and film mastering to Synapse Films.
(FAQ) Frequently Asked Questions
Multiple Items on the Same Order
We ship all items in an order together — no split shipments. If your order includes a pre-order title, we'll hold everything until it's ready to go. Want your in-stock titles right away? Just place your pre-orders separately at checkout.
Where Does Synapse Films Ship To?
Because of our North American licensing agreements with our specific granted rights, we are only allowed to ship within the continental U.S. and Canada
How Much is Shipping to Canada?
It is a $26 charge for the first item and $1 for each additional item for a package shipped to Canada and is sent through the United States Postal Service.
My Slipcover or box set has minor damage, can I get a replacement?
Please note that nothing is perfect, and that includes physical media packaging. Paper products are fragile and there isn’t one piece of physical media packaging where there isn’t a flaw (slight or otherwise). It’s the nature of the beast… physical media boxes are machine manufactured and will have slight imperfections. From printing, folding, gluing, hand wrapping and machine fed shrink-wrapping, expect to occasionally receive boxed sets or cardboard slips that may have slight dents, imperfect corners, or small scuffs. For these reasons, we will limit replacements to MAJOR damage that was obviously caused during shipping only. Due to the limited nature of our boxed sets and slip covers, replacement requests may not be available due to inventory. Replacement requests for what we determine to be small issues will not be granted. This replacement policy is strictly enforced by Synapse Films.
For orders shipped to or made from Michigan we charge 6% sales tax.
How Do I Get on the Mailing List / Newsletter?
How Long Does It Take For An Order To Arrive?
Please allow up to 14 business days for the shipment of all in-stock orders (shipping time only; delivery time is additional).
During specialty sales and promotional events, please allow 6–8 weeks for order fulfillment and delivery. These events often generate thousands of orders, and our discounted pricing can quickly exhaust available inventory. When this occurs, we may need to replenish stock by ordering additional discs from our replication partner, which can add to processing times.
We sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding during these occasional high-volume sales. If you require expedited processing or are unable to accommodate these extended fulfillment times, we kindly ask that you take this into consideration before placing your order.
How Long Does It Take For A Back Order To Arrive?
Back orders will be shipped as soon as they are available.
Only sealed, unopened items will be accepted for refund within 60 days of purchase. Items must be in a “brand new” condition in order for us to issue a refund, and must be returned to us at the customer’s expense. We do not accept returns, exchanges or defective replacements for our product purchased from other entities. Please contact where you originally purchased it for information on returning the product, if it was not originally purchased from impulse-pictures.com or synapse-films.com’s website.
What If The Product Is Defective?
In the event that an item purchased from impulse-pictures.com or synapse-films.com is defective, we will exchange the product within 60 days of shipment date, under the manufacturer’s warranty for a copy of the same item, provided the item is still currently available in our regular inventory.
