Who is Robert Shinn, the alleged cult leader in 'Dancing for the Devil'?

Robert Shinn and his controversial Shekinah Church are at the center of the Netflix documentary “Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult,” but the pastor never appears in the documentary, nor do dancers still associated with the management company 7M Films.

“I would have given them the same time and respect that I would give anybody,” director Derek Doneen says of Shinn and 7M members. “That said, there’s a part of me that’s also happy that the attention is on the families and former members, because that is who we wanted to uplift.”

The documentary features former dancers who were part of 7M Films and family members of those still involved. The parents and sister of Miranda Derrick, who Doneen confirmed is still affiliated with 7M and Shekinah Church, are interviewed.

Melanie, Kelly and Dean Wilking first spoke out about Miranda Derrick’s whereabouts in a 2022 video on Instagram, sharing that she was “not allowed to speak” to them.

In a statement to The Cut in May 2022, Miranda Derrick said, “I am not held against my will and I’ve never been a hostage. I go to church and I have faith in God. If one day I wish to pursue my faith elsewhere, I will and feel completely free to do that.”

“As far as my career, my time at 7M Films has been one of the most exciting years ever and if one day I wish to partner with a different management company or start my own company, I will. No one is forcing me to do anything. I am excited to move forward in this incredible walk with God, an amazing marriage and exciting career. I’m also looking forward to moving past all of this and mend my relationship with my family privately.”

Who is Robert Shinn?

Shinn is the founder of Shekinah Church. Public records reviewed by TODAY.com indicate he is associated with several businesses, some of which are named in a civil lawsuit filed by former dancers and members of the Church in 2023.

Those are Alpha Realty, RCP Financial, Inc., Imaginating Pictures, 7M Films, Inc. and Studio on the Mount, Inc.

What was Robert Shinn accused of?

Former dancers and members of Shekinah Church filed a civil lawsuit against Shinn, 7M, Shekinah and other named defendants in March 2023.

The lawsuit alleges that Shinn and other defendants subjected people “to brainwashing, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, manipulation, and exploitation.”

“Shekinah is a cult,” the lawsuit states. “A cult that engages in egregious and despicable illegal behavior.”

The filing was part of an ongoing lawsuit that began when Shinn sued two former members of his church and moderators of social media accounts that were posting about him and Shekinah Church in October 2022, according to court documents reviewed by TODAY.com. All have denied allegations.

Elisha Priscylla Leigh, Melanie Lee Goldman, Haley Marie Carroll, Haley Elizabeth Phipps, Kayley Irene Shaffer, who were named in Shinn’s 2022 suit as plaintiffs, joined the 2023 counterclaim as defendants along with former 7M dancers.

Shinn has not publicly spoken about the lawsuit. He and the other defendants have denied the allegations in court papers. The case is ongoing. No criminal charges have been brought against Shinn.

This is not the first time Shinn has come under scrutiny.

A woman named Lydia Chung sued Shinn and several other defendants in 2009 for forcing her to turn over $3.8 million in property and other assets through “undue influence, mind control, coercive persuasion, oppression and other intimidating tactics ... all in the name of God,” per a lawsuit reviewed by TODAY.com.

She also claimed that she had been forced to work six days a week without pay, and transfered “substantial sums” to Shin and Shekinah church due to “mind control tactics.” When her husband “did not like Shekinah Church,” Shinn said “she must get away from (him) because he was influenced by a "demon," leading to her divorce.

The judge ultimately ruled against her. “Shinn and the other defendants successfully rebuffed all of Chung’s claims. After a bench trial, the judge ruled in favor of Shinn and the other defendants on all counts,” a Rolling Stone article summarizes.

In 2011, Jung Hee Lee, a former Shekinah member and employee of Alpha Plus Realty, sued Shinn for allegedly forcing her to work full time for only a $30 weekly stipend, The Cut reported in 2022. Lee ultimately won the suit, and the judge ordered Shinn to pay her an amount based on the compensation she should have received for a regular workweek.

Producer Jessica Acevedo says the documentary wasn’t able to “get into the early years of Shekinah” due to time constraints.

“There’s a lot that we weren’t able to put in the documentary that we would have loved to be able to elaborate on, given the opportunity from the previous members and victims of Robert,” she says.

Are Shinn’s Shekinah Church and 7M connected?

A March 2022 statement from 7M Films explained the management company’s origin story, according to the group.

7M Films is described as a “talent management company that was born from a series of collaborations between a video director Isaiah Shinn and a group of talented TikTok dancers who felt they were spending too much of their creative energy focused on business deals that often went unfulfilled and unpaid."

"Without proper representation, the dancers felt like the industry was taking advantage of their hard work and skills. The dancers knew that Isaiah’s father, Dr. Robert Shinn, was a respected businessman and asked if he could help with their business affairs, so they could focus on the creative side of their work,” the statement continues.

The statement says “it is not true that there is any business affiliation between the two entities,” Shekinah and 7M: “It is quite common for a person of faith to own and operate one of many secular for-profit businesses.”

A 2022 lawsuit filed by Shinn against former church members describes the connection between Shekinah Church and other businesses associated with the church.

Shekinah is described as “a small and tight-knit group of Christian believers committed to spreading their religious message through peaceful religious study and outreach.” The other “for-profit businesses” were established “as part of their mission, and to support their religious efforts.”

However, former dancers describe being involved with Shekinah in the Netflix documentary. The civil lawsuit includes former dancers and Shekinah members who describe the same coercion.

What has Robert Shinn said about Miranda Derrick’s family’s allegations?

After dancer Miranda Derrick family spoke out in 2021, a representative for Miranda and James Derrick, 7M, and Robert Shinn denied the allegations that 7M was a cult and characterized the Wilkings’ claims as the result of a family disagreement.

“Miranda Derrick is a successful businesswoman and a loving wife and daughter who cares very much about her family,” the representative said in a statement provided to the Daily Beast in 2021, after their video went up. “While the recent portrayals of Dr. Robert Shinn and 7M Films have been wildly offensive and riddled with inaccuracies, those false claims will not deter 7M from supporting Miranda in whichever endeavors she chooses to pursue next.”

Shinn did not participate in the documentary, but his voice during sermons is heard throughout.

Director Doneen confirms the audio footage came directly from a source working directly with the documentarians.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com