Shout Factory distribution and production arm Shout! Studios has taken up North American rights to Jacob and Ben Burghart’s Head Count, a neo-Western thriller being produced with Victorian-based Continuance Pictures that will star Aussies Aaron Jakubenko, Melanie Zanetti, and Ryan Kwanten.
Based on the Burgharts’ 2014 short of the same name, the story follows Kat (Jakubenko), who, after escaping prison, finds his own revolver pointed to his head by an unknown assailant. As the empty rounds click away, Kat tries to remember what happened to each bullet, as impulsive officer Sawyer (Kwanten) is hot on his tail, and his ex-lover Jo (Zanetti) reappears in his life. But he must remember, one bullet at a time.
Deadline reports that Chris Bylsma, Addam Bramich, Polaris Banks, and Cinnamon Shultz will also feature as part of the cast.
Head Count will be the first US production feature from Continuance Pictures, which is producing alongside Method Media. Co-founders Tristan Barr and David Gim are producing with Austin Wagoner, while Chris Knitter, Jordan Rioux, Josh Winnington, Ken Kimura, Ari Harrison, Mike Barr, Jason Bunn, Addam Bramich, Simon Barrett, and Jordan Fields serve as EPs.
Continuance Pictures previously executive produced the Burghart brothers’ 2020 short Suspense, about an army pilot that survives a harrowing plane crash but soon becomes aware of something stalking him and his co-pilot.
Gim, whom Jacob made contact with via an Instagram two years earlier, told IF it was on the strength of the short that he and Barr realised the brothers were ready to make their first feature.
“Since then, we’ve been asking them to come up with an idea that can be contained and doesn’t necessarily have to be too expensive,” he said.
“They went through their archives and found Head Count, which was a short they made years ago.
“They pitched it as something that can easily be turned into a feature film and spent 7-8 months working on a feature script, which we felt confident we could put together, so that’s what we did.”
Shooting will take place at the end of this year in the Burghart brothers home town of Kansas City, Missouri, with the filmmakers planning to launch the title next year, beginning with major film festivals and film markets.
Gim he was “very proud” to have a strong Australian contingent in the cast.
“Aaron, Mel, and Ryan are all friends of ours but we’ve never had an opportunity to work with them before,” he said.
“We also just wanted to showcase how Australian actors and talent are out there hustling like ourselves.
“That’s something we really needed for a low-budget indie feature like this and it just really worked out for us.”