Head Count, the new neo-Western thriller from Shout! Studios, is Blood Simple meets Memento. Directed with vigor by brothers Jacob Burghart and Ben Burghart, the film finds an escaped convict confronted with a set of improbable scenarios and several lurid characters in manic journey filled with violence, redemption, and even love.

The film stars Aaron Jakubenko (Tidelands), Melanie Zanetti (Bluey), and Ryan Kwanten (True Blood). The concept for this festive ride sprang from a 48-hour film festival the Burghart brothers entered that found them having to whip a movie idea then shoot, edit it, and create a film. “One of the concepts we had for that was this movie,” said Ben Burghart. “It was a guy trying to remember how many bullets are left in his gun and each bullet is a memory. And we’ve been trying to get this other horror film off the ground for a few years and eventually we were like, ‘Hey let’s take a look at the short film [we made], let’s flesh it out.’”

There’s more to the film’s backstory, however, and in this exclusive MovieWeb interview, the Burghart brothers shared more about bringing the film to life and how their film icons inspired their filmmaking journey.

The Coen Brothers with a Twist
Shout! Studios

The filmmakers admitted they have always been inspired by passion behind the early works of the Coen Brothers and Sam Raimi. For Head Count, they wanted to create a film that juggled the audience’s expectations, but one that also used “layered visual storytelling.”

“We based this on our experiences growing up in a small town in Kansas, and pulled from the different weird characters we’ve met,” explained Ben Burghart, who also shared writing duties with brother Jacob and Josh Doke (Goodland). “We wrote in a lot of aspects that we knew we could have access to, like our brother-in-law’s ’67 Mustang, then there’s a bar that we use in the film, and thankfully we got some actors on board, and then we were able to make it happen.”

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The brothers, who grew up in the Midwest farmlands, first began making films when they were young boys. It was a form of escape at the time, and one of the best ways they knew how to tell stories. “It sounds like we’ve been doing it for 25 years, but we started filming before we actually got into movies. At 8 and 10 years old, we’d be running around with a little VHS-C camera,” Jacob Burghart said. “It’s just something we’ve always had fun doing, and we have a nice little community of friends who wanted to watch our little movies.

“We became connected to more filmmakers in college,” he added, “So, our love of movies got us into filmmaking, and it’s been a big adventure so far.”

A Neo-Western Film Filled with Humor
Shout! Studios

For Head Count, the brothers wanted the film to have a sense of humor, which is evident in the trailer. “One big goal was to really capture the charm and unique spirit of America’s forgotten middle child, while keeping a neo-western aesthetic in mind, and making Kansas the best character in the movie,” Ben Burghart said. He and Jacob Burghart went on to sing the praises of the film’s stars, Aaron Jakubenko, Melanie Zanetti, and Ryan Kwanten, who turns in a riveting performance here playing Sawyer — a law enforcement officer forcing Kat (Jakubenko) on a wild adventure.

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The film is entertaining, and that bullet counting concept should keep audiences engaged throughout. When asked where they drew their inspirations for the film, the brothers pointed out several of their film icons.

“We were really inspired by the Coen Brothers and Sam Raimi collaborations,” Ben Burghart said. “There was Blood Simple and Raising Arizona, then Evil Dead, especially the camerawork in that. The films are somewhat grounded, but the humor is a little off kilter, and it gets a little dark, a little funny, then a little dark again. We try to kind of ride that wave for this whole film.”

Shout! Studios

Jacob Burghart noted Christopher Nolan’s Memento, and filmmaker Danny Boyle, “who’s always doing something weird,” he said. “I think those are the kind of filmmakers who are always trying something different. They’re genre-hopping.”

“We watched a lot of Jackie Chan films,” Ben Burghart quickly added, noting how those films knew how to tell stories visually without a lot of dialogue. It plays out well here as the character of Kat keeps cheating death.

Jacob Burghart went on to say audiences will appreciate the interactive element to the film, which will “really suck people in.” Mostly, he feels the movie is arriving at a good time. “In theaters now, all the studios tend to play it safe. They have a lot of reboots, lots of IP, lots of sequels. I really hope that this just gives people some more confidence in going to see original stuff and experiencing uniquely told, and passionately told stories.”

Head Count opens in theaters and VOD on September 29.