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Indie horror comedy “Glue Trap” has been acquired by Gravitas Ventures following a film festival run that began with its premiere last year at Dances With Films.

The film, written and directed by “Succession” and “Euphoria” writer and consultant Justin Geldzahler, will be released on digital and VOD in the U.S. on Dec. 17.

Starring Obie-winner Brittany Bradford and Isaac W. Jay, the movie follows a couple during a last minute trip to a cabin. “But when an obnoxious third [Gloria Bangiola] wheel arrives,” the logline reads, “they worry their relationship may be in trouble.”

The film is produced by Geldzahler, Christopher Fox, Norris Guncheon and executive produced by Sara McFarlane.

“With the holidays approaching, I’m excited to release our film about loved ones driving each other insane while isolated from an increasingly uncomfortable world,” Geldzahler said in a statement Monday.

Gravitas Ventures SVP of acquisitions and operations Bill Guentzler also said,...

Screenwriter Peter Craig, who co-wrote the upcoming Gladiator II, and producer Bryan Unkeless, known for such fare as I, Tonya and Project Power, have teamed up to launch film and television production banner Night Owl.

It’s no small flex to launch a shingle in the current Hollywood climate, but the two players have extremely enviable track records and, more importantly, come with several projects already zipping along the development tracks.

There’s the adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt’s wildly popular novel Remarkably Bright Creatures, which is set up at Netflix with Where the Crawdads Sing filmmaker Olivia Newman attached to direct and Sally Field attached to star. (Fun fact: Craig is Field’s son.)

There’s Tropical Underworld, a crime drama series set in Hawaii and based on a Bloomberg article written by Chris Pomorski. The project sold in a competitive bidding war to Fifth Season, which beat out such companies as A24,...

Running until the final general election results come in, are counted, verified, & certified the Deadline ElectionLine podcast spotlights the 2024 campaign and the often blurred lines between politics and entertainment in modern America. Hosted by Deadline political editor Ted Johnson and executive editor Dominic Patten, the podcast features commentary and interviews with top lawmakers and entertainment figures. With less than a month to go in a race to close for anyone to call, follow all the campaign news on the ElectionLine hub on Deadline.

There’s just over two weeks until what may truly be one of the most important elections in American history, and the campaigns of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are in the final sprint in a race that is ever too close to call. In the second longest (The Charlamagne Tha God episode is still #1) and one of the most engaging Deadline ElectionLine podcasts ever, we get the historical,...

After being knocked out by a mysterious thug, Kat comes to and finds a gun pointed to his head. It’s his gun. But is there a bullet left? Why not pull the trigger and see what happens? Suddenly, Kat is forced to recall what happened to every bullet in the gun, hoping that none are left.

That premise fuels the new neo-Western ride Head Count from the Burghart brothers, Ben and Jacob. The sibling filmmaking duo go by way of the Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, reportedly one of their biggest inspirations, to deliver an enjoyable if not jam-packed outing that they’ve described as “Memento meets Blood Simple.” Or vice versa. Because there’s a lot of groovy thematic interchanges and flashbacks offered here in a tale about an escaped convict on the run.

Aaron Jakubenko (Tidelands) headlines the film alongside Ryan Kwanten (True Blood) and Melanie Zanetti...

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,...

Head Count is a comedy thriller film directed by Ben and Jacob Burghart, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Josh Doke. The film follows the story of Kat, who just got out of prison but an unknown is pointing his own gun at his head. As the empty rounds click away, Kat remembers what happened to each bullet from his gun. Head Count stars Aaron Jakubenko as Kat, Melanie Zanetti as Jo, Ryan Kwanten as Sawyer, Chris Bylsma as Cassidy, Addam Bramich as Brian, and Polaris Banks as Flint. So, if you love the comedy thriller film here are some similar movies you could watch next.

Vengeance (Prime Video) Credit – Focus Features

Synopsis: Vengeance, the directorial debut from writer and star B.J. Novak (“The Office”), is a darkly comic thriller about Ben Manalowitz, a journalist and podcaster who travels from New York City to West Texas to investigate the death...

"Think fast or die trying." Count up them bullets! Shout Studios has revealed an official trailer for a neo-western thriller titled Head Count, made by the Burghart Brothers. Ben & Jacob Burghart are two up-and-coming genre filmmakers, and this is their feature debut, adapting their own acclaimed 2014 short film of the same name. This look like a clever little film! Great style, and slick vibes. " A man in a deadly situation recounts how he got there. One shot at a time." After escaping prison Kat 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. Head Count stars Aaron Jakubenko, Ryan Kwanten, Melanie Zanetti, Davis DeRock, Chris Bylsma, Addam Bramich, and Jeffrey Staab. This is a fantastic trailer - energetic, eye-catching, nice song, and teasing the story but not giving away to much. Love it,...

Head Count is a neo-Western thriller with a unique structure, centered around a protagonist trying to remember how many bullets are left in a gun. The film is directed by Jacob and Ben Burghart and stars Aaron Jakubenko, Melanie Zanetti, Ryan Kwanten, and more. The Head Count trailer and poster promise a thrilling and fun ride, featuring eccentric characters and high-stakes situations. The film releases on September 29th.

Head Count is a new neo-Western thriller with a unique structure. The film is built around a moment in which its protagonist—Kat, played by Aaron Jakubenko--stares down the barrel of a gun, trying to remember how many bullets are left. The only way for Kat to determine his odds of survival is to remember where and when the gun’s other bullets were fired, which takes viewers back to Kat’s escape from a chain gang, run-ins with an ex-lover, a police officer,...

Shout Studios acquired North American rights to “The Kill Room,” a thriller starring Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson and Joe Manganiello.

The distribution and production division of indie Shout Factory has emerged victorious in a bidding war at Cannes Film Festival. Shout Studios plans to release the film in theaters this fall.

“The Kill Room” was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson. The dark comedic-thriller follows an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.

“’The Kill Room’ is a sharp, darkly comic evisceration of the art collecting scene, delivered with wily relish by Uma Thurman and director Nicol Paone. We’re confident this will play very well with audiences who like their entertainment both witty and visceral,...

U.K.-based sales and distribution company Blue Finch Film Releasing has acquired international sales rights, excluding North America, to the debut feature from the Burghart Brothers, “Head Count.”

The company plans to begin sales on the film during the Cannes Film Market.

“Head Count” follows the story of an escaped prisoner, Kat, who finds himself facing an unknown assailant with his own revolver pointed straight at his head. To survive, he must remember what happened on the crazy ride that brought him to this point, one bullet at a time.

The cast includes Ryan Kwanten (“True Blood”), Aaron Jakubenko (“Tidelands”), Melanie Zanetti (“Bluey”), Chris Bylsma (“El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie”), Addam Bramich (“Poker Face”), Polaris Banks (“Reklaw”) and Cinnamon Shultz (“Winter’s Bone”).

“Headcount” is directed by Jacob and Ben Burghart from a screenplay they wrote with Josh Doke. Tristan Barr and David Gim of Continuance Pictures serve as producers,...

Shout! Studios has acquired U.S. and Canada rights to Studiocanal and Working Title’s cross-cultural British romantic comedy “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” with a view to releasing it in late spring, it was revealed at Berlin’s European Film Market on Tuesday.

Directed by veteran Indian filmmaker Shekhar Kapur (“Elizabeth”), “What’s Love Got to Do With It?” follows documentary-maker and dating app addict Zoe (Lily James), for whom swiping right has only delivered an endless stream of Mr Wrongs, to her eccentric mother Cath’s (Emma Thompson) dismay. For Zoe’s childhood friend and neighbor Kaz (Shazad Latif), the answer is to follow his parents’ example and opt for an arranged (or “assisted”) marriage to a bright and beautiful bride from Pakistan (Sajal Aly). As Zoe films Kaz’s journey from London to Lahore to marry a stranger, chosen by his parents, she begins to wonder...

Exclusive: Shout! Studios has acquired all North American distribution rights to the neo-Western thriller Head Count, from Continuance Pictures and Method Media. Filmmakers Jacob and Ben Burghart — together known as The Burghart Brothers — are directing in their feature debut, from their script written with Josh Doke, with Aaron Jakubenko (Tidelands), Melanie Zanetti (Raven’s Hollow) and Ryan Kwanten (True Blood) set to star. Shout! Studios and the filmmakers are planning a strategic launch of the movie next year, beginning with major film festivals and film markets in 2023.

Based on the Burgharts’ 2014 short of the same name, the film billed as Blood Simple meets Memento 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...

Up next from Head Count director Elle Callahan comes the new horror movie Witch Hunt, coming to theaters, Digital and On Demand October 1 via Momentum Pictures. In the film, “In a modern America where magic is real and witches are persecuted by US authorities, teenager Claire and her family are part of an intricate network that helps these women escape across […]...

Stars: Jordan Hayes, Max Topplin, James McGowan, Rosemary Dunsmore, Daniel Harroch | Written and Directed by Michael Nader

Michael Nader wrote the script for one of the more interesting and overlooked monster films of the last couple of years, Head Count. Now he’s back with The Toll, which he not only wrote but is the first feature he’s directed after several shorts.

The Toll is the latest entry in the “ride share from hell” genre that includes the likes of Spree, Ryde and Driven. And like the last of those films, this one has a supernatural edge to it that separates it from the majority of these films which rely exclusively on all to human monsters.

Cami has had a long, delay filled day of travelling. She just wants her driver Spencer to get her to her father’s place in the middle of nowhere. He turns out to...

Striking a middle ground between teen fantasy “The Craft” and deadly serious political allegory “The Handmaid’s Tale” is “Witch Hunt,” writer-director Elle Callahan’s second feature. Her first, the 2019 “Head Count,” was a strikingly assured supernatural mind-bender, albeit one a little too understated for some genre fans. By contrast, this sophomore effort is comparatively conventional and straightforward in depicting paranormal themes, even given the added fillip of overt current-events commentary. It’s a more uneven work nonetheless, with some odd storytelling missteps and signs of budgetary constriction. Still, the fanciful tale of minority persecution in a U.S. not so different from our offscreen reality should easily attract acquisition interest around its SXSW premiere.

A grim prologue shows a manacled woman burned at a present-day New England stake in front of her two redheaded daughters. We then jump ahead three months to meet SoCal high schooler Claire (Gideon Adlon), whose...

The season of love is coming! Shudder is looking to rekindle our love of horror this February.    In place of flowers and chocolate there will be a new premiere every week: A Nightmare Wakes, After Midnight, Shook and The Dark and the Wicked. Joe Bob Briggs will return with a new Last Drive-In Valentine's special right before the day.    There are also a lot of really great horror flicks coming next month. There is the original Queen of Black Magic, Nic Cage in Vampire's Kiss, Elle Callahan's very cool indie flick Head Count, Giallo flick The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears, horror comedy Basket Case, and Miike's One Missed Call.    Check out the gallery below for all the films and series...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

We’ve got another exciting batch of home entertainment releases coming our way, and if you’re something of a Fulci-phile, it’s going to be an exceptionally good week for you, as Scorpion Releasing is giving both Murder-Rock and The Psychic the Special Edition treatment this Tuesday. Arrow Video has dug up the cult classic The Chill Factor for their Special Edition release, and Scream Factory is showing Strays some love this Tuesday as well.

Duncan Jones’ Moon is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a brand new 4K release that you can pick up this week, and for those of you DC fans out there, Shazam! hits multiple formats as well.

Other Blu-ray and DVD releases for July 16th include Head Count, Space: 1999 – The Complete Series, Last Rites of the Dead, Blood Paradise, Frankenthug, Satanis: The Devil’s Mass, and Bong of the Living Dead.

The Chill Factor:...

Back in 2018, Patrick Bromley spoke with filmmaker Elle Callahan about her feature-length directorial debut, Head Count, after it premiered at the La Film Festival. With Head Count out now in theaters and on digital platforms and On Demand from Samuel Goldwyn Films, we caught up with Callahan again for our latest Q&a feature to discuss the real-life inspirations behind the film, the movie's cinematic influences, how she kept the film's monster a secret from most of the cast, and the potential sequel and prequel to the film.

Thanks for taking the time to catch up with us, Elle, and congratulations on Head Count! When and how did you and writer Michael Nader come up with the idea for Head Count?

Elle Callahan: We came up with the idea about three years ago when we took a trip out to Joshua Tree to that exact same house that we used in the movie.

While most horror movies settle for the usual slasher thrills, recent indie breakouts like “It Follows” and “Hereditary” have reminded that there are few things more pleasurably creepy than outré psychological horror in a credibly ordinary setting. Elle Callahan’s directorial debut feature “Head Count” is another intriguing mindbender in which 10 collegiate types find themselves under insidious assault by a vicious mythological entity. Samuel Goldwyn is releasing it to a sole hardtop — L.A.’s Arena Cinelounge — this Friday, which seems unfair, given the amount of pedestrian genre fodder that gets a better shake week after week. It will no doubt find its real audience in simultaneous home-format release.

Evan (Isaac W. Jay) is a college student spending his break visiting older brother Peyton (Cooper Rowe), a reclusive New Agey type living in a trailer near Joshua Tree National Park. It’s an awkward sibling relationship whose weekend bonding is...

Next Friday, Samuel Goldwyn Films will be releasing their new horror thriller Head Count in limited theaters as well as on VOD platforms. Today, we’re opening up a contest to give two readers each one iTunes digital code for the film. To enter, simply fill out the form at the bottom of this article! “Newcomer […] The post Contest: Win A Digital iTunes Code For Head Count appeared first on Dread Central.

A trailer for the upcoming Samuel Goldwyn horror/thriller Head Count is taking audiences into the desert and unearthing all the strange mysteries that lurk within. You can watch the trailer above and get ready for the film, which will be in limited theaters and On Demand as well as digital platforms on June 14. “Newcomer […] The post Head Count Trailer is Heat-Filled Horror appeared first on Dread Central.

Here’s a weird, unsettling, and confusing trailer for you for the new horror film Head Count that perfectly explains many of the great reasons why you should never go camping in the desert. The main one being that you could easily stumble upon some demonic party leftovers and summon something you didn’t mean to that totally messes up the vibe of your hiking and camping weekend.

During a weekend getaway to Joshua Tree, “a group of teenagers find themselves falling prey to a supernatural creature that targets them to complete a vicious ancient ritual.”

Watch the trailer below and let us know if this is a movie that looks good to you. If it does, check it out on June 14th.

Samuel Goldwyn Films is releasing Elle Callahan's horror thriller Head Count in U.S. cinemas and make it available On Demand and Digital on June 14th. A new trailer was released today, check it out below.    Newcomer Evan joins a group of teens on a getaway in Joshua Tree. While exchanging ghost stories around the campfire, Evan reads aloud a mysterious chant from an internet site. From that moment, someone--or something--is among them. As unsettling, inexplicable events become more frequent, Evan realizes this summoned shape-shifting creature is targeting them to fulfill a deadly ritual.   I will admit that the synopsis makes Head Count sound a bit hokey. Mysterious chants off internet sites phooey. Write it off solely based on that and you would be...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

"It was like I was a passenger in my own body." Samuel Goldwyn has debuted an official trailer for an indie horror film titled Head Count, the feature directorial debut of sound designer / filmmaker Elle Callahan. Newcomer Evan joins a group of teens on a getaway in Joshua Tree. While telling ghost stories around the campfire, he reads aloud a mysterious chant from the internet. From that moment, someone–or something–is among them. As unsettling, inexplicable events start to become more frequent, Evan soon realizes this summoned shape-shifting creature is targeting them to fulfill a deadly ritual. The indie film stars Ashleigh Morghan, Isaac Jay, Sam Marra, Michael Herman, Bevin Bru, and Tory Freeth. Definitely worth a watch. Looks like a clever, twisted, creepy little horror thriller with a lot to offer. I'm curious to check it out. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Elle Callahan's Head Count, direct...

Samuel Goldwyn Films announced today that the company has acquired North American rights to Elle Callahan’s horror film Head Count. The film stars Isaac W. Jay, Ashleigh Morghan, Bevin Bru, Billy Meade, Hunter Peterson, Chelcie May, Tory Freeth, Michael Herman, Amaka Obiechie, Sam Marra, and Cooper Rowe. Head Count premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival and won …

The post Head Count Acquired by Samuel Goldwyn Films appeared first on Hnn | Horrornews.net.

A group of friends go to Joshua Tree to cut loose, but they instead find themselves fighting for their lives—and their sanity—when a lonely, transformative monster crashes the party in the new movie Head Count. Directed by Elle Callahan, Head Count recently premiered at the La Film Festival, and to celebrate, we've been provided with an exclusive clip and poster to share with Daily Dead readers!

Below, you can check out our exclusive clip and poster for Head Count, which stars Isaac W. Jay, Ashleigh Morghan, Bevin Bru, Billy Meade, and Hunter Peterson. In case you missed it, be sure to read Patrick Bromley's interview with Callahan to discuss her approach to the mythology behind the movie's unique monster.

Theatrical and home media release details for Head Count have yet to be revealed, but we'll be sure to keep Daily Dead readers updated as more information is announced.

Head Count, the debut feature from co-writer and director Elle Callahan, recently premiered at the La Film Festival. The movie, about a group of young people who take a trip out to Joshua Tree and accidentally summon a monster, finds its roots in paranoid horror films like John Carpenter’s The Thing, only revealing some of its secrets upon a second viewing. Daily Dead spoke to Callahan about making her first movie, creating a brand new monster, and more.

This being your first feature, what was it about this particular story that made you know that you wanted to tell it as your first feature film?

Elle Callahan: I love Joshua Tree and I love folklore. The story is a monster movie at the end of the day, and I really wanted to build a creature that had its own lore. I have a lot of monsters in my own life,...