South African stunt movie Bustin’ Chops has been pre-selected for distribution by sales
agents in Belgium and Holland. The go-to-the-extremes film directed and produced by
Danie Barnard and Eugene Koekemoer, who is also the lead actor, proves that these
former stunt men are no strangers to pain.
Barnard and Koekemoer had been in the stunt business for more than nine years and
conceptualised the idea for their comedy / stunt movie Bustin’ Chops, based on the
popular Jackass franchise in America, in which actors and stunt men go to great lengths
for laughs and often risk their lives to perfect a stunt or prank.
Before Bustin’ Chops, Koekemoer did a “shock’ reality television show on MK on pay-
channel DStv called AF followed by Mullets, another series of a similar nature.
The South African boys did more of the same in their first feature-length movie and
emerged battle-scarred, but satisfied that their movie should be screened
internationally.
Hopefully this won’t involve Barnard and Koekemoer enjoying a traditional Belgian meal
of mussels and pommes frittes with the molluscs still in their shells…
Barnard says they had a close call on set while shooting Bustin’ Chops: “Don Cobra of
the band L.A. Cobra had to be rushed to hospital after too much pepper spray led to
collapsed lungs.’
Koekemoer and Barnard comment: “The biggest challenge of filming the movie was
basically just staying alive. And being fearless. There were no second takes. Everything
on the shoot happened very fast and in real time. We didn’t have the luxury of taking
another shot so we had to get it right the first time.’
Travelling to Holland and Belgium in mid-August the two are currently recuperating and
plan to release Bustin’ Chops 2 late next year.
