In August, film distributor Hope Runs High will release its latest feature film across VOD platforms - bringing the much-lauded "Killian & the Comeback Kids" to a national audience outside of its 30 city theatrical release. For composer-writer-director Taylor A. Purdee, "Killian & the Comeback Kids" is a passion project that has united a dynamic team of creatives both onscreen and off. Concurrently with digital release, the film's screenplay will be preserved by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' permanent archive.


With the film's initial theatrical releases, Purdee became the youngest director in 2020 and 2021 to have a film playing in major American exhibition circuits. He is also the first bi-racial director-star of African American descent to have a film theatrically released in the United States in the 21st century.


'Killian' is the story of a young mixed-race musician forced to return to his rural hometown, burdened by the expense of his college degree. A chance encounter with a childhood acquaintance takes his summer in a new direction as the pair enlist a rag-tag band of other struggling locals to play a music festival coming to their once-prosperous steel town. With youthful ambition and an unflagging passion for folk-rock, Killian and the band take a shot at uniting their divided community and setting the stage for their futures.