One hot spring night last month the population of Cracow — a tiny central Queensland gold mining town — almost doubled as about 150 locals turned out at its old bowling green to watch its main street come to life on the big screen.

Almost a year earlier, the 89-person town had been abuzz with award-winning producers, directors, and iconic Australian actors for the production of horror-comedy film Two Heads Creek.

Cracow, more than 500 kilometres from Brisbane, does not fall on any main tourist trail.

And its main street is dusty, dry, and "haunted", according to pub owner and boxing tent icon Fred Brophy, who said the town could be on the cusp of becoming a movie star in its own right.

Film puts town 'back on the map'

The $3.2 million film follows a British brother and sister on their journey to find their birth mother who lives in the outback in a town full of cannibals.

Filming for the 85-minute production took place over a period of more than five weeks in late-2018.

Director Jesse O'Brien said filming in the Queensland sun was extreme, but the town was a perfect fit for the script which featured a 'cannibal karaoke' scene.

"We needed a bunch of typical outback folk bopping along to the song and they really had to come and be themselves. Except, instead of a XXXX in their hand, they had some gross, severed body parts," he said.

Gary Sweet (left) and Kevin Harrington (right) star in Two Heads Creek alongside a range of extras from rural Queensland. ( Supplied: Andrew Railton )

Cracow was chosen because the film's producer knew pub owner Mr Brophy — a colourful character well known for his boxing tent which travels around outback Queensland.

Mr Brophy said he was putting his experience in showbusiness to work for the area which is in a drought-declared farming region.

"There was a lot of money put back into town, and to [nearby] Theodore as well," he said.

Fred Brophy (centre) owns the pub at Cracow, which was a drawcard for producers deciding on where to set the film. ( Supplied: Birdsville Races )

"Everyone was involved in those towns, and some of the farmers came in. So it created a lot of interest among everyone and of course it put it [Cracow] back on the map again."

Mr Brophy said he believed there was something a little supernatural about the town, and therefore it was the perfect setting for more films like Two Heads Creek.

"Cracow is a haunted town and it's got a bit of history in that, so that movie just fits in perfectly," he said.

"We're in the pipeline now of making another movie, and we could have quite a few movies because it's not only Cracow — there are places all around the Banana Shire to make movies."

Local 10-year-old makes debut

The production also gave a handful of local people the chance to play roles and extras on set.

Locals from Cracow and Theodore were invited to be extras in the production. ( Supplied: Two Heads Creek )

Farmer Mary Birchley lives about 50km from Cracow and got her two sons roles as extras after a chance encounter with award-winning producer Judd Tilyard.

"I said to the boys 'let's go and have a look because this will probably never happen again', so up we went," Ms Birchley said.

"We went up and said hello to a young lady and she said 'you should say hello to Judd'.

"We chatted a bit and he [Mr Tilyard] said 'do you mind if we put your names down for extras if we need you?'.

"We went up two nights and it was just amazing. The big cameras!"

The crew also contracted other local children for roles, including the then-10-year-old Casey Hotz — a local grade 5 student who loves reading, horse-riding, and has an alter ego.

Her mother Kristy Hateley said Casey spent nine days with the film crew.

"We'd head out at 5:00-6:00am in the morning and she'd sit down and have breakfast with the other members of the cast and crew," Ms Hateley said.

"When it got to her turn, Jesse the director sat with her and would talk to her about what they're going to do that day and then give her ideas about how he wanted her to act — 'pretend that your brother punched you' or those sorts of things."

Ms Hateley said Casey also had to dye her strawberry-blonde hair black for the role.

"It's still growing out now," she said.

She said after the film the family was advised to get an agent for Casey, but they decided against it for a range of reasons.

In the meantime, Ms Hateley said that Casey would continue to play her alter ego character Captain Awesomeness in her free time.

"She's not afraid to go down the street in her tights and underwear and a cape and her motorbike boots - she does that a couple of times a year," she said.

On seeing the film at the cast and crew screening with her father, Casey described it as "overwhelming, exciting, and kind of embarrassing".

Regional Queensland's on-screen potential

The film features a raft of well-known Australian actors including Kerry Armstrong, Gary Sweet, and Kevin Harrington.

Two Heads Creek was filmed at locations around Cracow, a gold mining town with a population of 89 in central Queensland. ( Supplied: Kevin Baker )

Harrington said he enjoyed the experience of living and working in central Queensland.

"When we had a weekend off it was just going to be prohibitive to do the drive to Rocky, then fly to Melbourne. We were looking at two whole days of travel," he said.

"So we decided to have a weekend in Rockhampton and it was fantastic. I like that place a lot."

Director Jesse O'Brien said regional Queensland holds much potential for the film industry.

"There's so much space in Queensland to film and I think communities really embrace it out there," he said.

"But I also think the level of film talent in Queensland is incredible.

"There are so many people who have trained up through film schools or who have the opportunity to work on a lot of films up there.

"I think that myth of the outback being 'a scary place', which isn't always true, does fit rural Queensland really well."