Karim Ouelhaj’s ‘Megalomaniac’ Sells to Major Territories Ahead of Fantasia Premiere (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Marta Balaga Karim Ouelhaj’s fourth feature ‘Megalomaniac’ – about to world premiere at Fantasia – has been sold to South Korea’s Youngjin Creative, Japan’s STS Ent and Latin America’s Encripta, with Indeed Film handling German-speaking territories.Media Move handles world sales with XYZ in charge of North America.Ouelhaj is also about to wrap principal photography on his new feature “Le Pont des Fiévreux.” Described by producer Florence Saâdi as a “fantastic thriller tinged with horror,” it follows the journey of antihero Scola, lost between madness and purgatory.

The film’s structure is inspired by 1990 release “Jacob’s Ladder.”“It’s the craziest movie I have ever made,” teased the Belgian helmer, who also descends into madness in “Megalomaniac,” produced by Okayss and Les Films du Carré.

It was inspired by the terrifying true story of the “Butcher of Mons” who murdered five women between 1996 and 1997. He was never apprehended.

While the case still attracts interest, with multiple people named as possible suspects, Ouelhaj decided against shooting a procedural.“I didn’t have the budget to show the investigation, but maybe it worked out for the best – this way, I really had to focus on the killer’s point of view,” he tells Variety.“There are so many films about criminals and the people who chase them.