As Gaumont racks up major sales on TIFF Midnight Madness opener JCVD, that film's director Mabrouk El Mechri is finalising the original script this month for his next project, offbeat romantic comedy Midwife Crisis.

Gaumont will again produce, with New York's Forensic Films also on board. Vanessa Paradis is attached to star, marking her first English-language film, and the American male lead is set to be cast.

The story follows a strange love affair between a midwife and a loan shark. Midwife Crisis is set to shoot in spring 2009 in New York City

Meanwhile, El Mechri's JCVD, a comedic satire starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, has been sold to dozens of territories (Gaumont produced and also handles international sales).

Territories newly sold are Germany (Koch), Australia (Transmission), Spain (Versus), UK (Revolver), Japan (Asmik Ace), Greece (Spentzos), Turkey (Horizon), Benelux (Cineart), Eastern Europe (SPI), CIS (EEAP), Portugal (Lusomundo), Switzerland (Monopole Pathe), and the Middle East (Four Stars). Gaumont is close to closing further deals here at TIFF for Scandinavia and Korea.

As previously reported, Peace Arch will release in the US from November.

The Gaumont sales slate also has two films in post: Canadian sci-fi thriller Splice by Vincenzo Natali (footage to show at AFM), and Josiane Balasko's A French Gigolo, tipped for competition in Rome.