More than seven years after his acclaimed thriller debut D’Ardennes, Belgian film director Robin Pront (36) is back with an ambitious biopic. Zillion tells a true story of computer genius Frank Verstraeten, who opened his own futuristic mega-discotheque named Zillion and became a key figure of the Antwerp nightlife, with the most beautiful women in Belgium and forging an alliance with Dennis Black Magic, the porn king. It didn’t last long, as Frank vastly lost control, created enemies inside and outside his nightclub and went down with his own dance signature.

Flemish filmmakers in recent years have enjoyed considerable success around the globe. Antwerp native Director Robin Pront is one whose breakout feature D’ardennes held its premiere at the 2015 Toronto Film Festival and was well received worldwide.

Since his film student years, Pront has dreamed of bringing the controversial story of the rise and fall of the flamboyant owner Frank Verstraeten, who built one of the notorious dance clubs discotheques in the heart of Antwerp to the big screen. Pront started co-writing Zillion in 2017 together with Kevin Meul, with the focus on telling Frank’s story as truthfully as possible. He read numerous articles about the once most famous club Zillion and held long conversations with the real Frank Verstraeten and his entourage.

Pront highlights the life of a computer nerd who aimed and succeeded to create an over-the-top club with its infamous parties. Zillion is an ambitious film and Pront hopes to give the audience the feeling of having lived a wild disco night when they step out of the cinema theatres.

The real-life Zillion was open from 1997 to 2002 and was “the” place to be during the 90s in Belgium, yet the decadent club was also linked to numerous scandalous activities such as drug and gun trafficking, money laundering and on Sundays, the erotic evenings were known to turn into orgies with often high-ranking people in attendance.

Robin Pront’s cast includes Jonas Vermeulen as the infamous Frank Verstraeten, Matteo Simoni as the Belgian porn king Dennis Back Magic, Charlotte Timmers as Miss Belgium and Barbara Sarafian as Verstraeten’s mother. Cinematographer Robert Heyvaert, known for his creative work in D’Ardennes, Patser, Bad Boys for Life, did the camera work.

One of the most anticipated films of the year in Belgium opened on October 26 at Kinepolis, Antwerp. The extravagant premiere took place in 17 theaters, which were all sold out to cinemagoers eager to watch Pront’s long-awaited film. After the screening, the VIP guests were treated to a lavish afterparty in true Zillion style, with nostalgic booming 90s beats dance house music and sweaty dancing bodies.