Riaad Moosa returns to the big screen, along with Joey Rasdien, Carishma Basday, Schalk Bezuidenhout, and Rajesh Gopie for the much-anticipated sequel to the hugely popular, award-winning ‘Material’.

• Cassim Kaif (Riaad Moosa) is back and, together with his best friend Yusuf (Joey Rasdien) and opening act, Hendrik (Schalk Bezuidenhout), he’s taking his new comedy show on the road.
• Cassim, Yusuf, and Hendrik blaze a trail of mayhem across the country, with every stop of the tour delivering a laugh a minute.
• ‘New Material’ is produced by Ochre Moving Pictures and Blu Blood Africa and is distributed by Indigenous Film Distribution.
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Remember the team that brought us the box office sensation ‘Material’, the hilarious, heart-warming film about a dutiful young Muslim man who moonlights as a stand-up comedian in Joburg nightclubs? Well, they’re back! In ‘New Material’, a much-loved character, Cassim Kaif, played by Riaad Moosa, continues to ply his trade as one of South Africa’s few Muslim comedians while balancing the demands of a marriage, a young child, and living in a house with his aging parents. His father Ebrahim (Vincent Ebrahim) has reluctantly accepted his son’s chosen career for now, but it is still a simmering issue.

While Cassim’s career is going reasonably well, he performs mostly to Johannesburg Muslim audiences and yearns to expand his audience nationally and further hone his craft. Yusuf (Joey Rasdien), his best friend and agent, plans a national tour, but is totally out of his depth. From the outset, the tour is beset with problems, from an over-eager sponsor (played by Rajesh Gopie) who expects too much from the deal to Cassim having to make tough decisions when international opportunities present themselves. This is exactly what Cassim wanted. Or is it?

While international fame beckons in the distance, Cassim has to deal with the immediate complications of the national tour, not least of which is the challenge of his main sponsor, Laudium businessman and heir to the Sulabie Chicken Bite empire, Shabir Sulabie (Rajesh Gopie). Shabir fancies himself a bit of a showman and when he is denied a place in the spotlight, he quickly turns on Cassim and Yusuf. Chaos ensues, and fellow comedian Hendrik, is forced to step in and defend Cassim and Yusuf with his questionable martial arts skills.

This film is slightly different to the first, there is a lot more physical comedy but we do bring in the more touching aspects of the relationships. A big theme of the film is family, and especially during this time, I think this film will be something that families can experience together and we hope that it will resonate with each person and put a smile on their face and touch their hearts a little bit.

// South African Comedian and Actor, Riaad Moosa

‘New Material’ also stars Vincent Ebrahim (The Kumars at No 42, Material), Denise Newman (Material, Disgrace), Carishma Basday (Deep End, Material), Zakeeya Patel (The Girl from St Agnes, Material), Kurt Schoonraad (Tali’s Baby Diary, Skeem) and Shashi Naidoo.

‘New Material’ is directed by Craig Freimond, who won the Golden Horn Award for Best Achievement in Directing in a Feature Film for ‘Material’ in 2013. A writer and director for film, television, and theatre, Craig is also known for ‘Gums and Noses’ (2014), ‘Jozi’ (2010), ‘Material’ (2012), and ‘Beyond the River’ (2017), the award-winning film inspired by the true story of Siseko Ntondini and Piers Cruickshanks who won gold in the 2014 Dusi Marathon.

The film is produced by Robbie Thorpe, who has produced over two hundred hours of television and ten feature films including ‘Material’, ‘Man on Ground’ (2011, official selection Berlin), ‘Beyond the River’ and ‘Vaya’ (2016, official selection Toronto and Berlin films festivals).

To be able to go back to the cinema after lockdown is wonderful. We had to move the release of ‘New Material’ to late November, and we are delighted to finally be able to release the film in cinemas in time for the festive season. We have opted for a wide release as the film stars have broad family appeal. The film provides some hilarious escapism and great laughs by our funniest comedians.

// Managing Director of Indigenous Film Distribution, Helen Kuun

Cinemas showing ‘New Material’ include Cresta, Eastgate, Mall of Africa, Mall@Carnival, Sandton City, The Zone@Rosebank, Brooklyn Commercial, Ilanga, Kollonade, Wonderpark, Mooi Rivier, Newtown Junction, Southgate, Baywest, Garden Route, Gateway, Musgrave, Watercrest, Blue Route, Cavendish, N1 City, Parow, Promenade, Somerset, Tygervalley, Balito, Canal Walk, Clearwater, Cornubia, Emperor’s Palace, Galleria, Hyde Park, Menlyn Park, Pavilion, Trade Route Mall, The Glen, Welkom, Worcester, Midlands, Suncoast, Killarney, Grandwest, Montecasino and Gold Reef City.

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