Mockumentary style entertainment is always a laugh, and this South African spoof “Daryn’s Gym” is going to be hilarious and just in time for the festive season.
Johannesburg, South Africa (10 November 2021) – Daryn’s Gym, a mockumentary comedy from writer/ director, Brett Michael Innes, introduces newcomer Clifford Joshua Young to local audiences. He is flanked by local favourites Hlubi Mboya, Siv Ngesi, Natasha Sutherland and Deon Coetzee.
Set in a family gym in Randburg, the film is a David and Goliath narrative that sees the lovable Daryn JNR (Young) pitted against Funi (Mboya), the ruthless owner of a multi-national fitness centre. The film will play at the South African Independent Film Festival on 25 November 2021, ahead of its nationwide release on eVOD, a local streaming service, in December this year.
While Brett Michael Innes is best known for making audiences reach for their tissues with his heart-wrenching dramas like the SAFTA-winning Sink (2017) and Fiela se Kind (2019), his latest offering looks set to show a different side to the filmmaker.
“I loved the challenge of a new genre,” said Brett when asked about his new offering.
“And while I felt out of my depth at times, I chose to rely on my experience in drama so that we would always pursue truth over a punchline. And while I will always be drawn to complex narratives on the heavier side of life, a large part of this pivot to comedy came from recognizing that lockdown has been tough on all of us and the last thing anyone wants to watch right now is a movie about pain. Much like ‘Ted Lasso’, I hope that the film leaves viewers feeling a little lighter when the credits start to roll.”
Produced with Paulo Areal, the man behind another hard-hitting SAFTA-darling Ellen Pakkies, the two managed to assemble some of South Africa’s top dramatic actors as well as a few faces you haven’t seen before. One of them is Clifford Joshua Young, who makes his film debut as the lovable Daryn JNR.
“When I got the call from Brett to say that I was Daryn JNR, I was literally in a huge glass box at the V&A Waterfront doing promotion work,” said Clifford when asked about the role.
“I’d been in the structure for five days and, while I had a good feeling about my audition, I couldn’t believe that an opportunity like this had finally arrived. I’ve always wanted to work with Brett and having him walk this road with me was a dream come true. Playing Daryn JNR has truly changed my life.”
Take a look at the hilarious mockumentary trailer below.
by 