Mad Solutions Boards Second South African Film ‘God’s Work’ for Worldwide Sales

MAD World, the global sales arm of Cairo-based MAD Solutions, has boarded South African feature God’s Work, written and directed by Durban-based filmmaker Michael James, for worldwide sales.

The deal marks the second South African title represented by MAD World in collaboration with Mojo Entertainment, following the company’s partnership on Zamo Mkhwanazi’s Laundry (Uhlanjululo). The latter marked MAD Solutions’ first acquisition of a non-Arab title, as the company continues to expand its international activities and build relationships with filmmakers and production companies beyond the Arab world.

Produced by Sithabile Mkhize under Maverick Resistance, God’s Work is a 2025 South African feature set in the streets of Durban, where six unhoused men find fragile refuge in a crumbling building while navigating violence, indifferent authorities and a society that has pushed them to its margins.

Blending social drama with psychological and surreal elements, the film moves between the characters’ external reality and their memories, visions and inner worlds. Through this shifting perspective, James explores the ways in which imagination, myth and memory can become intertwined with the experience of survival.

The film had its world premiere at the Durban International Film Festival and subsequently screened at the Luxor African Film Festival, marking its Arab-world premiere.

“God’s Work is exactly the kind of bold and distinctive filmmaking that we believe deserves to travel beyond its country of origin,” said Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab, Co-Presidents of MAD World. “Michael James has created a socially urgent yet formally adventurous film, using surrealism and fiction to take us inside the realities, memories and inner worlds of people living on the margins. Our collaboration with Mojo Entertainment on Laundry introduced us to a South African filmmaking ecosystem that we found incredibly exciting, and God’s Work allows us to continue that relationship while taking on a film whose voice is deeply rooted in its local reality yet speaks to universal questions of inequality, power, dignity and survival. We are very pleased to bring this second South African collaboration with Mojo to the international market.”

Sithabile Mkhize, Producer of God’s Work, said: “We are thrilled to have MAD Solutions come aboard. Their understanding of and enthusiasm for the film give us great confidence as God’s Work begins this important journey to audiences around the world. We believe MAD’s international reach and commitment to distinctive cinema will help the film connect with audiences and partners far beyond South Africa.”

For James, the film grew out of his experience working with unhoused communities in Durban during the COVID-19 lockdown. Invited initially to document people living in government-established camps, the filmmaker began participating in weekly workshops with a group of young people who identified themselves as filmmakers. The experience ultimately led him away from a conventional documentary approach and toward a fictional narrative that could explore the intersection of lived experience, imagination and memory.

James is a filmmaker, writer, academic and artist based in Durban whose work explores the intersections of myth, history, identity, race, gender, class and religion across film, theatre and academia. His previous feature, Dreams of Gomorrah, won three Simon Sabela Awards and two African Rising Star Awards in 2020. His documentary Free Education: The Story of Bonginkosi Khanyile premiered at the Encounters Documentary Film Festival in 2018 before receiving three awards at the African Diaspora Cinema Festival in Italy.

Producer Sithabile Mkhize is a screenwriter and creative producer based in Durban. Her previous feature, Dreams of Gomorrah, was acquired by MultiChoice/M-Net and received several award nominations. She has also produced documentaries for South African broadcaster e.tv and participated in international film-industry programmes including the Berlinale, Cannes Film Festival and the Trajectory training programme.

The film features Thobani Nzuza, Mbulelo Radebe, Zenzo Msomi, Nduduzo Khowa, Omega Mncube and Siya Xaba. Cinematography is by Jared Hinde, editing by Dionysios Xenos, with an original score by internationally acclaimed composer and musician George Acogny.

God’s Work is produced by Maverick Resistance, with co-production by Marco Orsini and executive production by Toni Monty and Gary Springer. The film was made in association with the KwaZulu-Natal Film and Tourism Authority, the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa, Amafrika Films and Mojo Entertainment LLC, with support from the Durban Film Office , MAD World is handling worldwide sales.

Award-winning South African feature opens at Ster-Kinekor Cinema Nouveau Rosebank from 10–16 July.

Before South African audiences have the opportunity to see God's Work on the big screen, the film has already attracted international acclaim for doing something few films attempt: turning the camera back on itself.

Earlier this year, God's Work won the Radwan El-Kashef Prize for Best Film Addressing an African Issue at the 15th Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt, where it celebrated its Middle East and North Africa premiere.

Named after the acclaimed Egyptian filmmaker Radwan El-Kashef, the award recognises films that engage deeply with African realities through cinematic excellence and artistic vision.

Yet the film's greatest achievement may not lie in what it shows, but in what it asks.

Set among Durban's unhoused communities, God's Work begins as what appears to be a documentary. As the story unfolds, however, the filmmaker himself enters the frame, exposing the uncomfortable power dynamics between those who are seen and those who control the act of seeing. Rather than claiming to speak for marginalised communities, the film interrogates whether that claim is ever truly possible.

Writer and director Michael James says the project emerged from recognising the limits of observation itself.

"The camera did not grant access - it revealed distance. I realised I wasn't simply documenting reality; I was constructing it through my own perspective. Rather than hide that tension, I wanted the film to confront it directly."

That bold approach drew particular praise from internationally respected South African filmmaker Ntshavheni Wa-Luruli, who served on the Luxor jury.

"What I appreciate about this film is its fearless commitment to a unique storytelling vision. It does not seek permission from established conventions, nor does it defer to the technical formalism that has too long defined and constrained South African filmmaking."

Wa-Luruli went on to praise the film's pursuit of "an authentic cinematic voice rooted in its own cultural soil" and described it as part of a new generation of South African filmmakers "willing to experiment, to dismantle inherited structures, and to build something new in their place in pursuit of a genuine South African film identity that has long been overdue."

Producer Sithabile Mkhize believes the film's greatest achievement lies in its willingness to examine the act of representation itself. "God's Work doesn't claim to speak on behalf of anyone. Instead, it asks audiences to consider how stories are told, whose perspectives shape them, and what responsibilities come with representing lives marked by inequality. Rather than offering easy conclusions, the film invites viewers into a conversation about visibility, empathy and the ethics of looking."

The film features Thobani Nzuza, Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Mncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Khowa with cinematography by Jared Hinde and score by award-winning composer, West-African born George Acogny.

The Luxor award forms part of an expanding international festival journey that includes selections at the Joburg Film Festival, the Durban International Film Festival, and the Zanzibar International Film Festival.

Now, after travelling internationally, God's Work returns home for its first commercial theatrical engagement.

South African audiences will have just seven days, from 10 -16 July, to experience one of the country's most internationally acclaimed independent films at Ster-Kinekor Cinema Nouveau Rosebank.

South African Film God’s Work awarded prestigious prize at Luxor African Film Festival

The South African feature film God’s Work, directed by Michael James and produced by Sithabile Mkhize was awarded the prestigious Radwan El Kashef Prize for Best Film Addressing an African Issue (Silver Mask of Tutankhamun) at The Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt last week.

“The Radwan El Kashef Prize for the Best Film addressing an African issue is not granted annually, but only when the High Committee decides that a particular film deserves this special honour, marking it as a distinction reserved for truly exceptional works that embody both artistic excellence and deep engagement with African realities,” says Festival Director Ms Azza El Husseiny.

The prize is named after Egypt’s pioneering independent filmmaker Radwan El Kashef (1952–2002), and symbolizes cinema that elevates marginalized voices with empathy and poetic depth. The film was honoured for “its powerful artistic vision and its sincere exploration of African identity and collective struggle.”

The award was presented to the director, Michael James by Dr Hossam El-Mandouh El-Husseini, Egyptian Member of Parliament, in recognition of the enduring cultural ties between Egypt and Africa and the festival’s role as a platform for creative dialogue across the continent.

Reflecting on the honour, director Michael James said: “Receiving this award on behalf of the film, and all involved is deeply humbling. This award affirms the importance of telling African stories with honesty and empathy, and I hope God’s Work continues to contribute to the ongoing dialogue around affirming the humanity of the homeless community."

Sithabile Mkhize commented, “This award is especially important because it acknowledges one of the central intentions of the film, which is to use the power of cinema to build bridges across humanity."

“This recognition is a powerful validation of the collaborative effort behind God’s Work,” says Executive Producer Toni Monty. “It highlights the strength of African filmmaking and the importance of creating platforms where our stories can resonate globally. We are proud to see the film stand alongside works that embody both artistic excellence and social relevance.”

The film is supported by the Durban Film Office, KZN Tourism and Film, The National Film and Video Foundation, and co-produced with Amafrika Films and Mojo Entertainment. 

SA Film GOD’S WORK selected for Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt

The South African film GOD’S WORK, directed and written by Michael James, and produced by Sithabile Mkhize, will have its Middle East and North Africa  premiere in the Long Film Competition at the 15th Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt from 30 March to 5 April.

GOD’S WORK which had its South African premiere at the Durban International Film Festival last year, screened to sold-out houses, and critical acclaim, and is due to be screened at the Joburg Film Festival on Sunday 8 March.

Mbulelo Radebe, Thobani Nzuza and Siya Xaba in God's Work directed by Michael James and  produced by Sithabile Mkhize.

The film is set in Durban where a group of unhoused men are surviving on the society’s margins in a dilapidated building that offers a fragile sanctuary. They are  bound by quiet loyalty. The audience is drawn into their personal journeys as they  navigate a world of indifferent authorities, opportunists, and looming violence. It is their  inner worlds - woven from memories, visions, and ghosts - that hold reality as vivid as the one they fight to live through.

Director Michael James describes the film as an act of bearing witness; and one which forces us to question our understanding and relationships with  unhoused people.

Thobani Nzuza in God's Work directed by Michael James and produced by Sithabile Mkhize.

The film features Thobani Nzuza, Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Ncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Kholwa with cinematography by Jared Hinde and score by award-winning composer, West-African born George Acogny.

GOD’S WORK is written and directed by Michael James, and Produced by Sithabile Mkhize (SA), Co-Produced by Marco Orsini (USA), Executive Produced by Toni Monty (SA) and Gary Springer (USA). A Maverick Resistance production in association with the KwaZulu-Natal Film and Tourism Authority, the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa, Amafrika Films, and Mojo Entertainment LLC, supported by the Durban Film Office.

For the trailer, press notes and additional information visit the website at: https://www.godsworkthefilm.com/ and follow on social media: Facebook: @godsworkthefilm Instagram: godsworkthefilm

South African Feature God’s Work Selected for Joburg Film Festival

God’s Work, the uncompromising South African feature directed by Michael James, has been selected to screen at the 8th edition of the Joburg Film Festival on Sunday, 8 March at 16:15 at Artistry in Sandton.

Set within an abandoned inner-city building, God’s Work confronts homelessness not as abstraction, but as lived economic exclusion. Hunger, addiction, fractured memory and systemic neglect shape the interior and exterior worlds of men pushed beyond society’s margins. Stark social realities collide with surreal psychological landscapes, creating a film that resists easy categorisation.

Still from the film God’s Work

The film embraces a hybrid cinematic language — blending documentary textures, staged encounters, archival material and symbolic imagery — to question how cinema frames lives that exist outside systems of access and visibility.

“South Africa’s deepening social fractures are no longer peripheral,” says Producer Sithabile Mkhize. “People are being steadily removed from opportunity, recognition and support. God’s Work offers a direct encounter with these realities.”

Director Michael James describes the film as an act of bearing witness:
“This film is ultimately an exercise in empathy. Cinema allows us to dismantle distance — to attempt to see one another without mediation or judgment.”

Still from the film God’s Work

Early responses have described God’s Work as “a film that does not ask for sympathy but demands reckoning” and “a powerful confrontation with the human cost of inequality.”

The film features emotionally grounded performances from South African talents Thobani Nzuza, Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Ncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Kholwa. Cinematography by Jared Hinde captures the textured physicality of the setting, while George Acogny’s haunting score deepens the psychological and emotional tension of the narrative.

God’s Work is produced by Maverick Entertainment, Amafrika Films and Mojo Entertainment, with support from the KZN Film and Tourism Authority, the Durban Film Office and the National Film and Television Foundation.

Producers: Sithabile Mkhize
Executive Producers: Toni Monty, Gary Springer
Co-Producer: Marco Orsini

God’s Work screens Sunday, 8 March at 16:15 at Artistry, 22 Fredman Drive, Sandown, Sandton.
Tickets: webtickets.co.za
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/1072745582?fl=pl&fe=sh

God’s Work Premiering at 46th Durban International Film Festival

Durban, South Africa: A haunting and visually arresting South African debut feature God’s Work, by Durban-based award-winning director Michael James, has been selected to be in competition for Best South African Feature, and will have its SA Premiere at this year’s Durban International Film Festival on Sunday 20 July.

In the heart of Durban, South Africa, a crumbling building offers a fragile sanctuary to a group of unhoused men surviving on society’s margins. Blurring the line between reality and fiction, the film follows Simphiwe played by SAFTA award-winning actor Thobani Nzuza (eHostela, Uzalo, DiepCity), and his crew as they navigate addiction, poverty, performative politics, and the lure of fleeting fame.  With Simphiwe (Thobani Nzuza) fighting demons only he can see, and moving performances by a strong supporting cast, Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Mncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Khowa, the film is a raw exploration of survival, brotherhood, and the human desire to be seen before disappearing.

The plight of the poor and unhoused is a starkly present and concrete problem throughout the world today, and increasingly becoming a political quagmire, but for director James attempting to portray that in God’s Work, he believes called “for storytelling that transcends the conventional narrative of social realism.”

Inspired whilst filming a documentary about homeless shelters at the Denis Hurley Centre in Durban during the pandemic, God’s Work doesn’t ask for pity, it demands attention. It confronts the viewer with the brutal poetry of life on the margins—and the stubborn humanity that persists there. “My intent is to engage with both the internal and external worlds of the characters,” says James, “and to allow the audience deeper access into the surreal and often troubling recesses of the human mind.” 

“From the outset, God’s Work stood out for its bold vision and emotional depth, and was always going to be a fascinating filmic challenge. The combination of Michael’s creative vision and Sithabile’s empathetic yet unrelenting approach to the production ethos combined with support from our production team and partners has brought this powerful story to life. We look forward to sharing it with Durban audiences” says Executive Producer, Toni Monty.

“The film considers what it means to be human in an unjust world,” says Producer Sithabile Mkhize. “It hopes to contribute to the current conversations within the zeitgeist regarding income inequality, the failures of capitalism, racism, police brutality, class consciousness, and ultimately how all these ideas intersect with the existential realities of life within the African context. This is not just a film about homelessness, it’s a story about power, loss, resistance—and what it costs to stay human in a world that’s abandoned its soul.”

Produced by Mkhize (SA), co-produced by Marco Orsini (USA), and executive produced by Toni Monty (SA) and Gary Springer (USA), God’s Work is written and directed by Michael James - a Maverick Resistance production in association with the KwaZulu-Natal Film and Tourism Authority, the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa, Amafrika Films, and Mojo Entertainment LLC, supported by the Durban Film Office. Award-winning composer, music producer, musician and film producer, West-African born George Acogny has created a deeply emotive score for the film. 

The film debuts at the Durban International Film Festival on Sunday 20 July at 7pm, at Suncoast Cinecentre. Other screenings take place at the Denis Hurley Centre 26 July at 1pm, Watercrest Sterkinekor Sunday, 27 July at 5pm. There will be screenings at The Bioscope (Johannesburg) on Friday, August 1 at 12 noon, and at the Labia Theatre (Cape Town) on Sunday, 3 August at 12 noon.

For more information follow on social media : Facebook and Instagram: godsworkthefilm or website https://www.godsworkthefilm.com/

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