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PURSUE ACTING - GRANT

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MBABANE – Eswatini-born British actor Richard E. Grant has encouraged local artists to be brave enough to take up international opportunities.

In an Instagram story post the actor shared how he would love to see more local actors and actresses take up the big screen in Hollywood movies. He mentioned how he has been seeing change, but noted that it is not enough as the space open versus the space that is being occupied is very different. “Being from Africa gave me an understanding of how it is possible to be great in foreign spaces,” mentioned the actor. Since his breakout role in cult classic film ‘Withnail and I’ in 1987, Grant has become a much-loved fixture on TV screens all over the globe, starring in everything from ‘Doctor Who’ to ‘Downton Abbey’ via ‘Game of Thrones’, ‘Star Wars’ and the recently successful feature he is part of ‘Persuasion’.

Film is one of the sectors in the entertainment industry that has picked up immensely after the COVID-19 pandemic everywhere but in Eswatini. The Motion Picture Association (MPA) in early 2021 released their annual theme report covering 2020. The report tracked the theatrical and in-home entertainment industry globally as millions quarantined; viewers were forced to stay at home for their video entertainment. Also social media platforms like Tik Tok, Instagram and Netflix strived more, thus delaying what was an already dragging race to grow the stagnant space. It is worth noting that there are a handful of actors and movie producers from the kingdom who have made a name for themselves outside of these borders namely; Grant himself, Sithembiso Kunene, Amanda Dupont and Sicebile Vilakati.

Prominent

Even though most of them haven’t blown up yet to brand names, but they have featured on prominent shows that have a great following in South Africa and Nigeria. Grant has also encouraged stakeholders to create opportunities for artists and Eswatini has seen such initiatives in the past from the by Eswatini National Council of Arts and Culture (ENCAC). This was evident when over 130 aspiring actors were called to participate in a workshop that feature SA scriptwriters and actors for a feature which was open to local talent. Interested actors and actresses can look out for opportunities on www.famestreet.com/open-auditions. It’s worth noting that there are over 250 open acting spaces discovered for 2023.

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