As a child, Nombulelo Ngwenya from Lenasia South was fascinated by the world of storytelling and acting. She mentiones that she grew up reading books like Maru and watched local television soapies such as Isidingo and Generations.
She loved the soapies narratives and how many people related to so many characters that she followed in these soapies.
Ngwenya added that she spent her high school days writing different story genres from romance, action and drama.
But her challenge was that she did not submit any of her work anywhere, since she didn’t know where to go and who to approach.
After completing high school, she took her passion more seriously although not attending any film school, she continued reading books such as the Anatomy of Story and Writer’s Journey, which helped her with dialogue and narrating stories accurately.
She then ventured on attending various workshops in Johannesburg for acting, directing, dialogue and script writing. She then joined online writer communities sharpening her skills, learning from actors, writers and directors. Eventually she would meet her mentor in the local actor and director Luthuli Dlamini.
He helped her hone her writing and acting skills and got to see first hand how the film industry operated.
In 2014 Ngwenya wrote and produced a short story called “Journey of My Life,” which she submitted to Mzansi Magic and it ran for three years.
She also wrote “Matshidiso,” and “Church” they played on Showmax and Mzansi Magic, and further the short movie called “I Am Africa” which aired on a international station BET.
She mentioned that she acted as a doctor on a local biopic called “Nkalakatha Life of Mandoza,” which aired on BET. The biopic showcased the late life of kwaito legend Mduduzi Tshabalala. Ngwenya related that scriptwriting and acting were her purpose in life.
“It is a way for me to connect with others, to share my perspective and how I view the world.”
She added that she wanted to leave a lasting impact in peoples lives and motivate others to follow their dreams through her stories and the characters she portrayed. To upcoming film lovers whether its script, acting, directors, writing I urged them to start and put in the work and attend the relevant workshops, then everything will fall into place. She concluded.
Nyiho Mashaba
Soweto Sunrise News
