Football lands resident acting job
While in Johannesburg, he heard of a soccer team called New Castle Combination, which he had an interest to join.
A passion for soccer and a bit of luck lead Mr Vusi Thwala into the television industry where he now plays the role of Vusi on the drama series Zone 14.
He recently started workshops, at local schools, giving career guidance to youngsters.
Although a Kensington resident, Mr Thwala is originally from Dannhauser, near Newcastle, in KwaZulu-Natal. He started school at Caca Primary School, then went to Phunguphungu Higher Primary School. He then attended Sizimele High School. After school, he studied IT at Oval College. When he saw that finances were tight, he made a decision to come up to Johannesburg in search of work.
While in Johannesburg, he heard of a soccer team called New Castle Combination, which he had an interest to join.
“I joined the team because it had members from my home town and is a representation of another team with the same name from back home,” he said.
Mr Thwala said that one day a soccer player, who plays the role of Faku on Zone14, joined them for a game. Faku is also from Newcastle.
After the game, Faku told Mr Thwala about a celebrity games event that was coming up. In this game, cast members from a variety of well-known television programmes would compete against each other in sports. So Faku invited Mr Thwala to join the Tiger Boys Zone14 soccer team, which was playing against the soccer team of Generations.
Mr Thwala said he sat on the bench for a while, wondering if he was going to play at all.
After halftime, he was called into play for his team, which was losing. When Mr Thwala was finally called onto the field, he played with passion, unaware that someone important was watching him.
He managed to revive the losing team by scoring two goals. The Tiger Boys ended up winning the game with a score of 3-2.
After the game, Mr Thwala was approached by the director of Zone14, who requested he come on set that Monday.
It was at that moment that his life changed. He started from having a small part in the script to his character growing and him playing lengthier roles.
Mr Thwala is grateful to Bomb Production and Mr Angus Gibson, who gave him the opportunity to be an actor.
“My dream in life was to play for Kaizer Chiefs, but I feel as though my dream has been fulfilled because I still get to play soccer on television,” he said.
Now that Mr Thwala is a known public figure, he uses his skills to inspire the youth. He now visits various schools doing motivational talks.
“I also try to get across the notion that education is not something you acquire at school alone, but education is also gained from the elderly,” he said.
Another project he is working on is called “Behind the Blazer Film Project”. It is aimed at high school pupils who will be approached to record short films which entail their stories. These students will compete against other schools until the best film is selected by reputable judges.
“If you are doing something, do it with all your mind, heart and spirit. Give it your full attention and passion because, as experience has taught me, you never know who may be watching you,” he said.
To get in touch with Mr Thwala, follow him on twitter or instagram at @maxwellvusi, or e-mail him for further information at vugufilms@gmail.com
@Modder_Journo
