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10 March 2020 | Story Rulanzen Martin | Photo Victor Sguassero (kykNET)
Chris Vorster
Chris was on stage in 'Die Hart Verklap' at the Toyota US Woordfees in Stellenbosch recently.

“Difficult and very strange,” is how Chris Vorster, veteran actor and Drama lecturer at the University of the Free State (UFS) describes his role as Bas Koorts in the supernatural thriller Die Spreeus

For Chris, the biggest challenge during the filming of Die Spreeus was to work in front of a green screen. “You never see the monsters and things attacking you, it is only added later on during the editing process,” he said. Therefore, he and his co-actors were expected to use their own imagination “to be frightened, and to duck and dive from something that does not exist.” 

This Afrikaans thriller series has recently been nominated in five categories of the South African Film and Television Awards, including Best Television Drama, Best Cinematography, and Original Sound and Sound Editing. 

Chris was also nominated for a Fiësta award in 2019 for his one-man performance in the theatre production, Die Hart verklap. “It is fantastic to still be recognised for my work,” he said, “but I also have to give recognition to Dion van Niekerk, because without a good director, any actor will be lost.” Van Niekerk also lectures Drama at the UFS.

Being a lecturer broadens his knowledge 

Chris joined the UFS Department of Drama and Theatre Arts in 2015 as lecturer in the programme for Film en Visual Media. “Everything I learn in the industry I apply as lecturer, and research and teaching feed more knowledge on acting, directing, and especially writing,” he said. After five years, being involved with the UFS Department of Drama is still exciting to him. “This is where both lecturers and students get encouraged to do more than just breathing.” 

With his busy schedule of teaching and acting, it remains important to him that South Africans are still able to tell stories – “in any language”. He considers it a privilege for anyone to work in their mother tongue. This is also why the symbiosis between his work as actor and lecturer is so appealing.

News Archive

Community project teaches students psychology behind training
2009-05-13

 
Aaron Li and Marisa Smit busy teaching pre-school children how to bake biscuits at the Welpies Pre-primary School of Free State Care in Action in Bloemfontein.
Photo: Supplied


A community project of the third-year industrial psychology students at the University of the Free State (UFS) is helping students to gain a better understanding of the psychology behind training so as to facilitate a higher success rate with regard to their programme. Since 2004 the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences and the Community Service Learning Office at the UFS have been involved in a very unique community project. The third-year industrial psychology students are required to conduct their own needs analysis to determine the needs of the community allocated to them, after which they must address this need in a viable, sustainable manner. Key to this project is training and development that often involve the unemployed and entrepreneurs. Some training is also focused on smaller children. The 340 students involved in the project this year were responsible for presenting projects at various communities in Mangaung, amongst others: The Life Cycle of a Butterfly; Small-Group Facilitation; Bake and Decorate a Cookie; Sustainable Chicken Project; How to use the Library; Fire Prevention; Peer Pressure; Team Development; Preparation for Interviews and Writing of CVs; and Early Childhood Development.

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