Noem My Skollie star opens foundation to help youth in area where he grew up
Cape Town - Using acting as a catalyst for change is what drives award-winning Cape Town actor, Dann-Jacques Mouton.
Mouton, who honed his talent in Noem my Skollie and 7de Laan, recently opened the doors of the Jacomus Foundation. Mouton and his wife, Tamsyn, saw the growing need to try and make a difference in the lives of the youth.
Through the work of the foundation, the couple wants to address the growing number of challenges and social evils plaguing our communities.
Mouton, who won Best Actor in a Feature Film for his role in Noem my Skollie at the Saftas in 2017, said: “We as a nation are faced with many challenges and social evils. To be kept active and off the streets is imperative. We don’t just hear, we see and face these challenges daily, and our hearts go out to the youth.”
The foundation, whose name means May God Protect, fulfilled a dream which Mouton had.
“I always wanted to teach. My wife then challenged me and asked what legacy we will leave behind for our kids, specifically. She did a lot of research and then decided. From there, Jacomus was born. We were still living in Johannesburg, then relocated back to Cape Town and (specifically) plough back (in) to our area where we grew up, Eerste River,” he said.
“(I would like) to gain more insight into where our youth is at on an intellectual level, as well as a God given experience to interact with people from all areas of what we call life.
“The students would gain, working individually as well as part of a team. They would be taught to make decisions and be in the presence of positive role models,which is lacking in our communities,” he said.
Student Caitlyn Gordon, said: “I’ve learnt that there is a lot more to acting than what I thought. When I first joined the classes I was not aware of my full potential as an actor and I only had one way of portraying characters. These classes helped me a lot in finding different yet creative parts of myself through acting a variety of characters in unique ways.
“I love how acting can literally be my form of escaping reality. I believe it is important that I connect myself to different parts of my being and at the same time be so comfortable with being me at that given moment. It is honestly so therapeutic because acting has helped me face a lot of bad experiences in my life.
“Joining an acting class does not normally mean that someone will become an actor. But what acting classes can do is it helps people with their self esteem and human development. People gain the ability to talk in front of crowds, be confident in a job interview or just communication in their everyday life. Acting classes is another way of teaching new life skills to people to make them an even better version of themselves,” she said.
Heinrich Pieterse, another student at the foundation, said: “I have learnt how to be confident and to believe in myself. My goals are to become a professional actor and a story writer.”
Youth between the ages of 16 and 35 can join.
Weekend Argus