Zane Meas

Zane Meas (born circa 1965). Actor on stage, film and television; writer, director and producer.

Biography

He is married to Megan and they have two sons, Campbell and Connor.

Youth

Zane was born in Riverlea, Johannesburg, where he also matriculated. In his final year at school he took part in the production of the play Flats by Chris van Wyk.

Training

He studied a BA in dramatic art at Wits until 1989.

Career

He got his first role as actor in his third year at university. In the 1980s he was involved in protest theatre, including several of Athol Fugard's plays. After the protest era he became involved with the renaissance of the young playwrights such as Charles Fourie, Neil McCarthy, Barry Burke and Deon Opperman. Big Boys was the first Afrikaans play in which he took part. For a few years he did mainly film and television work until around 2000, after which he returned to the stage.

Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance

Zane has starred in hit television shows such as The Game, Molo Fish, Jo'burg Blues, which won him an Avanti Award for Best Supporting Actor, Isidingo and 7de Laan, and the internationally acclaimed South African feature film Forgiveness.

He is also an accomplished writer, director, producer and champion of community causes. As founding and board member of the community arts movement CANwork, Zane has written, directed and produced Miracle in Motion, Looking Back … Ahead and Knights of Dragonville. He has also directed productions for RAU (now the University of Johannesburg), the Gauteng Department of Housing and Eskom. He was a board member of Youth for Christ, is currently a board member of Rainbow FM 90.7 and is part of the founding team developing an Actors' Guild to secure basic rights for performers.

Zane heads up his own production company, African Gateway Communications.

He starred in Stormriders at the Baxter Theatre in 1989, Big Boys, the musical play Antjie Somers (2000). Other productions include Samoerai, The Blood Knot (1986 and 1998), Shirley, Goodness and Mercy, Vere, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Threepenny Opera, Die Sendeling, Palang van Dwaal, Hanna, Hanna Ek Sê.