Terry Rising

In 2005, TERRY PHETO stole the country's heart in the Oscar-winning film Tsotsi. Now, more than a decade later, she opens up to EDWAIN STEENKAMP about her experiences as a woman in the film industry, how her choices have defined her career path, and what lies ahead

- Edwain Steenkamp

Her rise to fame was an unprecedented success story. After all, how often does a young woman, with little to no experience, nab a prominent role in an Oscar-winning film?

As I spot Terry across the arrivals hall at Cape Town International Airport, she is every bit as you see her in the media: poised, radiant and confident. But in the car, on our way to the shoot in the CBD, it’s clear that she’s also a warm, thoughtful and passionate person, as she tells me what she’s currently up to. In September she will start production on a new feature film set in Johannesburg, due for release in 2019. 

‘The very first time I stood in front of a camera was for Tsotsi,’ Terry says once we’ve arrived at the studio. She’s sitting in front of a large mirror, bathed in white light, being prepped for make-up. She tells me that she always knew the film would be special, but that never in her wildest dreams did she think it would be as big as it was. ‘I was just focusing on doing a good job because every bit of it was new and strange to me. I guess there is always beauty in the unknown.’

Before Tsotsi, Terry was cast in another film, one she thought would be her big break and the start of everything good to come. But before production started, she was pulled from the cast and replaced with a better-known actress. It was a massive knock, and a disappointing and scary start to her acting career, but one that would ultimately change her life.

In 2006, Tsotsi won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, beating strong contenders including Hany Abu-Assad’s Paradise Now and Cristina Comencini’s La Bestia Nel Cuore. What followed has been a career filled with major victories, but – as she quickly reminds me – one that has had its fair share of complexities.