AUTHOR Jackie Phamotse’s book series, BARE, is finally being turned into a TV series and it’s real this time.
The rumours about the books being made into a TV production had been circulating on social media for the past three years. Now, it has become a reality.
An excited Jackie (34) spoke to Daily Sun about why it took this long for the book to finally be on TV.
“It’s amazing that this is finally happening because I had been in contact with a couple of production companies over the past three years, but we didn’t agree on most things. This is because they wanted to own the copyright. And I would not have control over publishing and licensing.
“I spoke to my therapist at the time and they explained what that meant for me. If I signed those contracts, it meant I couldn’t use the name anymore. I’d have to ask for permission from them. I wasn’t comfortable with that, so I thought let me wait until I feel ready,” she said.
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Jackie said she was also allowed to be part of the TV series.
“I am part of the scriptwriting team and casting. I can promise that we didn’t alter a lot of things. There are scenes that are removed, but it’s still the story. I didn’t want them to change the story a lot, hence I wanted to be part of the story. We needed it to mirror the book,” the author said.
They are currently calling for actors to send their audition tapes. Auditions close on 22 September.
“We want fresh faces. I’m tired of productions recycling the same faces, because BARE is rooted in young people. I want young people to be part of it. We’ve already received some tapes. We’ve have a month until we go to production. Actors should email their audition tapes along,” she said.
When asked where the series will be aired, she said she couldn’t reveal it yet.
“It’s not a channel. It’s a streaming platform. That’s all I can say. We’ve signed a contract for the first book of the series. Depending on how things go, we can move on to the next book,” Jackie said.
The series has four books.
