Before she could turn 25, she had already been part of the biggest productions in the country.
Although many might remember seeing her face for the first time on their screens as Snowey on Yizo Yizo, she says her big break came when she got a role on the original Generations at around 21 years of age.
In both these roles, Mmabatho Mogomotsi learned how to maneouvre the acting space, connect with her character roles and most importantly, have fun!
To date, she tells Drum that having fun like a fresh fruit in the industry is what she always does when playing a role.
“[The lesson I learned from these roles is to] have fun. Then, I was still green (fresh). That element shouldn’t go. It has a tendency of invading me by taking my craft too seriously, so the element of fun brings in freshness in every role. The rawness, the energy, the fun that I had in those earlier productions, that’s what I’m taking along everywhere. I try to have as much fun as possible.”
Acknowledging that growth is indeed a process, she says that she has gone as far as becoming a drama therapist and working on her craft even behind the scenes.
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Through the therapy training, the bubbly actress admits that she has learned to see things differently and because of that, her critical bone has grown a lot.
“Immediately when I stopped seeing my craft as a hustle but as a gift that I was given by God as a ministry to someone out there who needs to hear the message, I was anchored differently into it."
More than 20 years later, the vibrant actress still feels like acting is new to her bones.
Starting off the interview with us, she shares how difficult auditions still are for her, especially for her recent role as Moretlo on Outlaws.
“I was so happy [to get the role]. With the audition process alone, it felt like you’re already in it. That’s how rigorous it was. Normally, they’ll call an initial audition, after that they’ll shortlist and call the shortlisted people. But it looks like they called the cream of what they wanted, and it took longer because everyone was THAT good.
“Auditions are always difficult; they always give me butterflies and unsettle me. I hate them but they are necessary,” she says.
One would think that it gets easier with time but for Mmabatho, every character brings its own challenges and demands which one learns and unlearns in the acting journey.
“I have never gotten to a point where I say, ‘now I’m satisfied’. It felt like I was doing it for the first time because in this one, the difference was that I was anchored differently. So many things that I used to take for granted, now I was consciously aware of them. Like how I hold myself on set, not in front of the camera which then influenced what came on camera. And it came out like we knew each other for long.”
Despite having seen her in several productions including Muvhango, Ashes to Ashes and The Wild in the past two decades, the veteran not only appreciates audition process more each time, but she cherishes the new skin in which she is required to wear with every character.
With her newest character on Outlaws, she says she doesn’t just wear new skin but the rich culture of Basotho while tapping into her motherly flair as she rides horses and shoots whoever comes for her family.
“It was through meeting the Basotho people and understanding their culture, their beliefs, practices and perceptions on how we can package this story [that I got to love it].”
To immerse themselves in the storyline, Mmabatho and other cast members of the drama series camped with Basotho community members to learn the intricacies of the culture.
“Even at the end of the experience, I felt like I could do better because there’s still so much to learn about it.”
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Grateful for the role, she reflects on how Sotho characters seem to follow her, as she giggles.
Raised in what was known as Bophuthatswana back in the day and now widely known as the Northwest, Mmabatho embraces being Tswana but is always delighted to act Sotho and Pedi characters because the two have always been her languages of interest.
“Those are my languages of interest because they are around my home language, seTswana. Seeing how different and similar we are as cousins is what intrigues me and I haven’t even exhausted the surface of it all. But the more I explore and exploit these languages through my characters, the more I get married to them, the more I learn the nuances of them and so I appreciate these.”
Even though Tshedza Pictures production was looking for a Sotho person, she says she never tried to convince them that she was but instead allowed her talent and basic knowledge of the character to speak for her.
The story about two families being at loggerheads with each other over continued cattle theft which sparks war will be hitting Showmax screens on 6 September.
