Niza Jay has been going places
Talented actor launches production company to create bridge for creatives
Now that Inxeba –The Wound furore and euphoria is over, rising star Niza Jay is ready to make a name for himself both locally and internationally.
After spending last year making connections and launching his name in Los Angeles, US, Niza, whose real name is Ndiziphiwe Ncoyini, is definitely taking his career to anotherlevel.
He now lives and works between SA and the US and is launching Street Army, a production company.
According to Jay, the idea and ethos of the company is to celebrate street culture. He also wants to assist young people who show potential.
“My aim is to create a bridge for creatives in SA,” he says.
Street Army will launch in style with a new theatre piece While we Hate which addresses challenges faced by the LGBTI community, including hate crimes.
It will be staged at Pop Art Theatre, in Maboneng, Johannesburg, from June 27 to 30.
Jay is back in the country to cast and rehearse the play.
Since he went to LA last year he has expanded on his craft as a writer and explored other talents, thanks to his connections.
Born in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, Jay says being in the US has allowed him to reflect on what he wanted for his career and where to go to achieve those aspirations.
“Inxeba gave me a great international platform and that platform is still to be utilised, so ther ea re other opportunities in the pipeline on the global scene – but who said I need to live in the US to be able to do all this work?”
He holds a BA degree in dramatic arts from Wits University.
Jay says he had to lie low when the Inxeba controversy raged.
“It was a sensitive moment for me. My management and family decided that I had to leave for LA within a week.
“The point is, I was not in the right space. I was going through a lot of personal things I needed to work through. I felt that I would compromise some certain values of myself,” he says.
Jay shot the film whil e he was doing his second year at Wits University and was 20 yearsold at the time.
When the film was released he was 22 year so ld and could not relate to it anymor e because a lot had happened since.