Thishiwe Ziqubu

Thishiwe Ziqubu is an award-winning actor and filmmaker based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Identifying as gender non-binary, Thishiwe's pronouns are They/Them. They star in the BET mini-series Madiba opposite Laurence Fishburne, as well as Book of Negroes, also starring Aunjanae Ellis and Cuba Gooding Jnr. Thishiwe won several Best Actress awards for Their stellar lead performance in the action romance, Hard to Get, streaming on Netflix. They were also nominated for Best Actress in A Feature Film at the South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) for Their role in the queer arthouse, While You Weren't Looking. Thishiwe also stars in the films Man On Ground and Tell Me Sweet Something, winning Best Supporting Actress for the latter at the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAAs). As filmmaker, Thishiwe is a prolific director, writer and content producer. They co- created, head wrote, head directed and co-produced the urban fantasy mini-series, Emoyeni, available on Netflix. At the 2019 South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs), Emoyeni won Best Scriptwriting (Thishiwe Ziqubu), Best Cinematography (Mark Rowlston), Best Editing (Itumeleng Nkabinde) and Best Actor in a TV Drama (Mothusi Magano). A lover of supernatural stories, Thishiwe Ziqubu directed the magical realism film, Intombi YaNgale (The Girl From the Other Side). The film was an official selection at the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) 2019 in Los Angeles, USA. Thishiwe also served as creative and head director on the international drama series, MTV Shuga Down South, Season 2. They direct 5 of the 10 episodes. The show won Best Youth Programme at the 2020 South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs). Light Realm Films (previously known as Ngonyama Kapital) is Thishiwe Ziqubu's independent film production company through which They co-produced the Emoyeni series. Their forthcoming projects include the psychological sci-fi series Custodians of the Ena, the fantasy romance Stellar Collision and the sci-fi feature film The God Underground.