Gershwin Mias on his fan-favourite role in Mince Jou Hare

Mince Jou Hare S1 is now available to binge on Showmax. Inspired by the true story of Shimmy Isaacs’ mom, the feel-good sitcom tells the story of Frieda, who quits her factory job to set up a hair salon in her home, changing the lives of her family, neighbours and clients in the process.  

Gershwin Mias has been a fan favourite this season as Frieda’s neighbour Oompie: part assistant, part permanent house guest, and part handyman, but always there to cheer everyone on. 

Since his breakout role as Zane in Arendsvlei, Gershwin’s been on a roll. At Silwerskerm last year, he won Best Actor in a Short Film for Die Blokkie. At this month’s festival, he’s up for both Best Supporting Actor in a Drama and a Comedy, for his performances as Kaliel in Die Byl and Sean in Magda Louw respectively. He’s also had strong roles in some of the year’s biggest Afrikaans TV series, from Juffrou X to Skemergrond. 

Caryn Welby-Solomon caught up with the rising star to find out more about Mince Jou Hare and why he’s having a moment. 

Congrats on your two Silwerskerm nominations. How did it feel when you got the news?

Thanks. I was so ecstatic: excited and also very grateful at the same time. It was like a rush of emotions because for me it's a big deal that I finally am getting the recognition. I always say: obviously, winning something is always nice, but, for me, the nomination is a great win. All the nominees that I'm in the categories with are phenomenal people. I've met some of them and I've looked up to most of them.

You can move fluidly between comedy and drama. What do you find more challenging?

I got all that drama training from a very young age, so I'm one of those who thought that it's easier to do comedy as opposed to drama - but now I think that's a myth. It's a genre on its own and it's a technique not all artists can achieve. For me, personally, comedy is very difficult. It’s challenging and demanding to get the right comic timing, but I enjoy doing it. 

For me, it was a great privilege to be considered to be part of Mince Jou Hare, because I know it's very dear to Shimmy Isaacs. It's the story of her mother, like Magda Louw, which Desiree Gardner also wrote about her mother. 

To be honest, when Shimmy approached me with the idea of Oompie, I was sceptical in the beginning. I wasn’t 100% confident in playing it;  I didn’t know if I could do comedy the way that she wanted. But after getting advice from Shimmy, I did the audition - and Showmax and Penguin Films immediately said, “Yes, that’s what we wanted.”

How does Mince Jou Hare feel different to what you’ve worked on before?

With Mince Jou Hare, there was this creative freedom. I think that was also thanks to Shimmy Isaacs, because she gave me, and the rest of the cast, a freedom of play. We would come with a proposition to the floor and then the director, David [Isaacs], would say, “Less of that; more of that.” He would tune it. It was nice to be able to play; it was almost like a theatre piece on camera. On top of that, it’s a comedy, so we all had fun doing it.

Watch the trailer for Mince Jou Hare

Oompie is so unexpectedly wise. What do you enjoy about playing him?

I really enjoyed playing Oompie, because it felt close to home. We all know someone like that in our community. 

Oompie is very outgoing, an extrovert, a know-it-all - or that’s what he thinks. But he is also very innocent. I don’t think he tries to be funny; he just appears that way without trying. 

Oompie is one of those characters where what you see is not necessarily what you get. There’s much more going on there. 

His intentions are always pure. He always tries to help and his hustle is innocent. He wouldn’t steal; he would rather come up with brilliant or impractical ideas. He is the kind of guy that anyone can trust. And he’s like furniture in Frieda’s house and that was nice to play around with.

Why do you think people should watch Mince Jou Hare?

I think many people can relate to Mince Jou Hare because it's very familiar to brown people: it's a story out of our communities. Every character comes with that bit of magic that they bring to the table but, at the end of the day, it tells one big story. And that is the value of our people, and especially of our parents. It shows the sacrifices they make; what we as children don’t necessarily see. I think that, even though it’s a comedy, the truth comes out better when we can make people laugh. 

About Mince Jou Hare 

The feel-good small-town comedy is directed by Spinners star David Isaacs, co-creator of Joe Barber and G.I.L. Roberta Durrant produces through Penguin Films, the company behind International Emmy nominees Stokvel and Home Affairs; classic SA comedies like the Rose d’Or nominee Madam & Eve and triple SAFTA winner G.I.L.; and long-running dramas Arendsvlei and Sara Se Geheim.

Opposite Gershwinl, Mince Jou Hare stars Melissa de Vries as Frieda; comedian Dugald Pieterse as her husband, Vincent; Fleur du Cap nominee Bianca Flanders (Troukoors; Nêrens, Noord-Kaap) as her best friend, Julia; and Franka Kirby in a breakthrough role as her daughter, Jody.