Nerd Monologue

Awards Announcement

What to watch on SABC 1

SABC 1 Prime Time

Isixhosa Storytelling

Malibongwe Mdwaba is an award winning Actor, Voice over artist, Arts manager and Social activist – with over five years of experience in the television, film and entertainment industry. He was born on March 16th 1998 in Khayelitsha (Cape Town), a township in the Western Cape – South Africa. It was in 2019 where he graduated with an A class average at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg – enrolled for a Theatre and Performance Honours Degree majoring in Performing Studies and Musical Theatre. Malibongwe has also recently played a lead role in a Student Academy Award winning film uMama – The Oscars 2020.

In an acting career that spans over five years, Mdwaba’s acting oeuvre is soon to be expansive, as he aims to range from television dramas, soapies and films. Malibongwe was nominated at the Smart Living Drama Festival held at the Baxter Theatre 2014 in the category for Best Actor and won the Best Supporting Actor award at the Garden Route International Film Festival in 2020.

He has featured in various roles in seminal television shows starting off as a background Actor for three years then moved to scoring featured, supporting and lead roles. These include; Ubudoda, Romeo & Romeo, Isithembiso, MTV Shuga, UNina, UManyano, UMama, BET’s Isono, Netflix’s Justice Served and Disney+ Hotstar’s Lootere.

Mdwaba began acting in church stage plays though it was only a way to while away time then. He flourished in the Sunday school plays, and he started loving the arts from then. Mdwaba always had a high level of urgency that has made him achieve all that he has achieved in the past 22 years of his life. In 2015 he decided to enrol at the Wits School of Arts in Johannesburg and his parents were supportive of this. Fast forward to 2016 he then had to move at the age of 17 to start his academic journey. As much as he didn’t have family residing in the Gauteng province, Malibongwe ensured that he worked hard so that the relocation was fruitful.

It was in the Mzansi Magic film “Ubudoda”, in which Mdwaba played the role of the lead Athi Mthimkhulu the son to seasoned actor Jet Novuka and Zandile Msutwana, this was his major television role that he really launched himself as a major acting talent, one to be reckoned with in South Africa. Over the repetitive screening of the film, he has captivated the South African television viewers with his outstanding acting skills. The feedback he got from the general public about the narrative he pushed on the film, comes to show that he remained in the hearts of viewers; his realistic portrayal of the character has anchored the life of many young boys in South Africa.

Apart from acting on television and on stage, Mdwaba continues to have a helping hand in empowering young minds through his outreach programs both in Cape Town (Khayelitsha) and Johannesburg (Hillbrow and Alexandra). This has played a significant role in his development as an actor – for he draws on his encounters with young people to portray some of his roles.

To add to his endless accomplishments, Malibongwe Mdwaba is the founder of Indibano – The Encounter which is a community organisation that aims to bridge the gap between emerging creatives and industry professionals in South Africa. Mdwaba has seen a gap in the South African Arts industry and decided to launch this platform in September 2018.

In the years that he has been in the industry, he has worked extensively in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Mdwaba travels extensively to various film and arts festivals around the country, adopting the doctrine that learning comes in different forms and it is continuous.

When Mdwaba is not wearing his several hats, he is a gym junkie who is fond of body strengthening activities. If he is not in Johannesburg, where he is currently based then he is in Cape Town. Malibongwe likes ascending the city’s atmospheric landscape spots and takes in the lovely ocean breeze.

Malibongwe Mdwaba - V/O

Popular tracks