THIS IS NOT A HIGHLIGHT REEL. THIS IS THE REAL JOURNEY.
Real Journeys
Thembi Mtshali-Jones: Executive Producer | Spirit Sister Productions
Multi-talented Thembi Mtshali-Jones is recognised as one of South Africa’s most celebrated artists as a singer, actress, producer and playwright. She recently graced the red carpet at the Berlin International Film Festival for the World Premier of for her outstanding work on the 1988 feature film, Mapantsula.
She co-founded the production company Spirit Sister Productions in 2006 which produced a women’s magazine program The Power Within for SABC3 and other documentaries focusing on women’s stories. Thembi has been a juror for the International Emmy Awards for film and television since 2009 to present. She has served on different boards in the arts, including the Gauteng Film Commission, The Baxter Theatre and the Living Legends Legacy Fraternity Trust (LLLFT).
She grew up in a small village near Ulundi in KwaZulu-Natal and later moved to Durban. Her professional career as an actress and a singer started in the early 70s and she has performed around the globe including on Broadway in New York and the West End in London. Read More>>
Brigitte Hartley: Director of Africa Organics South Africa (Pty) Ltd
Born and raised in Durban. I went to a local Durban North school and studied a BCom at Varsity College. I went on to study a post grad in Foundation phase Education, but halfway through my post grad studies, I decided I wanted some experience in the working world. At the age of 23, I applied for my first real job at a listed corporate, in the financial services industry, starting out as a receptionist. After 18 months, I moved into a banking role and spent 8 years working with high-net-worth clients. I have had the privilege of working with some very successful and influential businesspeople.
On a personal note, I’m a wife, mother to two gorgeous children and two fur babies, a nature and outdoor enthusiast, I enjoy all things health and wellness, running is my hobby and my escape to clear my head.
Our journey on this path has begun very recently through our acquisition of Africa Organics, an international personal care brand that is natural, certified organic, earth-friendly as well as plastic and carbon neutral. Read More>>
Alison Botha: Inspirational Speaker | Author | Producerer
Alison is best known for the ordeal she suffered in December 1994, when an extraordinary event took place in Alison’s ordinary life. She was abducted by two men and taken to the outskirts of the coastal city of Port Elizabeth in South Africa, where they raped and brutally assaulted her. She was stabbed in the abdomen more than 30 times and her throat was slit from side to side. The men left her for dead in the bushes, the full moon looking down on her barely recognisable body. Somehow she was able to use the light of the moon to find her way back to the road where she collapsed. A car finally stopped and found the near-dead Alison. Despite the odds, she lived.
Since the ordeal, Alison has received numerous awards, including the Rotarian Paul Harris Award for Courage Beyond the Norm. She was named Femina magazine’s first “Woman of Courage” in 1995 and was honoured as her hometown of Port Elizabeth’s Citizen of the Year in 1995 for her contributions to the community. Read More>>