Living her dream

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As a young girl, she had a simple dream … to become an actress and TV presenter. Fast forward a few years and her dream has become a reality. Literally. We chat to bubbly redhead Charné Kemp, winner and presenter of the reality show Ster-Status.

Her smile stretches from ear to ear and it’s hard not to miss the twinkle in her eyes when she speaks. Because the bubbly redhead Charné Kemp is steadily climbing the ladder of showbiz success.

She’s a qualified teacher and co-owner of a logistics company, but drama is in her veins. So bye-bye classroom, hello stage.

She joined an artist management agency, and entered Ster-Status. For those not familiar with this reality show, it’s all about preparing young women for a life in the limelight by introducing them to the entertainment industry.

The competition ran for six months, during which time contestants had to go through numerous tests .. think acting, ramp walking and photoshoot challenges. The women were constantly watched and evaluated until a winner was finally announced. Drumroll … Charné Kemp snags first place. The prize? She gets to present the next season of the show.

‘Gosh … some challenges had me stressed out quite a lot, especially ramp walking. If you didn’t perform, it was a goodbye for you. Looking back, I realised that I was quite hard on myself.

‘This is not necessarily a bad thing … it simply pushed me to do my best. Every. Single. Day. Even when I didn’t always feel my best. But it was also loads of fun, I got to meet my favourite celebs and really learn from the cream of the crop in the entertainment industry.’
This year’s show promises more episodes, incredible mentors, inspiring interviews, exotic locations and a bunch of stunning women amped to get a foot in the entertainment industry.

And with Charné as presenter, we’re sure there will be loads of fun. Because if her mouth isn’t saying it, her facial expressions will definitely tell you what she is thinking!

Charné in the spotlight …

She was born to entertain. ‘My parents loved to film us doing all kinds of things, so whenever I saw a camera, I went into performance mode. Hey, there’s no shyness here. At family gatherings, I would entertain everyone with songs, acting and different dance moves. My favourite was to sing any Britney Spears song. By the way, at the age of two, I could sing Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On. Not just the chorus, the full song.’

Her dreams don’t stop at Ster-Status. ‘My ultimate dream will be to get a role in a movie or series. Like a hard-core role … something like GI Jane. I’m such a huge fan of action movies. I can already imagine myself mumbling a few cool things before blowing up cars or kicking the daylights out of the bad guys. On the flip side, I really wouldn’t mind being the presenter of Boer Soek ‘n Vrou one day. Write a short film and who knows … maybe start directing my own work!’

Surprise! She is not a natural redhead. ‘My natural hair colour is golden brown with a copper shine. I experimented a bit with hair colour and red seemed to be the only colour that didn’t fade and make me look like a washed-out towel. Bonus that it fitted my personality like a glove. I might not have the fiery temperament, but most certainly the vibrant and outspoken part!

Charné is always up for an adventure and has a few hidden talents up her sleeve. ‘I love hiking and socializing … which is non-existent now due to obvious reasons. You can call me at 3am and say we are going on an adventure. I don’t need to know what it is, as long as I can bring coffee with me. I’ve jumped out of a plane at the age of 10, hiked up a mountain barefoot – because I wanted to feel the African soil, and walked with lions. Because I believe that living fearlessly makes your life limitless. Oh, and a hidden talent I recently discovered is that I’m actually good at roller-skating. Apart from that, I can play the Ukulele a bit and I love writing poetry!’

The funniest thing that happened on set while shooting Ster-Status season 3? ‘We were busy with a night scene outside. The lights were up and there were a lot of moths flying around. As I was explaining the scene to the director, I got an idea. In the moment of saying ‘ha’, I swallowed a moth. It was a terrible feeling.’

Charné’s advice for anyone choosing a career in the entertainment industry: ‘Getting that big break you’ve always dreamt of in the entertainment industry can be a long and tedious process. You can go for audition after audition, only to find out that you didn’t make the cut … again. I always try and remind myself that I’m not the only one doing the audition and there are so many aspects that the casting director takes into consideration when choosing the best actor or actress. Such is life. With every audition, I get to learn more about myself, about the industry, about different techniques and how everything comes together. So I’m thankful for growth, but still working hard for THAT role. Until then – lights, camera, action!’

Charné’s tips on making your dream a reality:
1. Be realistic about how you want to achieve your dream. Create a timeline for when you want to achieve a certain goal and also how you want to achieve this goal. This will help you to get to your big dream. Slow progress is better than no progress.
2. Put in the effort. You can’t make any dream work by just hoping for it, you need to work for it. Get the needed resources to help you, work on your craft, teach yourself the needed skills and keep on working hard towards your dream.
3. Be gentle with yourself. Some days you will feel like you are on top of the world and other days it will feel like your effort isn’t being rewarded. Don’t stop and don’t bully yourself – you need to keep going and remember why you started.
4. Make a vision board. I really love this and it gives you the chance to be creative with your dream. Print out some pictures and quotes or cut them out from magazines that resonate with your dream. Put it up somewhere where you can see it every day and be reminded of your dreams and ambitions. Don’t stop working until everything on your vision board has been achieved.
5. Remember that your dream was planted in your heart for a reason and you don’t have to explain why you’re doing what you’re doing to anyone who doesn’t want to understand. Surround yourself with people who believe in you and support you, but who can also give you the needed advice even if it’s not always what you want to hear.

Catch Charné every Thursday at 7:30pm on VIA, channel 147.

Follow her on Facebook, @CharneKempPage or Instagram, @charne_kemp13.

Compiled by: RIALIEN FURSTENBERG & JEAN-ELIZE MARAIS • Photographer: MARILIZE COETZEE PHOTOGRAPHY.

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