Former Polokwane youngster conquers Hollywood

Daan Jansen moved to the United States in 2010 with an extraordinary swimming talent and a remarkable dream, to conquer the world of film making. Seven years later, with two prestige awards on his mantelpiece and a Masters degree in Producing and Screen Writing, the dynamic young man is well on his way to achieving greatness.
In 2016 Jansen produced a short film, ‘Counting to 1 000’, which was selected for multiple international film festivals. His first masterpiece won the award for best cinematography in a short film at the Deep in the Heart Film Festival and was named best student film at the Nola Horror Film Festival.
“‘Counting to 1 000’ is a crime thriller short film examining the idea that good and evil are not always black and white,” Jansen says in an email interview.
The film also provided a break-out role for Cailee Spaeny, who after ‘Counting to 1 000’ was casted as the lead in the upcoming international franchise film ‘Pacific Rim Uprising’, starring Scott Eastwood and John Boyega.

Jansen won a swim scholarship to study at the University of Missouri where he opted to study Digital Film Producing, General Business and Screen Writing. “My international achievements in the pool opened doors for me. The years that I spent competing on the world stage prepared me to handle my career with the same dedication and determination,” he says.
Recognising his talent the Department Head of Media Studies at the university, Deb Larsen, invited Jansen to join her in working on a television show while finishing his post graduate studies. “I produced two seasons of a cooking competition show called Show-Me Chefs. My duties included everything from budgeting to designing the challenges, writing the script and recruiting participants. I was also the show runner, guiding the host through the show and overseeing all production.”
Show-Me Chefs was nominated for a College Television Award, also known as the College Emmys, in 2017 in the Unscripted Series category.
In January he joined the National Association of Television Programming Executives (NATPE) team in Miami during a NATPE Conference. The association hosts annual conferences for content buyers and sellers from around the globe. Interviewees included Kris Jenner, Eva Longoria and Floyd Mayweather, the creator of ‘This is Us’, ‘The Walking Dead’ and ‘The Black List’.
After working on worldwide phenomenon ‘The Bachelor’ and ‘The Bachelorette’ as well as some time spent working on MGM Studios’ LA Screenings, where content buyers from all over the world gather to see what the studio has to offer, Jansen is ready to produce his first feature film for which he also wrote the script. “We have just finished doing the casting and I am very excited about the actors that we got to be part of the film. I look forward to working with the talented group of actors and film makers to make this film a reality.”

Story: MARKI FRANKEN
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