WATCH | Lesedi Matsunyane speaks on her difficulties getting roles because she didn't 'have the look'

Cape Town – South African actress, casting director, and film producer Lesedi Matsunyane-Ferguson has opened up about being rejected for roles, despite giving “the best performance” in auditions, because she did not “have the look”.

While sitting down with Candice Modiselle on the YouTube show, The Five Minute Call revealed her struggles in the industry, how she knew she would be a performer from a young age and Scar being her favourite character in The Lion King.

Lesedi’s debut in acting came when she appeared in a TV series that aired on Soweto TV, Vuselela in 2011. However, her acting career gained real momentum when she debuted on The Queen. She also played the role of Davina Moore on etv’s Rhythm City.

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As she noted in the interview, her acting journey has not been all sunshine and rainbows. She was rejected for a few roles because she “didn’t look the part”.

“It’s been real a couple of times. There’s been a couple of auditions I went to where what hurt the most was being told by the casting director that ‘out of everyone you had the best performance but they went a certain way because you didn’t have the look’.

“So it didn’t matter whether you could encompass that character fully. Then it became about the look, and if not the look it became about the prominence,” Lesedi said.