Biography
Gareth Brett Koorzen was born and raised in Cape Town,South Africa, the second-most populated city in the country. At a young age, he and his sister would gather kids from around their neighborhood and write, direct and star in their own choreographed stage shows, which were eagerly performed on their backyard patio using Cricket bats as swords and ketchup for blood. Tickets were sold to a packed audience. He believed at an early age that he was destined to be in the entertainment industry.
Koorzen spent much of his early life with a camcorder glued to his hand, which he would use to self- tape his narration to seemingly every event that took place in his world. He began at a young age to study acting with Gail Peterson in Cape Town and wrote, directed and won awards for stage plays that were held at his junior school.
While attending public high school in Cape Town, Koorzen found it very difficult due to the lack of dramatic art education provided, so he moved to a private high school where drama had its own dedicated major. There he studied the works of prominent playwright and novelist Athol Fugard among others, and received top honors in his drama class.
Koorzen graduated from Boston University in Cape Town with a concentration in multi-media communication. He subsequently attended Concept Interactive School Of Communication Design with a focus in graphic design. When not working in graphic design, he would later take to the stage in Cape Town at the Armchair Theatre in various productions; audition for commercials, TV and films; and star in his first South African indie 154 Days of Separation.
He then decided it was time to travel the country, and ultimately, the world leveraging his performing arts skills. After spending six months training in the art of fire dancing, he joined a group called Fire Tribe and performed regularly at events across Cape Town. He worked on behalf of "Reciprocity," a non-profit organization that helped to build a resort in Mozambique. He was also a tour guide in the Deep Sea of Tofo and a river guide on the Namibian Orange River. Wanderlust then moved him to depart for London where he explored the countrysides of Devon, Bournemouth, Exeter and Plymouth. It was there that he purchased his first Didgeridoo and learned to play. He then traveled throughout Europe, including Germany, Sweden, Norway, France and Spain, where he busked as a street performer on the Las Ramblas tourist promenade in Barcelona.
He once again returned home to Cape Town, and heeding his inner-call for more intense study he began working with South African actor director Bo Pietersen and taking private Skype lessons in Method acting with actress Shelley Mitchell, founder of Duse Studio of Dramatic Art in Hollywood. Knowing that he would ultimately relocate to Los Angeles to immerse himself in the industry, he enrolled in Cape Town International Film School to learn everything he could about the technical side of movie making. His acting coach assured Koorzen that Hollywood was the place to be, so he sold everything and bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles.
Koorzen began studying the Meisner Technique and Master Class at the Ruskin School of Acting in Santa Monica, CA. While in residence, he starred in 15 of the Ruskin Group Theater's LA Cafe Plays and stage-managed two main stage plays. It was at the theatre that he met actor Paul Sand, and had the honor of acting with him in a short film written and directed by Steven Stanley. Koorzen continues to work in film, television, and commercials and passionately continues refining his craft through continued dramatic education.
