Biography
Deon Lotz, an internationally acclaimed actor, studied drama in Cape Town before spending thirteen years in the hospitality industry, where he opened and managed several five-star hotels in and around Cape Town.
He resumed his acting career in 2001, appearing in numerous theatre, television, radio, and film productions. In 2008, he earned a Fleur du Cap Best Actor nomination for his role in Wrestlers at Artscape.
In 2012, he was nominated for a KykNET Fiesta Theatre Award for Best Actor in the play Agterplaas.
The year 2011 marked significant achievements in film for Deon. Roepman was released, and Skoonheid (Beauty) premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, winning the Queer Palm Award as part of the Un Certain Regard section. The film also received an award at the Durban International Film Festival, while Deon won Best Actor at both the Zurich Film Festival 2011 and the SAFTA Best Actor award in South Africa in 2012.
Sleepers Wake premiered at the Durban International Film Festival and competed at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2012. Flight of the Storks and Verraaiers were released in 2013. Faan Se Trein featured at the Silwerskerm Film Festival in Cape Town in September 2013, where Deon won Best Supporting Actor. He also received a SAFTA Best Supporting Actor nomination in 2015.
Portraying Kobie Coetsee, he starred opposite Idris Elba in Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and attended its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2013.
Upcoming television and film projects slated for 2015/16 included KITE opposite Samuel L. Jackson, the Dutch film Hoe soet is de suiker, Cold Harbour, Book of Negroes with Cuba Gooding Jr., and French Toast.
Deon earned his second SAFTA Award for his role in the TV series When We Were Black 2.
In 2016, productions released included ’n Paw Paw vir my Darling, Wallander with Sir Kenneth Branagh, ’n Man soos my Pa, Detour, Free State, and Cape Town, featuring Trond Espen Seim and Boris Kodjoe.
In 2017, he received three SAFTA nominations: Best Actor in a TV series for Buurtwag as Don Mostert, Best Actor in a Feature Film for Dis Koue Kos Skat, and Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film for Shepherds and Butchers.
That year’s projects included feature films such as Krotoa, Hoener met die Rooi Skoene, 28's, Raaiselkind, Bypass, Number 37, and the Madiba TV series with Laurence Fishburne.
Deon also worked on Liberty, a Danish TV series currently in production, along with two theatre productions and a 60-episode radio drama on RSG during 2017.
