Jamie Uys facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jamie Uys
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Uys circa 1990
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| Born |
Jacobus Johannes Uys
30 May 1921 Boksburg, Union of South Africa
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| Died | 29 January 1996 (aged 74) |
| Years active | 1951–1989 |
| Spouse(s) | Hettie Uys |
Jamie Uys (born Jacobus Johannes Uys, 30 May 1921 – 29 January 1996) was a famous South African film director. He is best known for making the funny movie The Gods Must Be Crazy in 1980. He also directed its sequel, The Gods Must Be Crazy II, in 1989. Another well-known film he made was the 1974 documentary film Animals Are Beautiful People.
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Early Life and Work
Before he started making movies, Jamie Uys was a mathematics teacher. He taught in his hometown of Boksburg, South Africa. He married Hettie, who was also a maths teacher.
Later, Jamie and Hettie started farming. They also opened trading posts along the Palala River. Jamie Uys was even a local judge and Justice of the Peace. He once said he had to travel through wild areas and swim across rivers to hold court.
Making Movies
Jamie Uys started his film career in 1951. His first movie was an Afrikaans-language film called Daar doer in die bosveld. Over the years, he directed 24 films. He even started a film company with Tommie Meyer, but they later went their separate ways.
Awards and Recognition
Jamie Uys won important awards for his films. In 1981, he received the Grand Prix at a film festival in Switzerland for The Gods Must Be Crazy. In 1974, he won an award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for Animals Are Beautiful People. This award was for the best documentary film.
Animals Are Beautiful People
Animals Are Beautiful People is a documentary about nature. It shows the amazing plants and animals found in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. The film especially focuses on creatures living in the desert. A very famous part of the movie shows elephants, warthogs, and monkeys. These animals act silly after eating rotten, fermented marula fruit.
The Gods Must Be Crazy
Jamie Uys's most famous and successful movie was The Gods Must Be Crazy. This comedy film first came out in 1980. It stars a San farmer named N!xau.
The story is about a Coca-Cola bottle that falls from an airplane into the Kalahari Desert. A San tribe finds the bottle. Since it's the only "modern" object they've ever seen, it causes problems. The tribe decides the bottle must be returned to the "Gods" who sent it. N!xau's character is given the job of returning it.
The movie became very popular around the world. People in Europe, Japan, and North America loved it. The movie rights were sold to 45 different countries. A sequel, The Gods Must Be Crazy II, was made later, but it wasn't as successful.
Other Popular Films
Jamie Uys made another film set in the Kalahari Desert called Lost in the Desert. This movie tells the story of an 8-year-old boy named Dirkie Hayes. He has to survive in the desert after a plane crash. Meanwhile, his father, Anton, tries desperately to find him. Jamie Uys not only directed this film but also played the role of Anton. His own son, Wynand Uys, played Dirkie.
Another well-known film by Uys was Funny People from 1977. This was a comedy where unsuspecting people were put in funny or embarrassing situations. It was similar to the TV show Candid Camera. A sequel, Funny People II, was released in 1983. This movie featured a young Arnold Vosloo, who later became famous in Hollywood.
Personal Interests
Jamie Uys loved being outdoors. He enjoyed getting away from the busy city of Johannesburg, where he lived. He had a simple A-frame home at Paradise Beach. This was a quiet coastal area near Jeffreys Bay in the Eastern Cape. His house was close to the sea and for many years had no electricity. He used paraffin lamps and gas lights instead.
He would often visit this peaceful retreat. Jamie Uys was a very keen amateur botanist. He loved collecting plant specimens and had his own herbarium. He would ride his bicycle to find interesting plants in the veld. He also enjoyed building model airplanes and spent many hours on this hobby during his visits to Paradise Beach. Later, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, he built a more luxurious house right on the beachfront.
Later Life
Jamie Uys passed away in 1996. He was 74 years old and died from a heart attack.
Selected Filmography
- Daar Doer in Die Bosveld (1951) - Hans Botha
- 50-50 (1953) - Hans Botha
- Daar Doer in die Stad (1954) - Hans Botha
- Geld Soos Bossies (1955)
- Paul Krüger (1956) - Younger brother
- Die Bosvelder (1958) - Hans Botha
- Rip van Wyk (1960) - Rip van Wyk
- Hou die Blink Kant Bo (1960) - Himself (uncredited)
- Hans en die Rooinek (1961) - Hans Botha
- The Hellions (1961) - Ernie Dobbs
- Lord Oom Piet (1962) - Piet Kromhout
- Die Wonderwêreld van Kammie Kamfer (1965) - Witch Doctor (voice, uncredited)
- All the Way to Paris (1966) - Igor Strogoff
- Dingaka (1965)
- After You, Comrade (1967)
- The Professor and the Beauty Queen (1967) - Professor Hans Botha
- Lost in the Desert (Afrikaans version as "Dirkie": 1969; English version as "Dirkie Lost in the Desert" / "Lost in the Desert": 1969) - Anton DeVries
- Animals Are Beautiful People (1974)
- Funny People (1976) - Himself / Various voices (uncredited)
- The Gods Must Be Crazy (1980) - The Reverend (uncredited)
- Funny People II (1983) - Himself (uncredited)
The Gods Must Be Crazy II (1989) - Bob (voice, uncredited) (final film role)
See also
In Spanish: Jamie Uys para niños
