Schalk Bezuidenhout at Tjaart in a scene from 'Die Kantoor'.
Image: Supplied
I don’t think creators Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant truly realised the goldmine they had on their hands when they conceived the British mockumentary comedy, “The Office”, in 2001.
Following its original two-season run, the concept was adapted for an American version in 2005, which went on for nine seasons until 2013.
The reason why I’m giving you Googleable information is to explain why this series - which has spawned numerous international versions, including South Africa's "Die Kantoor" - is celebrated as a cultural monolith.
Indeed, "The Office" is frequently ranked among the best shows of the 21st century and of all time.
Unlike the British and US versions, the South African version of the cringe comedy series adopted a more relatable approach. It is set at Deluxe Processed Meats, a polony distribution company located in Klerksdorp, giving the series an authentic Mzansi flavour.
For those who have been watching the show and laughing their heads off, I don’t blame you. It’s doing what it set out to do.
I recently spoke with Schalk Bezuidenhout, who was heading to the airport for a tour of his new show, "Hey Hey Divorcé”. Our conversation focused on his role as both an actor, playing the character Tjaart, and as one of the writers for the project.
He began by detailing the creative process behind writing this workplace comedy, which explores how low morale results from politically incorrect remarks flourishing under inept leadership.
“We had to buy the rights from the BBC to do ‘The Office’, the same way that you would have to do if you wanted to do South African ‘Idols’, ‘Strictly Come Dancing South Africa or ‘South Africa's Got Talent’.
"We had a few check-in meetings with this guy from the BBC - he's ‘The Office’ guy; whenever another country does it, he chats you through everything.
“The only guidelines we were given are that the company needs to be a sort of dying industry, and the type of company that you would feel would be depressing to work at. We went with polony, which I think is very depressing. And then the other guideline was that there needs to be a bit of a love story between two of the younger characters so that you root for them.”
A crucial aspect, of course, is the boss.
The oddball cast in the workplace mockumentary, 'Die Kantoor'.
Image: Supplied
“We were given complete freedom and told your boss can be gay, straight, man, woman, black, white, it doesn’t matter. With it being an Afrikaans show, we wanted an Afrikaans guy for the boss. In terms of the other characters, we had free rein.
"In fact, the guy encouraged us not to copy the American one, which is so loved and famous, as it was gonna feel like a watered-down version.
“I'm very proud of us in the sense that it's a completely original show that we made - and we made it very South African.”
As a writer, that was the priority. With the scripts in hand, Bezuidenhout was then able to focus on the acting side of things.
When it came to writing for Flip, the office manager, they did write with Albert Pretorius in mind. However, there was a moment of uncertainty when the shoot dates had to be pushed out; fortunately, it all worked out in the end.
In the show, Tjaart is Flip’s sidekick. On working with Pretorius for the first time, he said, “We know each other from the Afrikaans acting industry. It's all pretty small, and everyone is sort of connected. I've known him for a long time, pretty well, I would say.
"But this is the first time we're working together, and he's actually such a sweet guy. In a way, he's completely the opposite of Flip, who says the most un-PC things.
"Often, Albert would, after playing a scene, go hug the person and say, ‘I'm sorry that I had to say that’. He's got like the softest heart, and sometimes he was just so scared that the other actors were gonna take things that he says as the character, the wrong way.
“But luckily everyone was intelligent enough to knowwe're making a comedy show, and it's the DNA of ‘The Office’ to be un-PC. It's almost like the lifeblood of the show is that it is risk-taking.”
As much as Mzansi loves Bezuidenhout’s stand-up, he has viewers warming up to him as an actor as Johan Niemand in “Kanarie”, Attie in “Taktiek” and Danny in “Hotel”.
Honestly, he takes the latter very seriously - no jokes.
∎ “Die Kantoor” airs on kykNET (DStv channel 144) on Sundays at 8pm as well as on Showmax.