It's not over for SABC3 presenter search runners-up

The winners of the SABC3 presenter search were crowned in Cape Town on Wednesday, but runners-up Deen Woodman and Nathaneal Davids say it's not the end for them.

They made it to the top four, with winners Kuhle Adams and Jamie-Lee Domburg.

Woodman is based in Cape Town but is looking to travel between there and Johannesburg, where he will pursue presenting.

“This journey of 13 weeks has made me realise a dream I've always wanted. I'm not going to stop here, as there's many other shows. I'm definitely going to start pursuing this career strongly,” he said.

Nathaneal floated through the competition, not realising what a big deal it was until he made the top 50, with familiar faces in the entertainment industry.

“When I saw faces I recognised from the industry, I thought it was over, but to make it through to the top 15, and representing Johannesburg, was a beautiful feeling.”

He said beating them cemented his love for presenting, which he would pursue using the exposure he had received from SABC3 morning show Expresso.

Nathaneal is a comedian, while Deen is in marketing. Both said these jobs fed into television presenting and their success in the competition. For Deen, an understanding of people and authenticity were skills that came in handy. 

“Authenticity is key. People can sense if you're being genuine, so I made sure that I stayed true to myself. Also, with marketing, a deep understanding of the client is vital, and this helped a lot on presenter search,” he said.

For Nathaneal, speaking was not much of a challenge, but he admitted that learning the technical side of presenting was a different issue altogether.

“You've got an earpiece, three people talking in your ear, you have to know which camera to look at, you have autocue. So this means you have to take all the technical staff into consideration. But what I enjoyed about it is that I got to be myself, same as with comedy, which is not something I switch on and off. It's who I am.”

The two were eliminated after a decider challenge in which they interviewed some of the biggest names in SA business and entertainment. Deen sat down with McDonald's SA COO Jo-Ann Van de Wet and Nathaneal interviewed actress and TV presenter Khanyi Mbau. 

Nathaneal is no stranger to television, but says Expresso was the biggest platform he has ever been on. Every Wednesday for 13 weeks, the show dominated Twitter, with viewers showering the contestants with love.

Deen said he made sure to respond to his supporters. “Before the competition, I didn't use Twitter as much, but the support that came from Twitter was amazing and as much as everybody was commenting, I tried to respond, because I know how its like to be a fan.”

Nathaneal is also still overwhelmed by the support. “I've come across strangers who said, 'I'm supporting you from the show'. So I'd like to thank them very much and I look forward to entertaining South Africans more in the future.”