Spotlight – September 2019

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Fotos: Ben Wolf; jakkapan21/iStock.com

Spotlight 9/2019 MY LIFE IN ENGLISH

coarse [kO:s]

, grob, derb

graceful [(greIsf&l]

, elegant, anmutig

immediacy [I(mi:diEsi]

, Direktheit

nursery rhyme

[(n§:s&ri raIm]

, Kinderlied

outing [(aUtIN]

, Ausflug

vulnerability

[)vVlnErE(bIlEti]

, Verletzlichkeit

Why is English important to you?

The English language is beautiful — it

sounds unbelievably aesthetic. Often, it

is more direct than German and much

smoother. It is like a wave, graceful in its

melody and rich in metaphors. I am some-

one who likes to communicate with peo-

ple everywhere. English allows me to do

that best. When I was a teenager and sing-

ing in my first rock band, I realized that I

prefer to sing in English. I felt freer.

When was your first English lesson?

The year was 1981. I was lucky enough to

go to a Waldorf school. English is taught

there from the very first class, but the

focus is on developing a feeling for the

language. In the first lesson, we sang a

nursery rhyme called “London’s Burning”.

Who is your favourite English-language

actor, writer and musician?

At the moment, I am preparing for a read-

ing of a coarser type of English literature:

Hunter S. Thompson and Charles Bu-

kowski. Christian Bale is an extra ordinary

actor and I admire him a lot. It’s very im-

pressive how he transforms his body and

expressions. He is like a chameleon.

Which person from the English-

speaking world (living or dead) would

you most like to meet?

Am I only allowed to meet one person?

Then it would have to be Lady Gaga.

I love her immediacy, her unbelievably

enormous artistic potential and that she

seems to understand a lot about the pow-

er and creative quality of vulnerability.

Which is your favourite city in the

English-speaking world?

I love Cape Town. Maybe because of the

great people I have met there. I like its

energy, the light, the art and music scenes.

I saw Die Antwoord in concert there for

the first time. They were fantastic. The

food is delicious. The surf spots are excit-

ing. I have been there a few times with my

family and for work. I was lucky enough at

16 to meet Nelson Mandela and exchange

a few words with him about South Africa.

Madiba always stays in your heart.

Have you ever worked in an English-

speaking environment? If so, where?

I have worked in England, South Africa

and New Zealand, filming for between

one and three months. I love English hu-

mour. Humour makes intense work more

enjoyable and I like people who can laugh

at themselves. In New Zealand, I enjoyed

the relaxed naturalness of the crew. They

were easy-going but still highly profes-

sional. I remember an outing we all went

on to see a rugby match with the All

Blacks. Unforgettable!

Which English word was the hardest for

you to learn to pronounce?

“Vulnerability”, but it is a lovely word.

What was your funniest experience in

English?

My wife, Anne, and I met a British couple

while we were on holiday on Gran Canar-

ia. They were celebrating their 60th wed-

ding anniversary. They were both over

80 and really happy. When I asked them

their secret to what was obviously a long

and happy marriage, he just answered

in a very dry English manner, “separate

holidays”. He said it was their very first

holiday together. English humour is

simply the best.

What would be your motto in English?

Enjoy the ride!

MY LIFE IN ENGLISH

Simon Böer

Der Schauspieler freut sich gerade auf die spannenden Dreharbeiten zur nächsten

Staffel von „Professor T“. Hier erzählt er uns, warum er Kapstadt liebt

und wie es war, Nelson Mandela zu begegnen.

MEDIUM