James van Dyk

James completed a Bachelor of Science majoring in Maths and Physics in 2013. During his time at university he joined the drama club and became smitten with storytelling. He has written, adapted, produced, acted in, and directed plays and short films ever since. Based in Christchurch, he works in a cinema to pay the rent, and snatches all the spare time possible to pursue his passion for storytelling. He also plays the piano and considers music a large part of his artistic expression. In 2017 he took part in a mentorship programme with Two Productions in Christchurch.

His first play, The Lazarus Lottery, is very much steeped in science, imagining a world where cloning is the norm and dealing with the philosophical and ethical implications of such technology, and James hopes to continue to bring science, philosophy, and ethics into much of his storytelling in the future.