Céline is a DR Congo-born, South-Africa raised creative based in Cape Town.
Céline Tshika is a confused multihyphenate creative with crippling imposter syndrome. Born in DR Congo and raised in Johannesburg, being between two worlds has formed her eternal fear of the question ‘so where are you from?’ After high school, she moved to Cape Town to study Engineering to make her parents feel better about sending her to private school.
After graduating, she finally pursued her dream of being a partially-employed actress. She combined her love of comedy, sketches and music to make her musical sketches, gaining her the title of ‘viral’ she feels strange about. Her recent Savanna Comics Choice award win celebrated her parody music performances about rose toys and soft boys, surely fulfilling her parents dreams for their overachieving lastborn child.
Award-winning work
Céline’s debut project was the comedic web series ‘Jess Goes West’ about her time in Los Angeles. She created, wrote, starred in and promoted that show with 3 months left on her US work visa, solidifying the intense pressure she both despises and requires in order to make award-winning work. Upon returning to Cape Town, she began making sketches, starting with ‘Stank Like a Man’, a satirical commercial for a masculinity-affirming body wash, followed by her highly acclaimed mockumentary ‘The Wapidemic.’ This performed well on the festival circuit, being selected for the prestigious Aesthetica Short Film Festival and London Short Film Festival in 2022. It is now available to stream on Soleil Space platform.
Her 2023 sketch ‘no, YOU’RE amazing!’ poked fun at women’s refusal to accept compliments, earning an official selection from Toronto Sketch Festival and Inside Out 2SLGBTQ festival in 2024.
After getting emotional at an open mic about how much she missed singing, Céline dusted off a parody song she’d done nothing about, and decided she would not choose between music and comedy. A real Troy Bolton moment for her. She called up frequent collaborator Mikhaela Faye and they began making the music for what would become popular social media sketches. Céline’s 3rd and most popular sketch, ‘Capitalism’ gained her a too-large following and landed her on local news, and her anxiety levels are still adjusting to that.
She is currently in too many writers rooms (don’t let that stop you from contacting her), a recurring character on a Showmax original series, performing her debut solo show ‘Bad African’ around South Africa and beginning her gig as presenter of a new political comedy show.
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Double standards are laid bare in this funny take on the male reception of Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s WAP-(idemic)
To celebrate Women’s Month, we’re spotlighting a series of remarkable women making bold strides in their respective fields. Kicking off the series is the DRC-born, Joburg-raised actress, filmmaker, and content creator from Cape Town, Céline Tshika.
In the male-dominated industry of standup comedy, Céline Tshika can be considered a triple-threat excelling as filmmaker, actress and content creator. As a DRC-born creative based in Cape Town, Céline continues carving her own lane with musical comedy skits and solidifying herself in the male dominated space through her love for storytelling while being an inspiration to African women.