Who is Josef Ber?
I am an actor and a father to two wonderful girls. I’m also a baseball and rugby league fan.
What would you do differently to what you do now?
If I was never able to perform or write again I would start a market garden. I romanticize the idea of tending to my veggies and making friends with the bees that visit.
Who inspires you and why?
That’s such a hard question because I get inspiration from so many different people. People who are doing their utmost to improve the lives of every human on the planet are an inspiration. Doing something to benefit the whole is very noble.
What would you do to make a difference in the world?
Pay teachers more and make advertising for gambling, alcohol and sugar go the way of tobacco advertising.
Favorite holiday destination and why?
I really don’t have a favorite as I haven’t been everywhere yet! I try and go to different places whenever I head off somewhere, so as to experience a wide variety of location, people and everything that goes with that.
When friends come to town, what attraction would you take then to, and why?
I tend to lead them towards doing all the tourist things around town because it gives me the opportunity to play tourist in my home city which is something we rarely do. I’ll also show them around my local area in Sydney’s east.
What are you currently reading?
Speaking of Sydney, I’m currently reading SYDNEY by Delia Falconer. It intertwines her own story with Sydney’s historical past. I love learning about my own city and the people and events that shaped it into the 21st century city that it is today.
What are you currently listening to?
I’m a big Podcast listener. I love Scriptnotes for tips and insights into the Hollywood writing world and I also listen to a lot of baseball podcasts.
Happiness is?
Happiness is having a laugh with my daughters and my partner. My eldest daughter is 16 so getting a laugh out of her is a precious thing! All my girls being happy makes me a very happy and content man. Of course if the Wests Tigers and the LA Dodgers both win on the same day that makes it even better!
What does the future hold for you?
To keep on doing what I’ve been doing, more theatre, more musicals, more TV and more film. I also want to do more writing – I have a screenplay that is nearly ready to show people and I have other stories ready to be put on the page.
Josef stars as Bill Austin in the Australian touring production of Mamma Mia! the Musical – which opens at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre on Thursday 12 July, before heading to the Adelaide Festival Centre from 6 October 2018. For more information, visit: www.mammamiathemusical.com.au for details.
Image: Josef Ber – photo by Peter Brew-Bevan