Joseph van Vicker (born 1 August 1977), better known as Van Vicker, is a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

ian actor, movie director and humanitarian. He is the chief executive officer of Sky + Orange production, a film production house. Van Vicker received two nominations for "Best Actor in a Leading Role" and "Best Upcoming Actor" at the

Africa Movie Academy Awards The Africa Movie Academy Awards, popularly known as AMAA and The AMA Awards, is presented annually to recognize excellence among professionals working in, or non-African professionals who have contributed to, the African film industry. It was fou ...

in 2008.

Early life

Vicker was born in Accra, Ghana on to a Ghanaian- Liberian mother and a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

father. His father died when he was six years old. Vicker attended Mfantsipim School, along with fellow actor

Majid Michel Majid Michel (born 22 September 1980) is a Ghanaian actor, model, television personality, evangelist and a humanitarian. He received nominations for '' Best Actor in a Leading Role'' at the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009, 2010, 2011, 201 ...

. He graduated from

African University College of Communications The African University College of Communications is a private tertiary institution at Adabraka, Accra, Ghana, for the study and teaching of journalism, communication studies, information technology convergence, business, African Studies, provi ...

in 2021.

Career

Television

Vicker started out in the entertainment world in radio as a presenter at Groove 106.3 fm (1999–2000) and Vibe 91.9fm (2001–2004) and as a television personality for

TV3 Ghana TV3 is a Ghanaian free-to-air television network in Ghana. Launched in 1997 by Malaysian company Sistem Televisyen Malaysia Berhad, TV3 airs and produces a variety of television programmes including acclaimed news bulletins, dramas and successful ...

(1997–1999) & Metro TV (2000–2004), Vicker appeared in the Ghanaian television series ''Sun city'', which depicted university life. He played the character of LeRoy King Jr., a Fine Arts student born in the U.S. who arrives at Sun city to complete his education. The series ran for a total of 10 episodes.

Film

Soon, Vicker was cast in his first film ''Divine Love'' as a supporting character. This film coincidentally, was also the debut roles for fellow actors

Jackie Appiah Jackie Appiah (born 5 December 1983) is a Canadian-born Ghanaian actress. For her work as an actress, she has received several awards and nominations, including the awards for ''Best Actress in a Leading Role'' at the 2010 Africa Movie Academy Aw ...

and

who were cast in the female and male lead respectively. Vicker is usually cast as the male romantic lead, often alongside actresses

and

Nadia Buari Nadia Buari (born November 21, 1982) is a Ghanaian actress. She received two nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role at the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009. Early life Buari was born in Sekondi-Takoradi, Ghana, to a Lebanese father ...

. He is often compared to fellow Ghanaian actor

and Nigerian

Ramsey Nouah Ramsey Nouah (born Ramsey Tokunbo Nouah Jr.; 19 December 1970) is a Nigerian actor and director. He won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2010 for his performance in the movie '' The Figurine''. He made his dire ...

Nollywood breakthrough

Vicker has appeared in numerous

Nollywood Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in ''The New York Times''. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there ...

films alongside prominent Nollywood actors, including

Tonto Dikeh Tonto Charity Dikeh (born 9 June 1985) is a Nigerian actress, singer, songwriter, and humanitarian. On 27 August 2000, Tonto Dikeh set up her foundation, the Tonto Dikeh Foundation. In June 2022, Tonto was announced as the deputy governorship ...

Mercy Johnson Mercy Johnson Okojie (; born 28 August 1984) is a Nigerian actress, film director and film producer She went to a Rivers State Secondary School for her secondary education in addition to the Nigerian Navy Secondary School in Port Harcourt, Riv ...

, Stephanie Okereke,

Chika Ike Chika 'Nancy' Ike (born 8 November 1985) is a Nigerian actress, television personality, producer, business woman, philanthropist and former model. Early life Born in Onitsha, Anambra state of Nigeria. She began acting in church plays at the ...

and

Jim Iyke James Ikechukwu Esomugha, popularly known as Jim Iyke (born 25 September 1976), is a Nigerian actor and one of the stars of the movie ''Last Flight to Abuja'' alongside Omotola Jalade Ekeinde and Hakeem Kae-Kazim. Early life and education H ...

. His Nollywood movies include; ''My Soul Mate'', ''Heart of Fire'', ''Popular King'', ''Gambling with Marriage'', ''Harvest of Love'', ''Stolen Will'', ''The Joy of a Prince'', ''Discovered'', ''The Kingdom'' and ''Against the law''.

International success

John K-ay, Prema Smith and Van Vicker on set during the production of Cop's Enemy

Vicker has directed, starred in, and produced five films under his Sky + Orange Productions since 2008. 2012 was the biggest year for his production house, earning him the NAFCA Best Actor and Director Awards for his comedy movie, ''Joni Waka''. Vicker has been nominated for and won numerous awards from Africa to the Caribbean. Awards include

Ghana Movie Awards ''Ghana Movie Awards'' is an annual film award to recognise excellence in the Ghanaian film industry. The first edition was held on 25 December 2010 at the Accra International Conference Center. It’s only in 2017 that the ceremony wasn’t held ...

, ACRAG awards and the Nollywood Academy Films Critics’ Awards. In 2009, he won the Best African Caribbean Actor and Best Actor African American and in 2011, he won the Pan African creative actor. In 2013, he won the Best International Actor award at the Papyrus Magazine Screen Actors Awards (PAMSAA) 2013, which was held in Abuja, Nigeria.

Awards and nominations

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vicker, Van 1977 births Living people Mfantsipim School alumni Dutch male film actors Liberian male film actors Ghanaian male film actors Ghanaian people of Liberian descent Ghanaian people of Dutch descent 21st-century Ghanaian male actors Ghanaian film actors