Smit studied teaching at Paarl Teachers College, and Drama at the
University of Stellenbosch. From 1964-1968 she did charitable work in
Malawi where she performed indigenous folktales with the participation of the local children in the rural areas. This led to a weekly children's radio programme in the
Chichewa language. Returning to South Africa, she joined the
Johannesburg Civic Theatre as a puppeteer before accepting the position as programme director and creator at the
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). Her first programmes,
Haas Das se Nuuskas (featuring a rabbit news anchor wearing flashy ties) and
Wielie Walie, were national hits.
Haas Das se Nuuskas was also one of the first programmes to be aired on South African television in 1975. Louise is the creator of
Wielie Walie, (she wrote the first 200 episodes),
Haas Das se Nuuskas (150 episodes)
Pumpkin Patch (500 episodes),
Kideo (1000 episodes)
Mina Moo en Kie (150 episodes ),
Zap Mag and
Professor Fossilus en die Dinosourusse (26 episodes) amongst others . She produced around 4000 programmes in seven languages and according to many, probably created the most characters in the world. She also created, directed and produced programmes in
Zulu,
Xhosa,
Sotho,
Pedi, and
Tswana. Louise Smit directed the first 26 episodes of
Liewe Heksie, created by
Verna Vels. In 1980 Smit formed her own company, Louise Smit Productions and built her own television studio, Kinnor Studios in Johannesburg. She sold it to Red Pepper Productions in 1998. She has a daughter and currently lives in Cologne, Germany. ==Children’s Programmes==