He has directed short films such as the award-winning ‘Piece Job’, which won awards in the Best Directing, Best Cinematography & Best Actor categories - coming in as the runner-up Best Film (JHB) at the 48 Hour Film Project awards of 2023. In the same year, he was selected as one of the filmmakers under the Youth Filmmaker Project to write & direct the now highly anticipated short film commissioned by the SABC, NFVF & KZN Tourism & Film Authority titled ‘Quantum’. Soon to be broadcast nationally. His 4th short film ‘UBANI LORE?’ has become one of 2026’s biggest cultural phenomena, after premiering to a standing ovation at Africa Rising International Film Festival (2025) and was named one of Actor Spaces’ “2025 Final Top Picks: TV Shows & Films”, alongside some of this country’s biggest productions. The film has also officially screened at Joburg Film Festival (2026) and was nominated as the Best Short Film at Mpumalanga International Film Festival (2026) and is currently on a trailblazing 100-screening nationwide tour in partnership with Ster-Kinekor - with more than 25 screenings completed by September 2026, including a milestone screening at Comic Con Africa 2026. With THE UBANI TOUR, Nqanawe is exploring alternative & disruptive avenues of distributing short films as an independent filmmaker and build a new culture of cinemagoing. Making him one of South Africa’s most exciting, anticipated & promising film talents.