PRANKS AND FISHING – WHILE MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Story by Lani Esp-Morse
Willem Powerfish is known among locals as a sort of urban legend, occasionally spotted along the coast creating crazy viral videos. With 280,000 followers on Instagram and over 150,000 subscribers on YouTube, Willem’s social media pages are packed with wild stunts, daring pranks and comedic gold. With his first posts to YouTube just over a year and a half ago, Willem’s online following over the past few months has grown exponentially.
A Gold Coast local, Willem grew up in Burleigh, surfing throughout his younger years. Despite now having the reputation for catching the infamous (and highly speculated) 3-metre ‘flatty’, Willem only picked up fishing after facing some rough times.
“My mother actually bought me a fishing rod for my birthday in 2018, and I was going through some rough patches with mental health, alcoholism and gambling. And for some reason, my mum thought the fishing rod would maybe help me and give me something to do and get my mind off the other things.
And funnily enough, it worked, which is amazing and I began to fall in love with fishing and became very addicted to that instead of the other things.”
Before his days as ‘Powerfish’, Willem was also a professional photographer. “I used to be a water photographer, mainly shooting empty waves and that. I had a gallery in Broadbeach, and had a pretty big social media presence. I did that for about six or seven years as a full-time job.”
Willem’s first series of uploads, entitled the ‘Jetty Sessions’, see Willem pranking unsuspecting locals, now amassing almost half a million views a video. “I come up with some pretty crazy stuff in my head and I had just seen an opportunity there, a little loophole that I could take the piss out of fishing and be that annoying bloke no one wants to be around on the jetty. So yeah, it just started like that and just kept going.”
Other popular uploads on Willem’s channel include boat ramp and surf ‘pest’ sessions, set-ups to catch local thieves, and short skits packed full of kooky Powerfish antics. “If it takes a punch in the face, that’s what it takes, you know. As long as we got that reaction, that’s all that really mattered. But in saying that, I think we’ve changed a lot, since the first beginning of the videos… I think that from the first couple of videos until now, I think that I myself have matured a lot, and have kinda seen the bigger picture here. My intention from the start was only ever to make people laugh.”
Alongside his mischievous adventures on the water, Willem also features a series entitled ‘Powerfish Gift’, including surprises such as paying for pensioner’s groceries and helping local families in need. “I’ve experienced things in life where I’ve been at the end and I’ve been given a second chance and I want to do things right. If I’ve got money to give, why not give it away, and help other people?”
Willem Powerfish is known for his daring pranks and cracking sense of humour. But through his platform, Willem has worked on making the most of his online reach. Through his significant online following, Willem promotes awareness and education around mental health.
“I’ve been as low as I could possibly go to the bottom, and I’ve been given a second chance. So I’m taking it very seriously on how I use this second chance. I’m a dude that has a following and is making himself vulnerable and talking about all my insecurities and all my problems. But at the same time, it’s helping people and showing people that, hey, if I can talk about it and I can reach out for help, so can you.”
Willem’s latest uploads feature his new Powerfish Podcasts, also known as ‘Blokes on Blokes’, featuring interviews with special guests out on the waterways. While proving a bunch of typical Powerfish humour, Willem mixes interesting stories with a great takeaway message, covering stories about mental health, gambling addictions and overcoming tough times.
While people might be initially drawn to Powerfish for his outrageous videos and ridiculous stunts, fans stay for Willem’s down-to-earth nature and powerful underlying message.
With his online following growing with each upload, Willem has a clear goal for the future, working on a cause close to home. “I’m in the process of starting a charity. Every month, I want to have ‘Blokes on Blokes’ on a houseboat, have a live speaker – we have some fun, we have a laugh. Then we all sit down and have a chat.
Hopefully, some of these blokes can leave the boat with some life skills and strategies, and stuff like that. They’ve got something and if anything were to happen in their lives where they need to use these things, they have them.”
Make sure to check out Willem’s YouTube channel ‘Willem Powerfish’, if you haven’t already, and you’ll be a Powerfish fan in no time.
