Shortly after arriving in South Africa in 1972, Rael Birns was contracted to organise a national tour with HAWK, one of the cult music groups of that time, and to manage and produce Rob Aitkenhead Jnr.

Joining the Barlow Group in 1975 Rael Birns became the Specialised TV Division consultant, teaching larger organisations the use of TV production as a medium for education and training. During his time with the group,  he was responsible for launching the VHS format in South Africa.

Having been 'head- hunted' by Warner Bros., as one of their General Managers, Rael set up WARNER HOME VIDEO in South Africa, being responsible for a head office operation together with five branches nationally and a structured divisional staff. Following the Warner Bros 'disinvestment' in South Africa, Rael Birns operated as a film broker, supplying film and TV product for Home Video distribution together with broadcast and Pay TV use. At the same time he was commissioned by Business Day, to write articles related to the music, recording and video industries. 

Rael Birns created the first sponsorship for African Education on SABC TV 3's EDUCATIONAL RENDEZVOUS, which ran for almost two years. He then went on to set up the marketing for two of M'Net's community stations, Canal Portugues and Shalom TV. For a number of years, he organised the sponsorships at the 'Fringe' of the Grahamstown Festival.

In 1987 Rael formed one of South Africa's most popular traditional folk music groups, Waldorf String Band.