26 - New Year's Special

26 - New Year's Special

Author: Gino Shelile January 1, 2024 Duration: 7:25

Welcome to the first podcast of the year, on the first day of the year. 1 January 2024. Happy New Year to all of you, wherever you are.
Let’s take a look at 2023.

Episode 01 of African Couch Potato - the Mash-up entered the digital arena on the 18th of July, Nelson Mandela's birthday.
It is now listened to from Johannesburg to San Francisco, from Toronto to Tokyo, Across Africa, the United States, through Europe and into Asia - not bad for six months.

We are available on over 15 different streaming/podcast platforms and so far have featured 14 in-studio guests - not bad for six months. 

We already have a good list of recommendations from you, the listener, and we will get to them as soon as we can. Keep sending them in - it is good to keep Gino busy.

Our local recommends while you are still doing the holiday vibe include:

On Netflix,
  The Queenstown Kids
  Can You See Us
  Love, Sex and 30 Candles
  Miseducation, Netflix
  Runs In The Family
  Yoh! Christmas
  Magenta Coal
  Six In The City

On Prime,

  My Girlfriend’s Father
  Courting Anathi
  The Honeymoon

On Showmax
  Adulting 2 
  1802

We wish you all a very Happy New Year, and trust that one of your New Year's resolutions is to keep on binging.

Yes? No? Send us a text

Let us know what you think, what movie or series you would like to see featured, or just to tell us how brilliant it all is:
instagram.com/africancouchpotato
twitter.com/africancouchpot
gino.arlechino@gmail.com

WhatsApp Channel: Mzansi Film News, Views and Reviews 

YouTube; African Couch Potato - YouTube 

https://www.patreon.com/c/AfricanCouchPotato 

Gino Shelile’s profile • Letterboxd
Member of the Film Critics Association of South Africa (FCASA)

Produced by Ted Loukes and A10 Consulting
ted@aten.co.za

Music by The_Mountain from Pixabay

© SANTE MEDIA 2026


Gino Shelile’s African Couch Potato offers a distinctly South African lens on the world of screens, big and small. As an award-winning TV producer himself, Gino brings a seasoned insider’s view that goes beyond simple reviews. Each episode feels like a relaxed, insightful conversation, blending a deep-dive review of a current film or series with curated recommendations for what’s worth your time in the coming week. The podcast truly shines in its interviews, where Gino chats with a variety of industry professionals right from the studio, uncovering the stories behind the stories we watch. There’s also a fond look back at older movies that deserve a fresh viewing, all discussed with a local flavour you won’t find elsewhere. It’s a comprehensive, engaging listen for anyone who loves to think and talk about television and film, delivered with the warmth and knowledge of a friend who really knows his stuff. Tune into this podcast for a regular, thoughtful fix of screen culture that feels both personal and professional.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 144

African Couch Potato
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48 - Showmax - Chasing the Sun 2, Empini, The Ultimate Girls Trip [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:23
We take a break from in-studio guests to have a look at Showmax. This is what to check out on Africa’s biggest streamer.Chasing the Sun 2The Springbok journey to the Rugby World Cup final 2023.EmpiniSet against the backd…
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46 - SAFFA South Africa Stunts (Katja Hopkins and Craig Macrae) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:04
Ever wondered who takes the leap off a building or crashes cars in movies while the stars take the credit? That’s the work of a stuntman. Special effects teams, directors, and cameramen all rely on the expertise of stunt…
45 - Composing Music For Film and TV with Modia Shole [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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When you are watching stuff on the screen, big or small, there is one thing that tells you where you should be emotionally; tells you whether you should be sad, or happy, or terrrified. That is the score, the music that…