African Couch Potato

2026 is here and most people are already back at work and the next holiday is Human Rights Day, way away on the 21st of March. Here at ACP we never stop, and Gino has a full goody bag for this week's ep. We kick off with a new show on Mzansi Magic, Bhelas , which follows the life of Thato - a young college drop-out who wants to become a chef. Across the pond to the supposed "Land of the...

Happy New Year and welcome to the first episode of African Couch Potato of 2026. We kick off the ep with Gino's top 26 movies to look out for over the coming year. He has a look at the whirlwind African tour of American YouTuber iShowSpeed. Staying with the African tour theme, there's a review of the totally crazy  Tiffany Haddish Goes Off currently streaming on Showmax , and we end with...

The last episode of ACP for 2025! With only a few days left of the year, Gino takes time to reflect on the amazing guests we've had the pleasure of hosting; where we are all over the world and how you managed to listen in.  In a move that took many people by surprise, Netflix is planning to acquire Warner Bros Discovery, which, if successful, will make it possibly the largest media company on...

The season of goodwill is upon us, yet sadly, we start this episode with the horrific shooting of DJ Warras. Gino takes some time to reflect on this tragic event. Moving on, this week sees Gino relating his adventures from his hilarious recent roadtrip to Mozambique, where just about everything that could go wrong, did! Surviving the trip, Gino takes a look at the new Netflix release: Love and Win...

Luto Mpunga is a South African social media personality and content creator known for her activity on TikTok, sharing videos featuring personal moments, humour, and music-related content. She is also part of the Director's Guild of South Africa. In this episode we grabbed a few minutes with her, via Zoom, to chat about the DGSA Creatives Awards. The Creatives Awards is a groundbreaking event...

Sibusiso Mthiya is a South African media personality, producer, and presenter known for hosting inspirational shows and it was a pleasure to welcome him to the studio for a chat with Gino about his career and his plans for the future, as well as talking openly about his faith and growing up without a present father figure . Sibusiso might be known to older listeners from his days on Kideo and YoTv...

December is here, Christmas is round the corner and so are the holidays. And how are we going to kick off the celebrations? With a resounding win by the Springboks. For the first time, Gino got to watch the Boks with his Dad on his birthday. And how? Because DStv has unlocked the Premium package to all Compact subscribers until the end of December, but only on the decoder, not DStv Stream. ACP has...

The war is over, but the silence remains. The South African Border War left broken nations and haunted lives. Unspoken War reveals the hidden cost of a conflict few speak about and even fewer truly understand. This week Gino gets the chance to talk, via Zoom, in depth with the docuseries director Nikki Comninos. Born in Zimbabwe with a father in political exile and a mother busy covering war as a...

Episode 20 of ACP found Gino in a sartorial spin when he was invited to speak at the inaugural Global Creative Summit that just happened in Johannesburg, but more on that later. We kick off the ep with a couple of reviews. First up is Boots on Netflix. based on the book The Pink Marine. This is the story of a gay teen who joins the Marine Corps in the late 70s. A brave move by anybody's stand...

Welcome to Episode 19 of ACP and do we have news for you. This week, Gino deals with his son's birthday, faces up to Frankenstein and looks forward to the King of Pop on the silver screen First up, while finding animé content for his son's birthday, Gino finds out that ratings vary from country to country and that what is ok in one country is definitely not suitable in others.   Next, af...

November is here already, and to welcome it in Gino takes a quick look at whats hot and happening on the local scene. We kick off the episode with a couple of reviews; Bad Influencer on Netflix is a drama centred round celebs buying and selling faux gear, followed by Slay Queens on Showmax. This docuseries picks up on first-hand accounts of those ladies who hook up for cash. In the news, the SABC...

Where to after Silwerskerm? For 25 year-old Mikayla Joy Brown and her 30 year-old brother Jesse Brown the answer was the prestigious BFI London Film Festival. Their film Finding Optel just started streaming on Showmax last week so Gino grabbed the opportunity to chat to co-director, writer and lead actress, Mikayla, about what inspired her, how they pulled it together and what it was like being at...

Welcome to this week's serving of African Couch Potato; on the menu are some reviews and some news.  As an appetizer, Gino looks at School Ties , nominated for an international Emmy and directed by previous guest Richard Finn Gregory, this alarming documentary series explores the culture of sexual grooming at all-boys’ schools in South Africa and is currently on Showmax.  Our next course will...

What's going down on the local scene? Welcome to African Couch Potato's News, Views and Reviews with your host Gino Shelile. This episode we kick off with Reviews, looking at three shows currently on Netflix. Monster - The Ed Gein Story - Season 4 of the anthology series about high-profile crimes or killers that captured public attention and notoriety.  High Infidelity - Larissa finds ou...

2025 looks like the breakout year for this episode's guest. With a starring role in Amazon Prime's Wheel of Time and her latest film, Finding Optel , having its international premiere at the prestigious BFI London Film Festival later this month, singer, actress, voice artist, writer and business owner Zenobia Kloppers joins us, via Zoom, from Cape Town to talk about her illustrious caree...

News, views and reviews this week as Gino casts his eye over what's happening on the local scene in the world of TV and Film.  First up, some big news. Les Français sont ici! - the French are here!  In a major shift in Africa’s entertainment landscape, following regulatory approval and realignments with local broadcasting laws, French media giant CANAL+ has officially completed its buy out of...

There are many aspects to Film and TV production and usually people specilalise in one particular discipline, either in front of the camera or behind it. Occasionally you come across one of those who doesn't "stick to the script" and does something of everything. One such is Kagiso Latane. Director, Editor, Scriptwriter, Photographer, Voice Artist and Actor, Kagiso joined Gino, via...

Showmax recently dropped the trailer for Season 3 of Youngins , which holds the record for the most first-day views of any series on the African streamer since its relaunch. And you don't have long to wait - its happening this Friday. Gino got the chance to chat to the talent behind the drama’s dynamic casting, actress and casting director, Keneilwe Matidze. Keneilwe is no newcomer when it co...

Bringing it home this week! In this episode Gino turns his attention to what's coming up in Jozi. Each year, thousands of young South Africans come together to explore career paths in animation, visual storytelling, gaming, VFX, and tech.  And where do they do this? AVIJOZI, of course. What's that, we hear you say!  AVIJOZI is the brainchild of one Nosipho Maketo-van den Bragt. After ini...

In our bid to bring you all the best from the African diaspora as well as what's happening in your own backyard, this ep sees Gino reach out to L.A. to chat via Zoom, to Tendayi Nyeke, writer, director and producer of the brand new comedy, Loved Out. Born in Zimbabwe and having lived and worked in Australia, the UK, and South Africa, Tendayi Nyeke's producing work has been nominated for...

When it comes to movies, everyone knows who the actors are, but how much thought goes into who actually decided they would be right for the role? Not much, we guess. Well, this ep is going to change all that. Welcome to the "Queen of Casting", Christa Schamberger. Following last weeks chat with the writers/producers of Khaki Fever , it seems only right for Gino to talk to the lady behind...

Game rangers getting into the bush! However you want to read that, that is what this week's episode is all about.  Just days before it debuts at kykNet's Silwerskerm, Gino joins the writing/production team and real-life couple Brett Michael Innes and Nick Ahlers via Zoom, to talk about Showmax's new raunchy bush romp Khaki Fever . Set in a game lodge with more sexual tension than a...

Welcome to this episode of ACP and the latest in news, views and reviews from Gino's couch, but first BIG news! We are making it even easier to get your Couch Potato fix. We are now happening on YouTube , and you can get real-time updates and reviews as they happen on our brand new WhatsApp channel. Look out for Mzansi Film News, Views and Reviews. Local news sees the launch of a brand new fa...

When we think of East London, many of us think of the motor industry. What we don't think of is culture, but that is all about to change with the inaugural Cultured Roots Film Festival taking place in the first week of September. The festival celebrates African identity, heritage, and innovation through film—rooted in the cultural heart of East London in the Eastern Cape. ACP caught up with t...

ACP has had many online conversations, both nationally and internationally, but this episode is a first; our very first Zoom chat to China. This week Gino talks to fellow APVA winner John Paul Rugaba about his Sangyin Podcast.  JP is busy studying at the Central China Normal University (CCNU) in Wuhan in Central China, where he is one of an international student population of about 700, spread acr...