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Highlights in Film & TV

Sam Vuchenich, from the entertainment marketing team in FRUKT L.A. picks his highlights from the world of Film and TV in 2016.

FILM

Ghostbusters
Paul Feig knows how to treat beloved franchises with care, mix action and comedy beautifully, and his skill with ensemble casts is some of the best in the business. Our only question is who steals the show.
 
Suicide Squad 
The project teaming DC’s villains, despite an A-list cast, almost feels like an underdog. But keeping the film a little under the radar has been a smart move by the studio to build mystery.
 
The Birth of a Nation
Writer-director-star Nate Parker’s film about Nat Turner’s 1831 slave revolt—a passion project he raised $10 million to make, and which Fox Searchlight acquired at Sundance for a record $17.5 million—should command plenty of attention, including for the multi-talented filmmaker and cast’s future work.

Star Wars Rogue One

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Gareth Edwards is next to carry the Star Wars torch. Taking place between Episodes III and IV to bridge the first two trilogies, we can’t wait to see a fantastic new cast in the story of stealing the plans for the Death Star.
 
The Lobster
Colin Farrell leads a fantastic cast in Yorgos Lanthimos’ film, which A24 (“Ex Machina,” “Room”) is releasing stateside, and could be the next great weird movie worth an out-of-the-way trip: “In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.”

TV

Angie Tribeca 
Steve and Nancy Carell’s “Angie Tribeca,” led by Rashida Jones, put a new spin on a popular genre: TBS aired the entire first season in a 25-hour marathon in mid-January, with season 2 episodes released weekly.
 
Billions
Showtime’s “Billions,” a weekly duel between Damian Lewis and Paul Giamatti, has had its ups and downs, but Maggie Siff’s performance as Giamatti’s spouse and Lewis’ closest confidant has been a stellar highlight throughout the series.
 
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
With NBC’s “The Wiz Live!” raising the bar for live theater on broadcast, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” looks to take a cult favorite and create a popular hit for Fox.
 
Viceland
A most recent expansion of VICE, a partnership with A+E Networks under the creative direction of Spike Jonze and Eddy Moretti, Viceland launched to provide a niche for programming you don’t see elsewhere on cable, and we’re looking forward to see what continued opportunities that provides.

"The Path" via Hulu - released 30th March

Hulu
Jason Reitman’s “Casual” found heart in bleak places, characters who were reckless and graceful and funny in equal measure. Next from Hulu: “The Path,” an eerie and promising new series from Jason Katims.
 
Amazon
“The Man in the High Castle” had some of the best reviews of all digital series in 2015, and there’s time to catch up before the show returns this year. It’s also a good time to catch up on “Mozart in the Jungle,” which took a path from charming pilot with a stellar cast and snagged two Golden Globes just after its second season.
 
Netflix

Netflix isn’t chasing HBO or Showtime or anyone else’s audiences or prestige. Establishing their own with shows as delightfully different as “BoJack Horseman,” “Master of None,” and “Orange Is the New Black,” you can skip the hammy political villainy and half-assed humor for those returning favorites.