2012, 87 minutes, color, U.S.A., NEXT
Lyle and Nina are in love—with each other and with getting high, but not necessarily in that order. Wafting through aimless days in New York smoking weed whenever possible, Lyle makes his living repossessing rented furniture from the destitute before heading home to be with his girl. Though caught in a loop of self-medication, Nina yearns for more. When mistakes in judgment escalate out of control, the happy couple find the life they have built is quickly evaporating, and the hole they have dug for themselves is growing beyond repair.
Director Shaka King’s feature debut provokes a thoughtful meditation on the habits that hinder modern relationships, navigating through the perilous and comedic with a natural ease and restraint. Craftily luring the stoner-comedy into a meaningful examination of dependency in all its forms, King confronts a community that refuses to grow up and asks the audience what it really means to be an adult. - L. Z.
Director Shaka King’s feature debut provokes a thoughtful meditation on the habits that hinder modern relationships, navigating through the perilous and comedic with a natural ease and restraint. Craftily luring the stoner-comedy into a meaningful examination of dependency in all its forms, King confronts a community that refuses to grow up and asks the audience what it really means to be an adult. - L. Z.
About the Director
Shaka King is a writer, director, and producer whose films Cocoa Loco and Herkimer DuFrayne 7th Grade Guidance Counselor have screened at festivals and on networks internationally. Newlyweeds, King’s first feature, was developed in the Emerging Narrative workshop at IFP and was awarded a postproduction grant from Rooftop Films/Edgeworx Studios. He lives in Brooklyn, where he was born and raised.
Cast and Credits
Director: Shaka King
Screenwriter: Shaka King
Producers: Jim Wareck, Michael Matthews, Shaka King, Gbenga Akinnagbe
Cinematographer: Daniel Patterson
Editor: Kristan Sprague
Production Designers: Kevin Kedroe, Yvette Granata
Composer: Scott Krupnick
Casting Directors: Kerry Barden, Paul Schnee
Principal Cast: Amari Cheatom, Trae Harris, Tone Tank, Colman Domingo, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Adrian Martinez
Contact: Shaka King / shaka.king@gmail.com / (917) 974-1652








