Author: Newsroom
“Black Cake” is a family drama wrapped in a murder mystery with a diverse cast of characters and a global setting, from Marissa Jo Cerar, Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films, and Aaron Kaplans’ Kapital Entertainment. The story takes place in Jamaica, Rome, Scotland, England and Southern California and it spans decades as we follow a runaway bride named Covey. The story opens with Covey disappearing into the surf and the rest… you’ll have to watch!
Natalia directed the first three powerful episodes of this new series and she brings her particular style and voice to this project as she’s done for all her past work. She is an emerging writer/director who possesses a storytelling style that’s been celebrated for its unapologetic and captivating flair. Her debut feature film “Bare” premiered at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, tells the story of a small-town girl who becomes romantically involved with a female drifter who introduces her to a life of stripping, drugs, and metaphysical experiences that teach her what happens when real life catches up with dark fantasy. The film was met with critical acclaim, with the Los Angeles Times offering praise for Leite’s “emotional intelligence and sensitivity.” Next, in 2017, Leite directed the indie thriller “M.F.A.” starring Francesca Eastwood. “M.F.A.” burst onto the scene at SXSW in 2017 and garnered mainstream press attention and critical acclaim, being called “gratifying” with another saying “Leite directs with a bracing, assertive style.”
Beyond her work in the world of independent film, Leite has broken into the realm of television, directing two episodes of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Season 5 Episode 7 “No Man’s Land” and Season 5 Episode 8 “Motherland.” Leite’s other TV directing credits include “In The Dark” for the CW, Hulu’s “Love, Victor,” Starz’s “Minx,” the NBC drama “Ordinary Joe” and Max’s “Love Life.”
Series Synopsis: Based on The New York Times-bestselling book by Charmaine Wilkerson, “Black Cake” is a family drama wrapped in a murder mystery with a diverse cast of characters and a global setting, from Marissa Jo Cerar, Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films, and Aaron Kaplans’ Kapital Entertainment. The story takes place in Jamaica, Rome, Scotland, England and Southern California. Cerar wrote the adaptation and serves as showrunner on the series, which spans decades. In the late 1960s, a runaway bride named Covey disappears into the surf off the coast of Jamaica and is feared drowned or a fugitive on the run for her husband’s murder. Fifty years later in California, a widow named Eleanor Bennett, loses her battle with cancer, leaving her two estranged children, Byron and Benny, a flash drive that holds previously untold stories of her journey from the Caribbean to America. These stories, narrated by Eleanor, shock her children and challenge everything they thought they knew about their family’s origin. Watch Black Cake on Hulu!