The behaviour of small particles at interfaces and in thin liquid films has been studied for many years and recent advances in experimental and numerical techniques have allowed a wealth of new research to be conducted. This manuscript reviews the last five years of work investigating the effect of particle shape and packing density on their behaviour when attached to a thin liquid film or at an interface between two immiscible fluids. We discuss advances at the individual particle scale, covering shape and surface heterogeneity, as well as breakthroughs in experimental and numerical modelling of larger scale systems.