Sam Neophytou

"I started out as an actor working mainly in fringe theatre but as I moved into television found that the only parts I was called up to audition for were those of archetypal ''foreigners' living outside the UK. As an actor who's spent all his life in London many of the roles were very ''foreign' to me.

The Greeks that I was asked to play were not the Greeks that I grew up with. They were caricatures created by writers who had absolutely no understanding of immigrants living in London - this continues to be the case in the mainstream arts.

The next ten years led me to directing mainly plays by foreign writers like Brecht, Lorca, Dario Fo and Arthur Miller to name but a few. I found that my background and cultural diversity finally had a voice.

The progression, naturally, was to write about characters that I knew about. Characters that thrived in the cosmopolitan London that I grew up in and loved.

Ten projects later and after great enthusiasm from the industry however, the projects still remain optioned on the shelf gathering dust.

Too much television remains in 'safe-bet' hands rehashing proven formats that are guaranteed commercial success. Representation of ethnic minorities continues to be hackneyed and unrealistic, watered down to be made more palatable for mass audiences.

Consequently we rarely get a glimpse into the co-existing worlds in multi-cultural London and in our other cities. These worlds offer exciting, colourful and endless storylines that are ultimately fresh and inspiring.

(details on other team members to follow)