Simon Kassianides
Simon Kassianides | |
|---|---|
 Kassianides in 2012 | |
| Born | Simon Mario Kassianides 7 August 1979 |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 2004–present |
Simon Kassianides (born 7 August 1979) is an English actor of Greek Origin, film director, producer and screenwriter.[1]
Early life
Kassianides was born in London, the son of Helen and Mario Kassianides, both business owners. Kassianides has an older brother Photis Kassianides who works in finance.
Kassianides was brought up in Clapham and educated at Dulwich College. At the University of Edinburgh he was the producer and executive producer of a sold out run of Grease at the George Square theatre. Profits were donated to the Macmillan Cancer Trust.[citation needed]
Career
In 2002 soon after Kassianides graduated with honours in International Business with Finance and while in London helping his mother open Urban Coffee,[2][3] a fair trade and organic coffee shop in Tooting Broadway, he was spotted by BAFTA award winning producer Piers Vellacott.[4]
Kassianides started a course at London's Central School of Speech and Drama but had to leave after being offered a role in the Tennessee Williams' play Night of the Iguana. His performance as Pedro was acclaimed by critics.[5]
Soon after, Kassianides was noted as an actor to watch in a BBC documentary called Making it at Holby.[6]
Since then, Kassianides has appeared in a number of television episodes in the USA and UK, including Casualty, My Life in Film, Plane Spotting, Ultimate Force, Spooks, Recovery, Holby Blue, Suburban Shootout, The Kylie Show, Ashes to Ashes, The Passion, The Fixer, Love Soup, Hustle, Law and Order UK, Nikita and Burn Notice.[1]
Kassianides has also appeared in several international films such as The Edge of Love, Wuthering Heights, Between Two Fires, Quantum of Solace[1] and Smooch.
In 2010 Kassianides produced, directed and starred in Geezas, a film he completed in record time and within budget.[7][8] The film made the official selection of the 2012 Hollywood Film Festival,[9] selling out The Arclight Movie Theatre in Hollywood at its premiere. In 2012 Simon Kassianides was nominated as a Discovery Director to watch at the Hollywood Film Festival for 'Geezas' [10] In 2013 Geezas won 'Best Actor' and 'Best Supporting Actress' at the 2013 British Independent Film Festival. Kassianides directed first time actors who won against the likes of Martin Freeman (The Hobbit) and Anne-Marie Duff (Nowhere Boy) [11]
His work rate and ethic was spotted by the administrators of Michael Cacoyannis Foundation,[12] which was created by Michael Cacoyannis - Director of ‘Zorba the Greek’.[13]
The Michael Cacoyannis Foundation was created to help and promote Greek artists. In 2012 Kassianides was appointed a Global Consultant and Representative of the MCF.
in 2014 Kassianides will produce and play the lead role in Michael Cacoyannis’ English translation of Sophocles’ ‘Oedipus the King’, in the world famous Epidaurus Theatre in Greece during the 2014 Epidaurus summer festival.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Casualty | Steve Lyon |
| 2005 | Ultimate Force | Juan |
| 2006 | Spooks | Mourad |
| 2007 | Holby Blue | Nico Osman |
| 2008 | The Fixer | Saban Zira |
| 2008 | The Edge of Love | Partisan |
| 2008 | Quantum of Solace | Yusef Kabira |
| 2009 | Hustle | Tracer |
| 2010 | Between Two Fires | Ali |
| 2011 | Smooch | Percy/Flynn |
| 2011 | Nikita | Ramon |
| 2011 | Geezas | Eddie |
| 2012 | Burn Notice | George Anders |
| 2013 | Desert Dancer | Sattar |
| 2014-2015 | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. | Sunil Bakshi |
| 2015 | Zoo | Jean-Michel Lion |
| 2015 | Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain | Soldiers/Extras[14] |
| 2016 | Unforgettable | |
| 2017 | Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders | TBA |
References
- ^ a b c "Simon Kassianides". IMDb. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
- ^ "Urban Coffee Review 1".
- ^ "Urban Coffee Review 2".
- ^ "Piers Vellacott IMDB".
- ^ "Night of the Iguana review".
- ^ "Making It At Holby".
- ^ "Geezas The Movie".
- ^ "Geezas IMDB page".
- ^ "2012 Hollywood Film Festival Features Selection".
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2041354/awards?ref_=tt_awd
- ^ http://www.britflicks.com/news.aspx?newsid=684
- ^ "The Michael Cacoyannis Foundation".
- ^ "Zorba The Greek IMDB page".
- ^ Konami (2015). Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Scene: Closing credits, 0:32 in, Cast.