Biographies
Costa Anastasakis
Costa Anastasakis's emergence as a photographer came after a visit to Nepal and the Himalayas, where he found a way to capture what he had long held so dear: the indomitable nature of the human spirit in all its myriad forms - the resilience, humour, pain and joy of everyday people.
Costa began a global odyssey, using his camera to explore the world. Moving to London, his reputation quickly grew, along with a demand for his relaxed and non-invasive style of shooting, with commissions from the Evening Standard, Woman, Home, The Ministry of Sound and OK Magazine, amongst others.
As correspondent for Bloomberg News in Greece, Costa provided exclusive coverage of the Athens Olympic Games. In 2001 his first book was published: My Mykonos, a collection of stories in pictorial form of a very personal journey.
With Our Forgotten Children, Costa is taking a quantum step forward. His vision is to capture the energy and spirit of the children of the world, bringing to life their hopes and dreams at an age when they are still untainted by prejudice and politics.
Bill Oakes
A native of Nottingham, England, Bill Oakes's first job was as a junior reporter for a London news-wire service. But a chance encounter with Paul McCartney led to a two-year tenure as the Beatles' personal assistant.
When the Beatles broke up, Bill moved to New York where, at 21, he was appointed head of RSO Records, with a roster of artists that included Eric Clapton, The Bee Gees, Andy Gibb, Yvonne Elliman and blues legend Freddie King, whose final album was Bill's first as a producer.
Hollywood soon beckoned, first in the form of Saturday Night Fever, for which he won a Grammy Award, then Grease, which brought him an American Music Award. The albums Bill created for these movies remain the two best-selling soundtracks of all time. Pioneering the new synergy between music and film, he also supervised the soundtracks for Fame and The Empire Strikes Back.
Bill's film producing credits include The Little Rascals for Steven Spielberg's Amblin Productions, Sgt. Pepper, Times Square, The Fan, Moment by Moment, Grease 2 and Staying Alive, again with John Travolta. As a writer, Bill's credits include Life and Soul (Granada TV), No Business Like It (LWT), FAB and My Generation, a new film about the music business.
Siobhan Cunningham
Siobhan Cunningham (Global Operations Director), comes to Our Forgotten Children from an extensive background in professional sports management, most recently as administrator for the Jockey Club of Great Britain. Prior to that she was a Sponsor Coordinator for England's Chelsea Football Club, and Event Coordinator for SFX Sports & Entertainment Group Europe (Clear Channel), where she worked on the Euro 2000 Football Tournament. More recently she worked on the PGA's Ryder Cup golf tournament in Ireland.
Siobhan is also an eight year veteran of the music industry, where she co-ran a production company and studio for recording music for films and TV, as well as a cancer charity single release.
Siobhan feels it is time for her, and others like her, to put their managerial skills to work in protecting the future. Her mission is to encourage business leaders and entrepreneurs to make the most important investment of all: an investment in the world's children.
Lucy Lefroy
Lucy Lefroy (Global Operations Director) brings her skills as negotiator and administrator to Our Forgotten Children.
For the last 8 years she has worked in the International property business, with the last four years heading up international sales based in London.
Lucy has a wide range of background interests, including equestrianism (she competed in the 3-day event pre-Olympic Field Trials in Atlanta in 1995) and agriculture (she has a B.Sc (Hons) from the Royal Agricultural College), and hands-on experience in event-staffing and conference management.
Thriving in a high pressure environment, she comes to this project with a clear mandate to help the world's forgotten children and a burning desire to succeed.
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