4. A New Direction

With Colin now firmly in the director’s chair, Breakin’ the Cycle is transformed. Drawing directly from their lived experience, Colin unlocks startlingly authentic performances from the cast, turning what once looked like a cliched gangster film into something intimate, powerful, and deeply real.

As early edits reveal the film’s extraordinary potential, hope begins to take hold. This could be the project that finally changes Colin and D’s lives. But stepping into film-making doesn’t mean escaping the world they came from. When tensions flare on East London estates and old reputations are tested, the past begins to close in.

Gripping stories from the Shadows - BBC investigations from across the UK.

Presenter and Producer: Lewis Albrow
Series Producer: Emma Barnaby
Producer: Louis Hollis
Assistant Editor: Georgina Savage
Sound Designer, Composer, and Mix Engineer: Axel Kacoutie
Script Editor: Jason Lewis
Fact Checker: Jessica Hatcher-Moore
Production Manager: Anna-Marie Batho
Production Executive: Letisha Kidza
Head of Production: Nicky Murphy
Production Support: Emma Wood and Olivia Bouton
Executive Producers for Raw: Deborah Dudgeon, David Waters, and Tim Wardle.
Business Affairs: Amy Ofori-Attah, Clotilde Leroux, Damian Kent, and Emma Ong.
Commissioning Executive: Tracy Williams
Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke

A Raw production for BBC Radio 4