(We) created a grassroots following and managed to get some really good press as well.  Around that time, Logo was gearing up for their launch the following year. They had heard about the show from various sources, and called, and the rest is history.

AE: How do you feel about making the transition from making feature films to doing a cable television series?   
P-IP: I’ve always loved television so I’ve always kind of had a desire to work in TV. To not only get to work in television but to do it with a show like Noah’s Arc is amazing. It’s work that’s very personal and very important to me. It’s work that I think we need see because we’ve just never seen a show like Noah’s Arc; we’ve never seen characters like this focused on as the central figures in an entire television series, so I think it’s fantastic.

AE: Noah’s Arc is centered around Noah (Darryl Stephens) and his three friends Alex (Rodney Chester), Chance (Doug Spearman) and Ricky (Christian Vincent). Do you have a group of friends like this?
P-IP: Personally, I don’t have a clique of friends like we depict in Noah’s Arc. I have tons of friends, though and I think everyone can relate to what it means to have your close friends, to have them involved in your love life and the decision making process and so that’s kind of what the characters in the storylines in Noah’s Arc are based on. 

AE: How much of Patrik is in Noah, or any of the other characters for that matter?
P-IP: I tend to write from (laughs) my creative point of view so I’m not one to throw myself into my work (laughs). With Noah’s Arc, I came up with the four character ideas first, and then built the storylines around that. Like most good writers I write what I know and working in Hollywood I know the life of a screenwriter.

In that respect it was easy to make Noah a struggling screenwriter because that’s a lifestyle that I know. Beyond some broad strokes, Noah’s Arc is fiction and I just try to create the most interesting storylines for the characters. 

AE: Rodney Chester (Alex) was in your movie Punks. Why did you want to work with him again?
P-IP: Rodney played a small role in Punks and that was my first experience working with him. I got a small taste of what he could do and in the years since got to know him even better. He was the one role in the entire series that I wrote specifically with him in mind because I knew, comedically, what he could do. I had this role in mind for a while for him. Having a small part in Punks and doing such a good job with that--he was very memorable and funny--I wanted to expand on that which we were able to do here.

AE: Was it difficult finding other actors, gay or straight, to play gay characters?
P-IP: No. When I cast I don’t ask people’s sexuality. We just put the notices out, let them know we’re doing a show, it’s called Noah’s Arc, this is what it’s about, and I just hope it attracts good talented actors.

I don’t really care what their personal sexualities are as long as they are fearless actors who can do what it takes to portray a character. That’s what we have. We have a group of guys who really believe in what they are doing, love the craft of acting, and are happy to have such meaty, well-rounded, interesting  roles. Because as black actors they certainly don’t get that opportunity very often in Hollywood.