The Official Colin Cunningham Fan Club

<= A=20 href=3D"http://www.vfs.com/flft.htm">Film alumnus Colin=20 Cunningham (class 32) enjoys a certain notoriety around VFS. Not= =20 because of any (known) escapades during his days here, but because o= f the=20 unusual path he followed: Cunningham was working in the film industr= y in=20 LA six years ago when he left -- to come to Canada and study at VFS.= =20 Graduating in 1993, he remained north of the 49th Parallel working o= n as=20 many 'no budget' projects as he could, solely for the experience and= "the=20 strong coffee." He then turned his energies to writing, producing an= d=20 starring in his first feature, the infamously titled Zacharia=20 Farted.

Watching Cunningham participate = in a Q=20 & A session with Film Class 66, I find myself thinking what a go= od=20 first impression he makes. Cunningham is both well spoken and outspo= ken --=20 his attitude is charmingly irreverent. He is surprisingly humble giv= en all=20 the attention that has been heaped on him since Zacharia Farted=20 premiered at the Vanc= ouver Film=20 Festival in 1998. Described as a buddy/road film about two frien= ds who=20 find an unmarked grave and set off on a life altering search to find= out=20 who is buried there, it garnered several international awards and ha= s been=20 voted "Audience Favourite" at several prestigious festivals. The mov= ie was=20 nominated for five Leo Awards this year, including best picture. Req= uests=20 for screenings at festivals around the world arrive weekly. In fact,= =20 Zacharia was recently screened at the Saint Louis Internation= al Film=20 Festival and has been invited to a special screening at the new = Paris=20 Hotel and Casino at CINE=20 VEGAS, the Las Vegas International Film Festival, in December.=20

When asked about the movie, Cunningham explodes with enthusi= asm.=20 "Y'know, I can actually say that I really like my movie." He smiles,= =20 setting down his takeout coffee cup. "The fact that it is getting go= od=20 reviews and the attention it receives at festivals is really wonderf= ul,=20 but the best thing about this whole experience is that I can watch t= he=20 movie and I still like it. That's pretty awesome."

He is qui= ck to=20 share credit for the highly successful, low-budget independent film = and=20 continuously points out the many contributions of his associates in= =20 bringing it to the big screen. He animatedly describes the talents,= =20 positive attitude and never-say-die approach of Madison Graie= , who=20 co-produced and played a leading role in the film. He also emphasize= s the=20 producing capabilities of Damon Vignale who also acted as pro= ducer=20 on Zacharia. And, of course, the cast and crew who, says=20 Cunningham, "were extremely dedicated to this project."

Aske= d just=20 how he actually did accomplish making a feature film with virtually = no=20 budget and no real track record, Cunningham responds without hesitat= ion.=20 "This project was green lit because I decided we were going to make = it. It=20 was up to the us as filmmakers to say yeah, we're going to do this. = We=20 then dealt with just how the hell we were going to accomplish this. = There=20 were two choices, getting money or getting stuff for free. We didn't= get=20 money, so we worked hard at getting things for free." Cunningham is= =20 straightforward about what it takes to survive as an independent=20 filmmaker. "There are ways to get things done that aren't the 'typic= al'=20 channels. Who was going to hand over hundreds of thousands of dollar= s to=20 me to make a movie when I had no track record? There are other ways = to=20 make a movie, if you really want to make it." He adds, "We got help.= =20 People gave their time, their locations, and their abilities. Our to= tal=20 budget was the equivalent of what Blair Witch paid for cateri= ng,=20 but we accomplished what we set out to do. We made a feature film th= at=20 we're proud of."

A few days later, I'm still trying to figur= e him=20 out. He's this guerrilla filmmaker, getting right into the trenches = to=20 make his film, but capable of handling the business side of the gig.= He=20 produced Zacharia on a shoestring, but it screens with larger= =20 budget looks. He has strong opinions and even stronger ethics, yet c= omes=20 across as casual.

I arrive on the set of Showtime's Beggar= s and=20 Choosers, where Cunningham plays the role of Hollywood power= agent=20 Herb Kolondy, raindrenched with a photographer in tow. Cunningham=20 immediately offers to get "coffee, or lunch or tea, whatever you guy= s=20 want." During the interview, I again find myself thinking about the= =20 impression he makes on people. And although he only gets a short bre= ak for=20 lunch, he spends it focused on this interview and us.

This f= ocus=20 is integral to who Cunningham is. His success as an actor, a produce= r and=20 a writer is, in part, a product of this. He and Graie are in develop= ment=20 through their company, Windowshot Productions, on their next feature= =20 (currently untitled), slated to shoot in the summer of 2000. As an a= ctor,=20 Cunningham has been seen on high profile shows such as X-Files, D= ead=20 Man's Gun, Outer Limits and dozens of indie features and MOWs.=20 Currently, along with his work on Beggars and Choosers, he ha= s a=20 recurring role as Major Davis on STARGATE-SG1. "I am really=20 fortunate in what I get to do for a living," he says. "As an actor o= n set,=20 I hardly ever just go back to my trailer. I hang around and I watch = the=20 monitors and I watch what people are doing. I am always learning abo= ut=20 this industry and it is endlessly fascinating."

Born in=20 California, Cunningham was making a living in the film industry when= he=20 decided to change his life. He headed north to enroll at VFS. "It is= kind=20 of backwards," he says laughing. "I left LA, where I was involved in= the=20 industry, to come to Canada, where I knew virtually no one, to make= =20 movies. There were people who thought I was crazy, but I wanted to c= reate=20 opportunities for myself. I didn't want to spend my life as an actor= =20 always knocking on doors for parts." He adds, "So I decided to build= the=20 house myself. What I want to do is what I believe I did with=20 Zacharia -- I created a way in for myself as an actor, as a w= riter=20 and as a producer and, I hope, that I am creating a way in for other= s who=20 want to work on the kind of films that we are going to make."
Days=20 later, I again find myself in his company, at Class 66's graduation= =20 ceremony where he is the guest speaker. Watching him talk with the=20 students, listening to their ideas and their plans for post-graduati= on, it=20 is increasingly obvious to me that my initial impression of the film= maker=20 was wrong. He doesn't make a good first impression. He makes a great= =20 lasting impression.