Meet Seth Cunningham | Filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Seth Cunningham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Seth, how do you think about risk?
If there’s no risk, there’s no business. Every part of my industry is risk whether it’s working as a young director, moving to a completely foreign place, or chasing a industry that’s future looks more uncertain and unstable day by day, it’s a risky time to work in film. On a more ground level, A very conscious risk I take is “not getting comfortable”. When I first moved here I worked a lot of jobs that I’m very grateful for, but I would call dream adjacent. Jobs like coordinator, manager, even now I’ll produce shoots and the truth is when you’re doing these more logistical producing jobs it’s nice. You have decent consistent pay and you’re involved in shoots, but the problem is they’re time consuming. It’s hard to be creative after working logistics for a 12-hour day, and suddenly you have no time to write, direct, to create. You don’t want to be a someone who calls themselves a director who hasn’t directed anything in a year or two. Time management is extremely important so I’ve had to consistently remind myself to turn down more and more of these opportunities. I’ve worked extremely hard to create an environment that gives me time to create each day, and I’ve paid for that financially but what I’ve gotten out of it is so much more important to me.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Filmmaking is an art that started as the everyman’s art, it was cheaper than a theater ticket and more engaging than a painting and that is something that I’m really excited has stayed true. Many people point to TikTok or Youtube as the death of films but in reality, they are just micro stories, every type of content you see on these platforms has been around for decades only now they wear a different face and more importantly it’s way more decentralized. This type of community creates a growing acceptance and love for independent films which is something I’m super excited about, we’ve seen this with movies like Everything Everywhere All at Once and even more recently with the 2024 Oscars where seven of the ten best picture nominees being indie films. The growing acceptance of independent voice in cinema is something that i think is only going to continue to grow and I’m excited about that. I’ve lived all over the place but I started my film journey in the rural south where there were no film classes, no clubs, hell you’d be lucky to get into the general art class. So I had to take things into my own hands, I borrowed (Perminatley) my friend’s shitty camcorder and just started making stupid videos on youtube and that turned into bad b-movies, and that turned into making full web series. Eventually, I got to the point where I was putting full work days into this after school (and my grades showed it) but I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. When i told my parents I wanted to go to film school, they weren’t exactly excited, they let me do it, but they had a number of conversations trying to pursuade me out of it. So I went to school in Georgia, attending classes by day working to pay bills at night, and crew on sets 14-16 hours days every day during the weekend, it was exhausting, but I loved it! This is really where I started to learn the importance of time management, and also collaboration. Learning how to collaborate and how to give people enough room to breathe and show their talent but also give them guidance so that everyone is still making the same project was a skill that took me the entirety of college to learn. After College the pandemic hit and I won’t go into because we all lived it but it’s wasn’t good for me, the few leads I had went away and the industry felt like a brick wall to me. Nevertheless I moved to Los Angeles because every director I’ve ever talked to told me i had to haha. Despite my hesitation on the city I made the move, and the first year was hard to say the least. I didn’t graduate from USC or AFI, schools that have a seemingly guaranteed in with industry professionals. I worked as a janitor for a preschool and put together credit card readers to pay rent. Fast forward and I got my first gig as a PA, then a Coordinator, then a Manager, etc etc. Eventually, I found myself on set talking with a Creative Manager for an Agency and it was going well until they asked me what stuff I had directed in the last year. I had been so busy with everything else that I had done nothing. Needless to say, i never heard from him again. That’s when i made myself the promise to never put myself in a position where I can’t be creating art again. So I made sure to maintain a less expensive lifestyle so I didn’t HAVE to take every project that was offered to me. I passed up jobs that would give me security but would also put me in a cage. This had an impact socially and emotionally, but soon I started having more work in my portfolio, and that led to booking new jobs directing and writing. That snowball effect continues. I wouldn’t say I’ve “made it” not every month I can pay my rent from directing or writing something but when I do it feels good. And I do it by not letting go of the vision I want for myself. Brand wise my creative style deals a lot with stylized visuals and perspective. I’ve lived all over the place internationally and nationally and the different approaches and perspectives people have on the same problem I always find extremely interesting. This usually leads to both dramatic and comedic irony, and that’s my bread and butter. I love the balance of both comedy and Irony, If you can cry and laugh in the same movie that’s a DAMN GOOD MOVIE.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Weird take I know but The Forrest Lawn Cemetary in Glendale is GORGEOUS, The gardens, the castle, the statues. Beautiful. Other than that….

Monday Night: Gold Diggers Jazz Night – it’s Jazz night where all different musicians can walk up and join the jam session.
Brand Park – the Prettiest Park and Hike in the Valley.
Wat Thai Weekend food market – it’s cheap and it’s amazing, they also give you fun little coins to spend your money with.
Malibu Creek State Park – It’s gorgeous. There are not much better nearby places if you’re looking for a break from the city.
Grand Central Market – It’s basic I know but it’s a very cool spot to show newcomers and also a good date spot 😉

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Filmmaking is all about teamwork and the dichotomy of the team, fuck all that auteur theory shit. A collaborator that I’ve worked with time and time again in Los Angeles is Katie Wilkerson. They’re a production designer who makes the impossible possible. I’ll pitch them the craziest scenarios whether we make a whole world pink and pastel colors or make anthropomorphic sea shells they are always down for the task. They’re the reason my stylized visions can come to life.

Website: https://www.cunningfilms.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cunningfilms/