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On We All Plod

On the Move On the Move On the Move On the Move On the Move

So COVID finally decided to pound on my door this week. And I answered. Two and half years in and probably 75 rapid and 10 PCR tests taken, I just knew I was going to be positive this time. And I was. As I recover away from work I was thinking of the backlog created in my projects. Prior to the ABBA show opening I had five projects done over the past two years that hadn’t seen the light of day. ABBA opened to frankly astonishing reviews, then DC League of Super-Pets, now The Sandman is out on Netflix. We got keychains from Neil Gaiman as a little crew gift, so that was fun. Andor comes out on Sept 21st and contains my favorite shot I’ve ever done on a film. Not a particularly hard shot per se just an absolute iconic Star Wars type shot. The day I was assigned that shot I was so excited I went back and watched the original three. “Make it look like that shot in Jedi”, they said. Oh my gawd, and I did. Sigh of relief. A whole career waiting for that moment to be asked to work on a Star Wars project then given an iconic shot. It goes by in seconds and nothing really happens but it’s beautiful and I feel a part of Star Wars now. May of 1977 started my winding path to my North Star.

Current project Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The trailer exploded at Comic-Con this year. Really one of the best trailers for a sequel ever made. Whoever cut that is punching above their pay grade. I’ve had a very fortunate few years with a couple of years that have wreaked havoc for many but on we all plod. A little advice, when Wakanda opens be in the theater before the lights go out. If you aren’t crying before the movie even starts you’re a monster.

Hang Out With Me

Late night overtime has necessitated headphones and a playlist. These all conjure a time and place for me and I sometimes stop to listen to a large portion of the song. Come on join me for late night work. Throw some candles on and open your window. The one song that stops me in my tracks every single time is A Change is Gonna Come. Possibly the greatest song ever written. Because of this, a few years I was gifted the song in gold leaf audio waveform and I just love it. It hangs next to my Kate Bush confetti souvenir from her London shows. I saw Kate Bush live. That still blows my mind. Who knew she’d be bigger than ever today? 1:20 AM, I’m tired.

On the Move

Three Forty One

On the Move

Did you know a part of me has been in L.A. this whole time? I loathe having to need a storage unit, but they’ve become a necessity because, well space. I hate that I’ve spent thousands for something just sitting there and no access to it since it’s so far away. That storage unit is a slice of my life from the 90s to about 2013. All physical memories have been held hostage within those walls. And there it sat like a little money vampire. Every month having to pipe down money to the US to pay for it. I couldn’t even go through it to throw things away. I finished a show, see below, and decided I would go save Private Ryan. Okay, Operation Storage Unit 341.

On the Move On the Move On the Move

I got online and started pricing U Hauls, time, routes, motels, logistics in general and came up with a mighty plan. Would it work? Let’s find out. Got my flight and booked my COVID test the day before flying. Although I self tested many times before to keep and eye on it. Negative, I can fly. April 9th I flew down to Santa Ana and met my mom at the airport. I took her to Disneyland because it’s just too close not to go, right? Damn I miss being able to go down there just for lunch and ride a few rides. Took my employee pass and got us in freeeeeee and visited Galaxy’s Edge for the first time and Avenger’s Campus in California Adventure. Picked up some gifts and then stayed at my parents. Just hung out a bit that weekend and went through some boxes before beginning the journey north on Monday morning.

Epic boring road trip alert ahead. Picked up the U Haul and drove to Burbank where I expected some friends to show but a lack of communication led to me loading the whole truck by myself. 3 hours later… done. 341 is now in the truck. Quick stop for lunch at the Burbank In-N-Out and… what no? Driving a 20′ truck through Burbank and into that parking lot is too much for how tired I was. I would have loved some Tito’s or Paco’s on the west side but the thought of going back over the hill was also too much, so Burbank Zankou Chicken it is. After I got some wifi I was finally able get messages from some friends and they all drove to Burbank to have lunch and see me off. Blaine brought me two bikes that he had in storage at his house for the last 7 years. Yikes. I walked out to the truck to open it up and the worst thing that can happen to a load, happened. The load had shifted and all the boxes came sliding out and crashing into the parking lot. Broken china, a box of loose pictures started blowing down San Fernando Rd. etc What a mess, gah. I was so tired but everyone came running and rescued everything and we reloaded the truck better this time. Hopefully that’s the worst thing that happens.

I booked a motel in Santa Nella right next to Pea Soup Anderson’s because you know, pea soup. Long day but a short day of driving and uneventful after Burbank. The Grapevine was beautiful and I’ve driven it hundreds of times. Checked into San Nella about 9pm and then grabbed dinner and crashed. Tomorrow is the first day of two days of long haul driving.

Good night of sleep but I have to get up into Oregon by tonight to stay on schedule. I might have to add here that I have to get to the Vancouver storage unit by Thursday with plenty of time because it’s closed on Good Friday and have to return the truck by Saturday morning. So 10+ hours today and 2 tank fills at $150 a pop. #$#! Rotten Robbie is the cheapest gas in the valley, but he sure is rotten. Anyway, I cycled through the four types of radio stations in the Central Valley… Ranchero, Religious, Country and Classic Rock. Alright, classic rock it is. Insert montage video of road trip footage with rock soundtrack. Got into Oregon and the higher passes had some snow and rain. Rain, wind, snow, sun is all just regular weather. Hurricane, blizzard, heatwave those are all bad weather. Didn’t have that. Stayed in Roseburg along the river and found a Costco nearby so I thought I’d pop in and have a look. Wow, there is NOBODY here. Maybe 10 shoppers in the whole of the warehouse. They’re usually so over-subscribed it was nice to just randomly walk through. They also had a petrol station outside with even cheaper gas than Robbie. Take that you rotten scoundrel. Then sleep took over my body.

On the Move

Second day of long haul driving. Left Roseburg with the goal of either getting to my sister’s or Bellingham. I found the farthest north In-N-Out as of this writing and grabbed lunch. After driving for a long time through Eugene, Salem, Portland, Tacoma, and then Seattle I really didn’t feel like catching a ferry out to the island to see my sister, so just staying in Bellingham. Got into Bellingham at 6pm which is pretty late to find a hotel not booked up. Yep, five hotels later I finally found a Holiday Inn by Bellingham Airport with a couple rooms. Went to dinner and then crashed.

Final day of road trip and crossing the border. Got up pretty early and hit the road, another Costco fuel up nearby and got to Peace Arch by 10AM. It’s nerve wracking crossing the border but the officer was cool. Triple vaxxed, had all my paper work and explained about never being able to get my stuff up to Canada before especially the last 2 years and she waved me through. Got into the storage unit and nailed the landing. I was so used to this bucket of bolts and its size I backed right into the loading bay like a boss. The new storage is so nice and clean and bright and and and just so damn convenient. My stuff is near me. So, unloaded… three hours later… done. Getting a peek into some of the clear boxes for the first time in 7 years was so exciting but going through all of this is for another time. I still had to move the other smaller storage unit into this one. Yes, I had three storage units to deal with. One tiny one in the building, one in downtown Vancouver, and one in L.A. Now it’s just one big one nearby. So it’s done, the last vestiges of a life in L.A. has come to an end. I had really hoped/thought I’d come back so I think the storage unit represented that little bit of holding on. But as it became clear that life is different now and in a good place, 341 belongs up here. Although you have a new name, 133, you’re still 341 to me.

Gather round for the upcoming “crazy things found in my time capsule storage unit” posts as I go down memory lane.

On the Move On the Move

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There are a few things I can’t talk about at the moment because they’re in a galaxy far, far away but this one is imminent. I’ve been staring at ABBA a lot lately making sure everything is in place for the shows in London. ABBAtars still cracks me up. They got lucky with that one. Anyway, I wish I could see my grandad walk around the room again, maybe before polio struck. Just to watch and see and get a feel for him again.

What a year (or two), seriously.

Forecast is for a White Christmas and I love a good copyright claim on a youtube video. The annual gift never disappoints but of course this one ends up costing money because now you have to restart a vinyl collection that you gave away many years ago. I had Xavier choose a record and he very nearly chose Hendrix’ Are You Experienced? because it looked like a Beatles record but he decided on a Christmas record. And a good choice at that.

Halloween 2021

Trick or treating in that costume was going to be impossible so we made a movie. Then he switched to Jon Snow for the evening. Candy is coming.

Over the Moon

Over the Moon

That time I showed up to work with my old brand new to me Russian Kiev 4 camera with a roll of black and white film and had never used the camera before that has no light meter and the crew photo photographer they hired for Over the Moon directed by Disney legend Glen Keane (crouched in the front row) decided to take one shot and leave and nobody was ready. They wanted more. “Hey Chris, you have a camera…” But but but… alright, time to step up. I calculated the exposure, prayed that the camera actually worked, and hoped for the best in developing it. Ermagerd, nailed it! Whew. Now it looks like we made the film sometime during World War II.

Snow Day

Schools closed and only 5 minutes from home. Such a beautiful day. Funny I only hear his English accent when I’m on the phone or I hear it on a recording. Still amazing.

Los Angeles Space Shuttle #3

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On a visit to Little Tokyo I spotted another Space Shuttle. I realized later that I kinda knew it was there but had forgotten about it. It was Labor Day so not a lot of people were downtown. So, to recap the Shuttles… Endeavour at the Science Center, Challenger/Columbia memorial in Burbank, another Challenger atop the memorial for Ellison S. Onizuka in Little Tokyo. Yay for Shuttles!

1 Month

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As of today it’s been a month since he barreled into the world. Lot’s of milk, diapers, and spit ups going on, but it’s all amazing. Fascinating really. I’ve seen him go from a little bundle of squinty eyes in a swaddle to a strong little man kicking his feet out, grasping things, and the first signs of smiling. Seeing someone learn about the world is a strange thing. How do hands work? What is that? I’ll stare at it. What happens when I do this? Oh, I don’t like that. Everything is a first. A clean slate. Makes you realize how everything really is amazing.

He really loves his orca plushy and stares at it the whole time he’s in the play pen. His newborn jaundice is almost completely gone, right on time with that too. If that isn’t enough he is getting his first movie credit next month! He’ll call you. We have a summer of aunties flying in to see him. Auntie TT in July, Auntie Mimi in August, Auntie Naddie in September, and then grandma’s back in October.

Hello World!

xavier@earth: 1 > perl -E “say ‘Hello World!'”
Hello World!

6 years

6 years ago this week I went to England and met Liza. Just before I left I was at the cafe across the street and the Jacaranda trees were in full bloom. I took a picture. I always kind of associate those trees blooming with that trip. Here we are 6 years later and about to go to the hospital. I walked over to that same cafe, took the same picture, and in a few hours welcomed our little one Xavier Bowe Cunningham into the world.

Xavier Bowe Cunningham was born at 12:48pm. Weighing in at 11lbs 10oz and 21.25 inches long.

Arrested Development Comes Home

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For years Arrested Development occasionally filmed outside the windows of my office. I would see the airline stair truck go by the windows with someone chasing it or a bike riding beside it. I didn’t watch the show at the time so I had no real interest in the goings on outside. I only really discovered it after it had gone off the air a few years and now kick myself for not paying more attention. Love it now of course.

For the new season’s promotion they set up a Bluth’s Original Frozen Banana stand right in the heart of the area they used to film. The line was around the block for the whole day.

Jerry’s Market

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Jerry’s Market
3969 Higuera St, Culver City, CA

“We don’t want to hire unlucky people!” said the interviewer and randomly discarded half of the applications.

Space Shuttle Columbia Memorial

Space Shuttle Columbia Memorial

Burbank fun facts. Did you know there are two Space Shuttles in L.A.? Read the rest of this entry »

Rain Rain Rain


The Seventh Veil & LACMA. Two places you can find nudes.

Art(uro)’s Not Dead Gallery Show

Liza and I participated in a gallery show with some other L.A. artists. Here’s our wall. It was a good excuse to get my Bridge photos framed, and also Liza’s Americana-inspired triptych.

The artists:
Arturo Aguilar: Los Angeles lifer, photographer and computer artist. He has spent the last decade in the film industry creating simulation art for DreamWorks and Sony Pictures. art-speaks.blogspot.com | instagram.com/art_werks

Asylm: Asylm is an L.A.-based graffiti artist, fine artist and muralist. Asylm.com

Chris Cunningham: Photographs, lights, composites, musics, and 3D enthusiasts. Chasethelight.com

Liza Lemsatef Cunningham: Artist, photographer, designer of fine web and print offerings, art history nerd. Not necessarily in that order. Ellelens.com | Jaunty Angles blog

Brendan Eddy: A director of both film and visual effects, and a musician currently working in Los Angeles. brendaneddy.com | Invisiblehero.net

Eyeone is an artist and graphic designer based in Los Angeles. His work is rooted in graffiti, printmaking, photography, and punk rock. Eyelost.com

Sofia Gonzalez has been professionally designing and screen printing in LA since the 90s, yo! Sofialeegonzalez.com

Michael Hackett: “Michael Hackett explores the space where an information system becomes so complex, that it’s orderliness diminishes and begins to take on organic characteristics.”

Mad Guru: Adnan was raised in both the U.S. and Pakistan on a childhood of writing stories. Besides visual effects and animation on feature films for the likes of Disney and Sony, he works under his company Mad Guru, to create animated films and projects designed to provoke thought and bring diverse people together. Madguru.com

Photos by Liza Lemsatef Cunningham

First Congregational Church of Los Angeles


Caught a midweek church organ concert at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles.

Kon-Tiki

Kon-Tiki Screening Q&A with directors Joachim Rønning & Espen Sandberg, visual effects supervisor Arne Kaupang, and actor Jakob Oftebro. Fantastic film up for the Oscar for Foreign Language Film.

The Life Aquatic

The Park La Brea pools.

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