A Typical 12-Year-Old Member
By Nicole Tiesma

At first, Jesse Cunningham seems like a pretty typical 12-year-old boy. In a baggy sweatshirt and jeans, his head can just be seen over the receptionist counter at the Film Society’s office in the Presidio. He seems a little bored by the office setting and constantly reminds his mom not to embarrass him. What’s unique about Jesse and sets him apart from his peers, however, is a passion for film that has led him to become the San Francisco Film Society’s youngest member.

This past year’s Film Festival was Jesse’s first. After picking up a program guide at the Exploratorium, Jesse combed through the films and convinced his parents to get him tickets to seven different screenings. Some of the films he chose include Save Me, The Storm and Not Forgotten. He enjoyed The Princess and the Warrior because, he said, "I like the whole idea of fate like in Run Lola Run, and the acting was good too." At the One of the Hollywood Ten screening, Jesse participated in the audience question-and-answer session with filmmaker Karl Francis. Jesse asked, "Do you think Herbert Biberman would have made a film like Salt of the Earth if he hadn’t been blacklisted?" Francis said no, and afterwards gave Jesse his email address in case he had any other questions in the future.

Jesse’s mom says his film obsession began around his 11th birthday when he wanted to take a trip to New York City. "I guess that’s when he spawned the idea that he could learn about New York City by watching Woody Allen movies," she writes. "And so he got Manhattan. And, in his Taurean-focused way, proceeded to watch every Allen movie that Dr. Video, our neighborhood store, had." Jesse has since become such a regular at Dr. Video that one of the employees routinely checks what Jesse returns when he’s looking for a good movie.

Woody Allen is now one of Jesse’s favorite directors, but he adds, "Well, favorite American director. I like Fellini better." The Castro is his favorite theater during the Festival, but he also likes going to Bayfair so he can see more than one movie. On studio versus independent films, Jesse thinks that, "Usually Hollywood movies tend to suck and be really bad, and sometimes indie films aren’t as good because they don’t have as high a budget. But [independent films] tend to be good because they don’t have boundaries." Not that he doesn’t enjoy an occasional Hollywood blockbuster like other kids his age. "Like Scary Movie 2 was funny," he says. "But afterwards I realized it was bad. Rush Hour 2 was good for the time and the genre."

When he gets older, Jesse would like to pursue a film career in New York ("L.A.’s too fake."), and adds, "I want to be a movie director. I don’t know, probably drama, not comedy. Maybe dramedy. Man, I don’t know." He is currently saving for a CineVisa to next year’s Festival so he can attend more screenings. When it was suggested he volunteer at the Festival, he matter-of-factly responded, "They said I have to be over 16."