Joe Cunningham

Joe Cunningham is an actor, writer, filmmaker from Syracuse, NY. He grew up as an artist, directing skits with friends, and puppet shows with his siblings. He has always loved movies and dreamed of becoming an actor and director after seeing films like Raiders of the Lost Ark and On The Waterfront. In college, he made his first short film Writing and also wrote a documentary, a novel, and five original plays. He graduated from SUNY Empire State with a degree in creative writing. He appeared in The Mountain with Jeff Goldblum and Ty Sheridan and later worked on American High films Sid Is Dead and Never Change.

In 2019, Joe co-wrote and produced the short Under The Mercy and played the lead Chad Loos. The film won awards at film festivals in Prague & LA. He then wrote a feature The Sentinel which he also produced and directed, playing the lead character, Joe Barnes, with his son, Harrison, playing his son, which filmed for 5 years. During that shoot, Joe wrote, produced, and directed two other films: Amariah and American Claudius. Joe is also an associate producer on several other films.

In 2024, Joe co-founded the Syracuse Actors Studio (SAS) with actress and collaborator, Laura Stisser. He also started his own film company Amy Loos Films. He has several projects in development: Midnight Rider, Son of a Preacher Man, Downer Street, What I Like About You, Reservations, and an Untitled Chet Baker project.