Robert T. Cunningham

Robert T. Cunningham (they/them) is an actor and award-winning screenwriter known for their work both onscreen and on the stage. They were raised in suburban Atlanta before attending Northwestern University. Robert made their Broadway debut in Stranger Things: The First Shadow as Charles Sinclair. They have also worked on stage with The Kennedy Center and Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Film credits include Mom & Dad--alongside Nicolas Cage and Selma Blair--Chicago-based teen noir Knives & Skin, and the Tribeca award-winning short, Chasing The Party (directed by Jessie Komitor). These films have screened at major festivals such as TIFF, Berlinale, and the Chicago International Film Festival among others. Television credits include The Big Leap (Fox) and South Side (HBO Max). They wrote and starred in the comedic web series, How to L0ve, which received funding and support from Halsey's Black Creators Funding Initiative as well as a Red Bull Arts Chicago; they were also a Finalist for Comedy Central's Yes And...Laughter Lab in 2022. Their feature screenplay, Pigeon, was part of the 2022 Outfest Screenwriting Lab and was a semi-finalist for the Chicago-based "Mass Epiphany Project". Their comedy pilot, Laurels, was developed during 2023 OTV (Open Television) Fellowship. They were awarded $12,500 in funds from the Sundance x OTV "Pitch, Please" initiative and won the Audience Award. They were also selected for the 2024 Orchard Project Episodic Lab to further develop the project.