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| Michael Cuomo picture by Susanna Thornton |
Michael Cuomo is the lead actor and producer of the critically-acclaimed, feature film Happy New Year, which was written and directed by K. Lorrel Manning, executive produced by Iain Smith (Wanted, Children of Men, The Fountain) and received its world premiere at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival (Narrative Competition). Cuomo reprised his dual roles as lead actor and producer from the award-winning short film and original off-broadway production. Happy New Year anticipates a limited theatrical release on 11.11.11 (Veterans Day) in select cities across the United States. It is in competition for the Golden Rock at this year's Little Rock Film Festival. He has performed at Off-Broadway theatres throughout NYC, including Rattlestick, Naked Angels and the Barrow Group. Cuomo trained with Joseph Chaikin, Brad Calcaterra and Seth Barrish in New York. Originally from Baltimore, he currently resides in New York City. Happy New Year plays the LRFF on June 2nd at 6pm and June 4th at 3:20pm, Riverdale Cinemas. More info at www.happynewyearfilm.com
Have You Been There: What inspires you the most?
Michael Cuomo: I'm most inspired by art that gets underneath the surface. Whether it be a painting, a piece of theatre or a film ---- I especially enjoy work that eschews traditional boundaries and provokes, educates and stimulates. If we aren't changin' --- we're dyin'!
HYBT: Do you have a mentor? Who?
MC: I've had wonderful teachers in my life, but I think the best has been my mother. She didn't always have it easy, but she continues to find a piece of positivity in everything that she encounters, even if only for a moment. Her faith in humanity is tremendous.
HYBT: Where is the most interesting place you've traveled to?
MC: I actually haven't traveled much in my life, but I especially enjoyed visiting friends in Paris last year. New York City is my home, but I could certainly spend some of my time in Paris. I remember sitting outside a cafe on Rue Des Trois Freres in the MontMartre area and I thought 'I could really live here," and I rarely feel this way about any other city. The Sacre Coeur was incredible!
HYBT: What is your favorite piece of art, be it a film, music, painting, etc.?
MC: I would have to say the Beatles' White Album. I truly appreciate the risks they were taking and the fact that the album marks a time when the band's creativity was peaking, despite extreme personal tension and chaos in the studio. For me, the double album embodies the band's ability to push to new limits, take risks and in some cases, fail miserably with reckless abandon. Oh Yoko ... why'd you do it!
HYBT: What effect do you think the place you grew up had on you and your work?
MC: Growing up in an antiques store in Baltimore had a major effect on me, particularly as an actor. At a young age, I was exposed to so many different walks of life, whether it be race, class, age or sexuality. I was taught to be accepting of all people, which has provided me with freedom as an actor to explore and inhabit complex characters without any judgment or stereotypes. And the city of Baltimore is a wild time ---- just watch a few John Waters films!
HYBT: What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
MC: I have a photographic memory, so when I meet someone, I take a mental picture of their face and file it away in my mind. I've bumped into acquaintances after a 10-year absence and been able to explain where we met, who they are and several elements of the original conversation. It is amazing to watch folks 'remember' as I describe the past, but it freaks some folks out too, so I have to be careful!
HYBT: What's something you'd like to learn to do?
MC: I'd like to learn how to swim ---- I imagine that may come in handy some day!
HYBT: What's something about you that would surprise people?
MC: I'm incredibly shy. I actually didn't start acting until my early 20s, because I had immense stage fright and was basically awkward socially. I tried auditioning for a few plays in college, but I could never make it past the waiting room room without running into the bathroom and vomiting up my lunch --- literally!
HYBT: Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?
MC: I think the entire creative process breeds insanity, so I'm not sure that one is ever mutually exclusive of the other. I've witnessed many artists, particularly musicians, working on a new piece and it can seem completely disconnected from reality, but the art often works out quite beautifully. There were certainly times when I basically felt 'insane' shooting HAPPY NEW YEAR, yet I look at the work now at times I see extreme beauty within darkness.
HYBT: Who's your favorite television or movie character?
MC: My favorite film character is Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown in MY LEFT FOOT. I'm very attracted to these types of stories, probably because I connect with the idea of being an underdog and having to fight for self-expression. Daniel Day-Lewis is revelatory in every performance, but this particular character is so nuanced and emotionally-complex ---- I have to say this is still his best work.
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