Beyond Paradise

Beyond Paradise
Directed by	David L. Cunningham
Produced by	Anthony Bozanich David L. Cunningham
Written by	David L. Cunningham David Walker
Starring	Roy Newton Kalani Nakoa Lorenzo Callender Daryl Bonilla Priscilla Basque
Music by	Nicolás Rivera
Cinematography	Graham Driscoll Russell Steen
Edited by	Patrick Flannery Thomas A. Ohanian
Release dates	1998 (1998)
Running time	105 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Beyond Paradise is a 1998 American independent film directed by David L. Cunningham.

Plot

The film is a semi-autobiographical tale of Cunningham's years in Hawaii. He leaves Los Angeles and moves with his mother to the Big Island and befriends three "locals", Ronnie, Zulu and Keao. At the same time, he is bullied and harassed for being a "haole" or foreigner.

The three lead characters were inspired by Cunningham's real life high school friends, as seen in the ending credits. The film is dedicated to Donald Boy (Ronnie), Zulu (Zulu), while Keao was a composite of two friends combining the humor of one friend and the drug element of another into one character.

Production

Under the working title of "Kama'aina", the movie was filmed with a modest budget from December 26, 1996 to February 5, 1997.

Release and reshooting

The movie premiered at the Honolulu International Film Festival in November 1997.

After a few screenings in L.A., Cunningham shot some additional footage, including scenes involving Mark's father and his friends in L.A. The film had a limited theatrical release in 1999. It did well at the box office in Hawaii; according to Variety Magazine, it beat The Matrix in ticket sales in Hawaii.

The DVD did not come out until 2003; it does not include the scenes that were added for the 1999 release. The DVD lacks extras and commentaries, but includes the theatrical trailer.

External links

• Beyond Paradise at IMDb