James Cullingham

James David Cullingham (born March 5, 1954) is a Canadian documentary filmmaker, historian, journalist, and educator based in Peterborough, Ontario. His work primarily focuses on social justice, Indigenous rights, music, and transnational history. He has contributed to various national and international publications, was a long-time contributor to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), and has served as a professor at Seneca Polytechnic. He later completed a Master of Arts in History at the University of Toronto and a PhD in History from York University (2014). In 2008, he was a doctoral fellow at the L’Université de Paris (Sorbonne).

Career Journalism and Broadcasting Cullingham began his career at CBC Radio in 1983. He served as the executive producer of As It Happens from 1987 to 1989 and later as the executive producer of Sunday Morning (1989–1990). Since 2021, he has hosted programs on Trent Radio, including the current affairs and music show Sitting On Top Of The World.

Filmmaking and Tamarack Productions In 1989, Cullingham founded Tamarack Productions. In 1994, he directed and produced Duncan Campbell Scott: The Poet and the Indians, a documentary co-produced with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). In 2021, he released The Cost of Freedom – Refugee Journalists in Canada, which profiles journalists in exile. His 2026 project, Voices Out of Shadows, focuses on activists in exile in Canada. The Journal of Wild Culture, and The Toronto Star.

In 2022, he published his first monograph, Two Dead White Men: Duncan Campbell Scott, Jacques Soustelle, and the Failure of Indigenous Policy, through Seneca Press.

Selected filmography Voices Out of Shadows (2026). Co-director and writer. Jim Galloway – A Journey in Jazz (2018). Director, producer, and writer. In Search of Blind Joe Death: The Saga of John Fahey (2012). Director, producer, and writer. Dishonour Defied (2008). Executive producer and producer (directed by Azra Rashid). Lessons in Fear (2005). Director, producer, and writer. Counter Currents – The Fight for Fish on the Fraser River (1994). Producer (directed by Anne Bromley). Duncan Campbell Scott: The Poet and The Indians (1994). Director, producer, and writer; co-produced with the National Film Board of Canada. As Long as the Rivers Flow (1991). Producer and creator (featuring segments such as *The Learning Path*, directed by Loretta Sarah Todd).

Awards and recognition Remi Winner**, WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival (2022) for The Cost of Freedom. Canadian Screen Award Nomination** (2017) for Best Historical Documentary or Series (The Pass System, directed by Alex Williams). Platinum Remi**, WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival (2013) for In Search of Blind Joe Death. Award Recipient**, World Wildlife Film Festival for Counter Currents (directed by Anne Bromley). Blue Ribbon Award**, American Film and Video Festival (1992) for *The Learning Path* (from *As Long As The Rivers Flow*, directed by Loretta Sarah Todd). Producers Award**, American Indian Film Festival (1991) for *As Long As The Rivers Flow*.