Go Away With … Christopher Gorham

Q. Which film locations stand out in your mind?

A. I shot “The Other Side of Heaven” in Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. It was a Disney film with Anne Hathaway and the location was just gorgeous. Rarotonga is overlooked but it’s incredible to visit — not overrun with tourists, like I imagine Hawaii used to be. It’s an amazingly gorgeous island with really nice people. I filmed my upcoming movie “The Ledge” in Baton Rouge. That was my first time to Louisiana and I loved it. I was able to get in to New Orleans for a day and eat some delicious turtle soup. My sister-in-law is still angry about that because she loves turtles — not to eat, just to look at. I also shot a film called “Answer This!” in Ann Arbor and am completely in love with Michigan.

Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?

A. I love New Zealand. I was only on the North Island but there’s so much to see in Auckland. I shot “The Other Side of Heaven” shortly after getting married, so my wife and I didn’t really get a honeymoon. So in a way, that trip (to New Zealand and the Cook Islands) was our honeymoon. It was really neat. We ended up frequenting this little place called The Cafe on Rarotonga. This couple — Neil Dearlove and his wife Janet — had moved from New Zealand and built it there. They couldn’t have been any nicer, and we still stay in touch with them and their daughter.

Q. When was your first big trip?

A. In the fifth grade. My grandparents took me to San Antonio, Texas. It was my first ride in a limo, which was pretty impressive to me back then. In school, we did these trips to Washington, D.C., and New York. I’ve always really liked traveling. After college, my brother and I took one of those bus trips around Europe where you only get to see each site for 30 seconds. There are a lot of people who turn their noses up at bus tours, but we had a great time.

Q. What U.S. city do you recommend?

A. People should visit Ann Arbor. It’s really a great city. There’s this amazing coffeehouse there called Comet Coffee. There’s a place called Zingerman’s Deli that has the most incredible Reuben sandwich and my favorite chocolate cake in the world. It’s actually the best chocolate cake I ever ate. There’s a tiny place there called the Jefferson Market and Cakery. They do really yummy small-scale cafe food but they also have these bonbons that are maybe the most perfect dessert. We bought out the place! The ladies that run it are really nice.

Q. Does traveling for work get old?

A. My jobs often end up being our family vacations and so far it has been great. One of the nice things is that “Covert Affairs” shoots in Toronto during the summer, so the kids are out of school and my wife and kids can join me. My wife has family in Chicago so sometimes we’ll drive from Toronto and then go to Ann Arbor and Chicago for a while.

Q. Where are your favorite weekend getaways?

A. Ashland, Ore., is really nice. I’ve spent some time in Seattle, too, but not as much as I would’ve liked.

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. I always take my computer. I recently got an iPad and was thinking I could replace my laptop on trips, but that hasn’t worked out. I still need my computer, which is annoying, but I do. I always take a book because on the plane you have to turn electronics off. I always put movies on my phone. I’ve started taking a lot less clothes than I used to. I try to get down to the bare minimum.

Q. Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?

A. I was in Paris briefly on that bus tour I was telling you about, but I need to take Anel to Paris. That’s something that we need to do when our youngest gets a little older. I’d also love to go to Greece. I think the kids would really enjoy a trip like that. South Africa is on my list of places to see.

Q. What foreign country is a great place for families?

A. Italy. We were there for Peter Weller’s wedding. Our boys were 5 and 2 at the time and we took them to every restaurant and never had a problem. Italians love women and children, so men will feel completely unimportant and ignored, but your wife and kids will love being fawned over.

Q. What is your worst airport memory?

A. We were supposed to fly home to California from a sneak screening at Ann Arbor, but I had gotten sick the day before we were supposed to head back home and we had to change our flights. It ended up that Delta had no record of our return flight and so we had to get booked with whatever was left. Having to turn to your wife and tell her we have to hang out for seven hours with our three kids — one of whom is under 2 — was not a pleasant conversation. It should’ve been hell on earth, but somehow our kids all rolled with it and it was all OK. We got home and Delta was really great about it and gave us travel credits that we later used to fly to Sundance. It all worked out fine, really.

© 2011 JAE-HA KIM
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