Kim Cummings was born in Detroit, Michigan and moved to Clearwater, Florida when she was six-years-old, where she lived until attending college at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Her father, Robert Cummings (not the actor), was a Systems Analyst and her mother, Marie Cummings is an artist. Cummings holds a BS degree in Math/Computer Science from Emory and a Certificate in Film from New York University's School of Continuing and Professional Studies. She is also mother to boy/girl twins, born in 2001.

Cummings' breakthrough short film, "Weeki Wachee Girls", played in over 70 festivals around the world and picked up three best-of awards. It's based on her high-school experience of watching a close friend struggle with her attraction to another girl.