The Summit Film Festival 2024’s weekend of creativity in Renton

The Summit Film Festival held its 2024 event with dozens of featured short films and an intentional downsizing.

The Summit Festival, founded by Ben Andrews, was held at the Renton Regal Movie Theatre from Sept. 6 through Sept. 8 to do what he wished he had as a young filmmaker. Andrews said his event had multiple ingredients, including movie showings, table reads, a red carpet show, a networking game and parties.

“The way I run this event is the way I wish I would have been treated or opportunities I would have had when I was starting to be a creative professional. I wanted a safe community. I wanted to be celebrated, I wanted to feel celebrated because I was different. But, in that journey, I didn’t have that,” Andrews said. “And it’s been rough, and it’s been tough. And that journey isn’t just about professional creativity. That’s about just being a creative soul from the beginning.”

Andrews said what he kept hearing over the weekend was people telling him that they couldn’t believe the quality of films now starting to come out of the Northwest — but he just hopes it stays in the state. He said he’s wondering if Washington as a state is going to create an environment where creatives can work — or if the state will continue to build and foster talent, then feed other markets like Los Angeles or New York instead of utilizing their skills at home.

Andrews said the event was smaller than last year, with around 500 tickets sold. The Summit Film Festival didn’t have a lot of money, so he intentionally made the event smaller because he wouldn’t let the festival end.

Andrews said that throughout the weekend, around 40 people came to him and told him that they appreciated his effort invested into the event. He said that years prior, all he would focus on was what was going wrong, but this year, he decided to just enjoy the good of the event.

“I did have a lot of people who were very loving and kind. When you pour your soul into an event like this, you just want somebody to really appreciate the fact that you’re pouring yourself into something that’s not necessarily giving you value, it’s giving them value,” Andrews said. “And when you see a few dozen people, catch on to that and give you love for it, [it’s] one of the best feelings in the world.”

Renton on the red carpet

Renton native Sean Nguyen and Tommy Heffernan were among the creatives on the red carpet. On the first night of the festival, Heffernan’s short film “Turbo Sean,” which he directed, was played with laughs all around the auditorium. The star of the short is Sean Nguyen, who plays a man who is trying to speed run his day faster and faster every day, and he has an Instagram account dedicated to showcasing this lifestyle.

Heffernan said the film was put together during the 48-hour film competition from film company Agbo, in which participants have 48 hours to write, shoot, and edit a short film that can only be three minutes long. Heffernan said the theme for that year’s competition was “Time.”

Regarding whether it’s a common lifestyle in the world of his film, Nguyen said he thought it would be funnier if it were a “Turbo Sean”-only thing, but for Heffernan, it was more a reflection of himself as a younger filmmaker.

“But, I’ll say, personally, it felt like a very universal thing for me when we were coming up with the idea because I kind of realized as we were writing, like, ‘Oh, yeah, that’s how I felt as a filmmaker throughout my twenties.’ Like, trying to make films all the time and trying to hustle and just do as many projects as I can,” Heffernan said. He said the film’s takeaway was intended to be about not rushing through life and instead stopping to smell the roses.

Heffernan said his next goal is to continue making more films and getting them featured at larger film festivals. This year, he had a film shown at the Seattle International Film Festival, which he said was a huge milestone for him.

Nguyen said he is working harder to fulfill his goals, but his ultimate goal as ethnically Vietnamese is to be the first Southeast Asian American man to win an Oscar for best acting. He said the Southeast Asian representation in film is low, but because there are some big actors like Ke Huy Quan, he thinks he can work his way up to that level. He said Ke Huy Quan won the Supporting Actor award, which is a huge milestone, but he has his eyes set on the Best Acting Oscar.

“I know it’s gonna take a lot of work and especially a lot of grinding because this is one of the most difficult jobs you can do since you have to audition constantly and make your way,” Nguyen said. “But I really do believe in my heart that I will be up on that stage one day taking that title.”

Nguyen said he got into acting because he didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life. Over time, he found that he enjoys telling stories and bringing characters to life that might not be usually seen in media. He said he was on track to become an environmental lawyer, but after getting into acting, he realized he was more passionate about acting.