Summers Henderson is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and video editor, working in the San Francisco Bay area. As an editor, he brings not only technical expertise but also a broad base of knowledge about media, a passion for great storytelling, and an intense curiosity about the world. Summers has an enthusiasm for collaboration, an easy-going, drama-free work style, and a natural talent for creative problem solving. He is especially interested in teaming up with other independent filmmakers to help them craft the best possible films they can make.
Summers was born in Dallas, Texas, studied film and literature at Wesleyan University, and earned a master's degree in film studies from the University of Texas. He also studied journalism and photography at City College of San Francisco. In 2008, he received a master's degree in documentary video production from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. His documentaries have screened at the Boston Museum of Science, the Connecticut Film Festival, the Boston International Film Festival, and the Rhode Island International Film Festival.
Summers worked as production assistant, assistant editor, archival researcher and associate producer at Iguana Films in Boston. His credits there include assistant editor on the ITVS-funded Civil War documentary "Rebel" and assistant editor on the NEH-funded World War II documentary "No Job for a Woman."
Summers was assistant editor and associate producer on the short documentary "Kings Point," which was nominated for an Academy Award and broadcast on HBO. He was editor of the short documentary "Sawdust & Sand," co-editor of the theatrically released feature documentary "Top Spin," and one of the editors of the theatrically released feature documentary "Informant," which screened at IDFA and won the Grand Jury prize at DOC NYC.
He has served as editor or assistant editor on a wide variety of corporate and non-profit projects. His clients include Facebook, Stanford University, the Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Anomali, WestEd, and MyShakespeare. He was recently employed as assistant editor on the hour-long documentary "Fatherless" for director Dawn Porter and the Fusion cable TV network.
Summers lives in Oakland, California, with his partner, Sola, and their children, Aya and Kai. In his free time, he enjoys experimenting with hot sauce recipes, making themed mix CDs, and watching classic Japanese samurai films.