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Film festival headliner shines spotlight on a good coach who was also a good person
When a friend pitched him the idea of making a movie about former University of Washington football coach Don James, Kent Loomer was skeptical.
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He didn’t want to make a football movie. Nor did he want to make what he called a “puff piece.”
But Mike Martin, a longtime friend and big-time Husky football fan, wouldn’t take no for an answer. And anyway, his idea wasn’t really to make a documentary about football, exactly.
“I only decided to do the movie because of the message,” Loomer said. “The message overall to me is, it’s a story of selflessness. Don James is a selfless man and the world we live in right now is very selfish. The message of being selfless in a selfish world.”
Film Festival facts
Loomer’s not-a-football movie is called “The Dawgfather: The Legacy of Don James.” Its world premiere kicks off the Gig Harbor Film Festival on Thursday, Sept. 26.
The 2024 festival features 85 films – 15 features and 10 themed blocks of shorts – showing over four days. (Click here to see the program, which lists all films showing at the festival.) General admission tickets, which give you a chance to see all 85 films as well as the awards ceremony on Sunday, cost $50 and area available on the film festival website.
Some VIP passes also remain available at $400. That gets you priority seating and access to parties and other events during the festival. Request those by emailing [email protected].
Either VIP or GA passes will get you in to see “Dawgfather” at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, though VIPs get priority seating for what may prove a popular event. The movie plays a second time, at 8:35 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28.
A world premiere at the Gig Harbor Film Festival is always a big deal, but this year’s might be even bigger than normal. Especially for Husky football fans.
Several former Huskies expect to attend the event on Thursdays. Among them is quarterback Warren Moon, who played for James on Montlake before embarking on a professional career that earned him a spot in the Hall of Fame.
Keith Shipman, a longtime Seattle-area broadcaster, will moderate a Q&A with Moon, Loomer and others after the premiere. VIP and GA passes get you into the Q&A, too, but the proviso about priority seating still applies.
Actor Joel McHale, a star of the NBC sitcom “Community” and a former UW walk-on tight end, narrates the film.
Truly a Dawgfather
The participation of so many people with connections to the UW football program is a good barometer of the respect and affection players had for James, who compiled a 153-57-2 record in 18 years at Washington.
“The James Gang is a very tight-knit, protective group of people,” Loomer said, referring to people who played for, coached under and worked with James. “They protect and appreciate the legacy of Coach James. So when they heard we were doing the movie, they were coming out of the woodwork to tell their story. We just couldn’t film it all.”
James, who died at age 80 in 2013, earned that respect by treating his players like – well, like human beings. That wasn’t necessarily the case with every college football coach during James’ time in the sport, which included four years as the head coach at Kent State University in Ohio.
“They treated the players like they were a piece of meat,” said Martin, whose persistence helped get the movie made. “Don came along and he was like, ‘Hey, these are people.’ ”
Another sign of the respect the college football world had for James was who sat for interviews. Former University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban – not an easy get – agreed to discuss his experiences as a player and coach under James at Kent State.
Former Alabama coach Nick Saban during an interview for “The Dawgfather: The Legacy of Don James.” Saban played and coached under James at Kent State University. (Image from trailer.)
From sidelight to spotlight
Loomer’s path into the film world was circuitous. He grew up in Ferndale and was a Husky fan, if not quite on the level of Martin, who writes about the team for RealDawg.com.
Loomer served in the Air Force for 11 years and worked at an oil refinery for more than 18 years. He took some acting classes and ended up with an improv group at a club in Bellingham.
A mentor suggested he audition for a TV pilot, and he got the part. Soon enough, he had an agent and a series of roles in television shows and movies.
“I’m tall, I’m fat, I’m bald. I’ve got a definite look,” Loomer said. “I’m not going to be your leading man. I get a lot of police officers and bad guys.”
Those experiences made him want to try his hand at writing and directing short films. He wrote and directed a short called “Keys to Life” in 2018.
That movie showed at the Gig Harbor Film Festival, too. “Dawgfather,” though, might get more attention than “Keys to Life,” since it’s about one of the Northwest’s most revered sports figures.
But Loomer wants to be clear about one thing.
“It’s not a football movie,” Loomer said. “It’s a human-interest story in a football wrapper. It talks about the power of selflessness and the impact you can have in the lives of other people by just being a good person.”
Don James changed how college football is coached, players and coaching peers told the makers of “The Dawgfather: The Legacy of Don James.” (Image from trailer)