Young Hawai'i filmmakers like Zac Heileson are proving that all you need to make a compelling movie is a digital camera, editing software, and the ingenuity to bring ideas to life.

The 26-year-old Pearl City resident has quickly emerged as a talent to watch when it comes to do-it-yourself movie-making, after winning Showdown in Chinatown — a local, short filmmaking contest — four times, including the 2006 annual championship.

Heileson's reputation as an amateur filmmaker who can turn out slick films without a big budget has earned him a role as editor for award-winning filmmaker Brett Wagner's current project, "Crystal."

What makes Heileson's achievements particularly noteworthy is that he never formally studied film, and he doesn't rely on expensive equipment. In fact, he doesn't even own his own video camera.

"I don't like to get into the really excessive equipment, like camera cranes, and all," he said. "You don't really need it. You can make a compelling story with an iPhone or handheld. ... What I hear is everybody complaining about what they don't have, and they think the equipment makes you better. (But) it's learning how to exploit what you do have."

Heileson's visually stunning shorts embody the essence of DIY guerrilla filmmaking. Typically, they're deep in meaning and set in exotic locales, although they're all shot on O'ahu. Heileson tends not to rely on dialogue; rather he weaves tales through music and poignant images of his characters. The shadowy worlds he creates address such dark themes as suicide, drug addiction, abortion and murder in a memorable manner.

He and his partner, Nathan Clarke shot last month's winning Showdown in Chinatown entry, "Inter," with almost no budget, a tiny crew, simple lighting and props, and no time to obtain a filming permit. They got chased out of Bishop Square, barely getting the footage they needed for a key moment in the film, where Heileson's character has a dramatic breakdown in the middle of the Square. With no dialogue, the short depicting a suicidal drug addict won raves for both its special effects and emotional power.

"Even for feature filmmakers, the hardest task is to create an emotional bridge between the story, the characters and the audience, but the most exceptional thing about (Zac's) creative abilities is that he is able to create emotional connections within the short film medium," said Torry Tukuafu, the founder of Showdown In Chinatown, whose goal is to recognize and support local independent filmmaking.

Every month, as part of Showdown in Chinatown, participants are given two days to write, shoot and edit a short that's screened for a panel of judges. There's a different theme each month, and filmmakers are asked to incorporate certain objects or lines into their films. For Heileson's breakout short, "Le Voyage," which won Showdown in Chinatown's $1,000 annual competition in November 2006, he was given a week to write, shoot and edit a short incorporating bubble gum, a wine bottle and the phrase "You don't have to leave." The theme of the contest was "finding love," and Heileson and his team shot their roughly eight-minute entry entirely in French.

"We made it in 140 hours," he said. "That was one of the more nerve-wracking shorts we've done."

Heileson's film career started at Turtle Bay about four years ago, when he was asked to create a promotional video for the resort.

But Heileson said that his interest in filmmaking goes back to when he was a child. Inspired by filmmakers like the Coen brothers and Sam Mendes, he read and taught himself the tricks of filmmaking, and decided to pass on film school to get real-life experience.

Although eager to further his career, Heileson remains committed to independent filmmaking, and said he's not actively seeking a role in the big-budget movie industry at this time.

"I want to keep growing to the point where somebody can give me a couple million and say, 'Do your thing,' " he said. "It'll take awhile to get there, but you can turn it in and say, 'OK, we did it on our own terms; we shot it our own way. Here's an entire feature-length film. We did it with five people.' That's really the future of filmmaking."