Posted by RoadOwl at as-6-148-tyl.cox-internet.com on September 06, 2001 at 02:16:07:
So good to be here! Hey Kevin-
I've made a couple short films with some friends (now everyone who reads this, please roll your eyes and question their quality, get it over with, heh) and I'm dying to go to film school. At WizardWorld in august i gave away 50 copies of one of my bigger shorts (called Both Ways) and two of my smaller ones. All 50 were taken, and yet no feedback. So I've been a bit jaded. This coupled with the fact that I live in small town Texas and its hard to dig yourself out, especially with intentions to make movies.
But a couple things you said turned me around. I thought in July that perhaps my goal should be to make one feature film, really make a go at it, and see what happens, and at least it will be out of my system. I entertained this notion. Then, first week of August, I attended the Jay & Bob Strike Back premiere in Austin. Afterwards you did some Q&A, and mentioned that you cast yourself as Silent Bob because if Clerks was the onl;y film you ever made, you wanted to be in it. Made me think.
THEN I attended the View Askew panel at WizardWorld (barely, those who were there know what I'm talking about, god bless having an exhibitor badge) and you said one of the most profound things I've heard in a long time-
Someone asked you if you were complete now that you had finished off the Askewniverse films. You replied very quickly that "I was complete after I made Clerks". Maybe I was the only one in the audience who was really hit by that. Probably. Really made me think - Kevin, you really ran in headlong and made your fuckin' flick, and come hell, high water, or wild credit card bills you were gonna see your movie made. I truly respect that, and the fact that you just wanted to give it a shot is something I really admire.
I want the film school experience, so thats the first goal, but dammit, before I'm 23 I'm gonna make my feature. Win or lose, I wanna see my movie. If only for my satisfaction. And who knows, someone else might dig it.
Thank you, Kev. Keep up the good work. We all love you out here.
And to Malcolm, you were working the Askew booth in Chicago when you took a minute out to talk to me after i asked you how you got to make Drawing Flies.You talked me through it, and you were very nice. Afterwards you thanked me for asking. Does noone else ask you this? Odd. Take it easy, and thanks.
Travis Boles
fanboysproductions@hotmail.com