Posted by Blake Wallington at ool-435228b6.dyn.optonline.net on January 03, 2003 at 00:16:46:
i'm a 25 year old north jersian whose followed kevin's career closely since he started getting recognition in the Herald News and Record way back when. i've been into film/video since 1992/3 thanks to the great tv production program in my highschool and the public access studio. my mother used to clip relevant articles about local area film makers to inspire my young optomistic self. one day, sitting on my bed was an article with a photo of this frumpy, scruffy slacker film guy, Kevin Smith. He was getting all kinds of recoginition for a movie he shot while working at a convience store in Jersey, but what really caught my attention was the bit about writing a broken'gummed up steel security shutter' into the script so they could shoot at night and pass it off as day. suddenly i had a paradigm for accomplishing my goal of producing an origional film, DIY. it also taught my 15 year old self that people from new jersey matter too!
other points of interest:
- my father was a politician who presented kevin with a resolution, on the floor of the New Jersey assembly, for his accomplishments in the festival circut with Clerks. dad got a picture taken with kevin and then sent it to his then blossoming view askew to have it autographed. Kevin drew an arrow pointing to himself with the words "un-important looser," then an arrow pointing to my dad "very important man," at the bottom, "Assemblyman (blah), it was an honor, Kevin Smith." its a very cool one of a kind thing from way back. Kevin's advice to my dad when dad told him i want to go into film was, "forget about college, give him the money to make a film." dad didn't go for it though.
- my friend had a kid with a girl from Keansberg, NJ who claimed to have 'dated' jay mewes.
- i drive from clifton to red bank once a month (its only an hour) to buy comics at Jay and Bob's. i bought all of my KS daredevil's and green arrows there. but i gotta admit, the place is unorganized more often than not.
- two of my friends and fellow production assistants PA'd on a music video for Jay and Bob Strike Back and told me Kevin and Jay went out of there way to make the production assistants feel appreciated WHICH IS FUCKIN' RARE.
- fuck you fucks who like to pick on newbies on message boards.