Say what you will about Kevin Smith, but he’s the mastermind behind cult movie classics like Chasing Amy, Mallrats, Dogma and Clerks. But he’s a changed man; not totally changed, mind you, because he still dropped tons of f-bombs in his SXSWi session, The Business of Kevin Smith, but hey – it wouldn’t be a talk with Kevin Smith without ludeness. Kevin meant to start out with a short intro to tee up his moderator for a talk about how he does business these days since he’s no longer making movies (by the way, he nobly states that “he has nothing good left to give as a director” so he quit while he’s ahead – WHAT A NOVEL IDEA!). But his intro turned into a 40 minute story about how his dad’s death changed his life. He went on to explain that his dad had a great life, didn’t want for anything and yet, he died screaming in his sleep (literally screaming). Now if that wouldn’t change your perspective, I don’t know what would. And it did for Kevin Smith. He vowed that day to do everything he could to avoid ‘dying screaming’ – to be at peace with himself and what he was doing with his life, above all else. I took that to heart in a major way. I saw a softer side of Kevin Smith at SXSW – and I liked it. The guy’s respectably smart, well-spoken and genuine. And he made Clerks with $27,000 – incredible!

I admit it – while I was poking fun at all the film nerds in the room as they waited anxiously for Smith to come out, I realized I was one….and proud of it! For all you fans out there, a walk down memory lane:

Clerks Trailer (BACK IN THE DAY!)