Kevin Smith began his career back in 1992 when he sold his comics, maxed out his credit cards, and used a car insurance payment to fund Clerks, a black and white movie shot at a convenience store in Jersey. The cast and crew were comprised of 2 people with a film credit to their name, a smattering of names from community theatre, and a bunch of Smith's family and friends, including his mom.
After a rocky start, the movie went on to achieve cult status, launching Smith's filmmaking career, his View Askew production company, and what is known as the Askewniverse. Smith himself became iconic in his role as Silent Bob and to this day reprises the character, alongside his "hetero lifemate" Jason Mewes as Jay. The duo was most recently seen in Jay And Silent Bob Reboot but began life in Clerks. Here are some other facts about the cult classic that you may not know.
The Vancouver Film School Was Vital To The Making Of Clerks
It's well known that Kevin Smith has no formal training but he did briefly attend the Vancouver Film School. While he quit before the program finished, his time there shaped the rest of his career. The biggest impact was the connections he made to long term collaborator and producer Scott Mosier and cinematographer Dave Klein, both of whom were involved with making Clerks.
Mosier made a pact with Smith that whoever finished a script first, the other would help them produce it. Smith cashed in on this when he finished Clerks and Mosier has been a vital part of the Askewniverse ever since. Klein also played a key role in the original Jersey Trilogy and has made return visits to the Askewniverse.3
Jeff Anderson Wasn't Meant To Be In The Movie
Smith's original intention was to play Randal himself with his high school friend Earnest O'Donnell playing Dante. When O'Donnell wasn't fully onboard Smith began to look to local community theatre for actors. Jeff Anderson was originally helping out Smith by reading alongside actors during casting.
After Brian O'Halloran and Marilyn Ghigliotti were cast as Dante and Veronica respectively, Smith decided to step down from the role of Randal to focus fully on directing. He cast himself as Silent Bob and offered Randal's role to Anderson.
The Cast Worked Day Jobs And Filmed At Night
While Clerks was being made Smith worked at the Quick Stop he filmed at. He would work a full day then had permission to film overnight from the stores owner. After closing, the cast and crew would rearrange the store for shooting then put it all back again before the morning. Once this was done Smith would often briefly sleep in his car before resuming the process.
Most of the cast also had other jobs. Anderson worked in a mailroom, O'Halloran in manufacturing, Ghigliotti was a hairstylist and Mewes was a roofer. They ate from the store shelves as they filmed, with the Quick Stop being listed as "catering" as a tribute to this.
The Jay And Silent Bob Reboot Solved A Clerks Mystery
Due to the night shoot, Smith wrote in a plot point about the shutters "always being jammed" without ever giving a reason why. Dante always seems incredibly frustrated about the shutters and his handmade sign suggests it's a frequent occurrence.
At the end of Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, the iconic duo are standing outside the Quick Stop along with Millie when Dante appears to open the store. Jay casually reveals the mystery turning to her and saying "Oh, you see that guy over there? For twenty five years we've been coming here every night and putting gum in the locks."
Jason Mewes Was Camera Shy
You wouldn't believe it to look at him now but Mewes was terrified when he first began acting. Talking about the experience on the Jay and Silent Bob Get Old Podcast he says “When I got on camera, man, I just froze and needed everyone out of there." The set used to be cleared for Mewes's appearances and he acted with just Smith beside him.
While Mewes did take to the process by the time Mallrats came around, he had trouble delivering the lines in Clerks that convince Dante to salvage his relationship. Smith stepped in and delivered them instead, which led to the idea that Silent Bob only ever speaks up when he has something important to say.
The Cat Was Prepared For Its Cameo
At one point in the movie, a cat jumps onto the counter and uses a litter box that has been placed there. According to the DVD commentary, in order to get the shot quickly and easily the cat's owner, a friend of Smith's, hid the litter tray for a while before filming. The idea was that the cat would rush to it once seen. It worked.
Smith also joked at Sundance that this trick prevented him from securing the Human Society's "No animals were harmed" seal of approval for the movie.
Soul Asylum Are Still Associated With Clerks
The music video for Soul Asylum's Can't Even Tell was directed by Smith, filmed at the Quick Stop, and features the Clerks cast and the band playing hockey. Talking about the experience, frontman Dave Pirner told Billboard "I felt like it was all part of the same production, only this was the colorized version of the film."
In the same interview, Brian O'Halloran stated that Pirner says they still play Can't Even Tell, along with Let Your Dim Light Shine from Clerks II and get a huge response from all the fans in the audience.
The Film Premiered To An Almost Empty House
The movie's premiere was at NYC's Angelika Film Center at the Independence Feature Film Market. On the Clerks X DVD, Smith was said to be "crestfallen" when the audience was predominantly cast and crew. However, one other film attendee would prove to be invaluable to its success.
Bob Hawk was in the audience and saw potential in the flick. He was associated with the Sundance Film Festival, sitting on the advisory selection committee. It was his recommendation of the movie to his contacts that secured its place at the festival.
There Is A Clerks Animated Series
Back in the year 2000 a 6 episode animated series simply called Clerks: The Animated Series was produced. It continued the story of Dante and Randal and was voiced by original cast members Jeff Anderson, Brian O'Halloran, Jason Mewes, and Kevin Smith. It also attracted some other big names to its voice cast including Alec Baldwin, Tara Strong, and Bryan Cranston.
The series was developed by Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier, and David Mandel. It was axed after just 2 episodes were shown, although it has gained a cult following over the years since. Smith himself still hopes to one day see it return.
Clerks Is Considered "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"
These are words that Smith likely never even considered would be applied to the little indie movie he shot over 21 days for less than $28,000 back in 1994. Nevertheless, this is what happened in 2019 when Clerks entered the Library of Congress' National Film Registry.
These terms are used to select just 25 movies each year to enter the registry. Entries must be at least 10 years old. When Clerks was selected the registry contained just 775 films, spanning 1903 - 2003. The 2019 selection process took into consideration more than 6,000 publically nominated movies, with Clerks gaining the most support.