Kevin Smith

Kevin Smith was born on August 2, 1970 in Red Bank, New Jersey. He worked at a post office with his father for a while, but he greatly disliked it and made a promise to himself that he would not have a career he did not like. His inspiration came from the comedy Slacker, which was written by Richard Linklater.

His first hit Clerks (1994) was filmed in the convenience store which he worked and it got him on the map as a director. He got recognition from director Quentin Tarantino for his work on 1997’s Chasing Amy, which is arguably his best work to date. His 1999 comedy Dogma featured some of the biggest names in film, including Chris Rock, George Carlin, and Alan Rickman. Some of his other notable films include Jersey Girl (2004) which he wrote and directed, Clerks II (2006) – the much anticipated sequel, and Catch and Release (2006).

In the past decade, Smith has written scripts for Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008), as well as Red State (2011). Although the former was given the green light, Red State was passed on, and Smith hopes to independently fund the film. In 2010, he was offered the opportunity to direct Cop Out. This was the first film that Smith had directed but hadn’t written himself. Other than film, he contributes to magazine publications and comic books.