Director Malcolm Ingram on the Passion of Filmmaker Kevin Smith in New Documentary, ‘Clerk’ [SXSW 21]
In this documentary, audiences can revel in “Snoochie boochies!” once more.
The 1990s are a great decade for cult cinema—movies that are practically custom-made for their particular audience and gradually gain a passionate and dedicated following over time. Movies such as CLUELESS, OFFICE SPACE, FROM DUSK TIL DAWN, and MARS ATTACKS! are just a few examples, and synonymous with this genre of movies is filmmaker Kevin Smith, who is the subject of a new documentary titled CLERK from director Malcolm Ingram.
Still from “Clerks” (1994) Source: IMdb
Smith himself is a bit of a renaissance man, with credits such as writer, director, actor, podcast host, stand-up comedian, and emcee. In part due to his passion for comic books, the auteur identifies as being a fan above everything. Whether it’s a fan of movies, a fan of comics, or—most importantly, he might argue—a fan of himself and his own work, his passion for the things he loves shines clear and bright through everything he creates and thus solidifies him as one of the great modern storytellers.
This sort of deep introspective into Smith’s life and work is the basis of the documentary, following him from his early days in film school, through his debut at Sundance Film Festival with CLERKS in 1994, and up to his life-altering heart attack that he had in 2018 which led him to making his latest film, JAY AND SILENT BOB: REBOOT.
Ingram and Smith have been friends for 25 years, first meeting each other back in the 1990s on the festival circuit, and the idea for the documentary came only after the initial idea to write a book on his life got pushed to the side. “There was a publisher interested in doing a book about Kevin,” Ingram begins. “And I’ve kind of been around [Kevin] for a long time, so I kind of knew this story . . . but I’m a documentarian.” It felt natural for Ingram to film the story rather than to write it, and production began in January of 2018. Just over one month later, Smith suffered a heart attack following a show in Glendale, California. “I was supposed to be at the show where he had his heart attack,” Ingram says. “But I had a previous family thing . . . I actually flew down there the next day and I basically just spent the week with him cheering him up and kind of figuring out, ‘What do you want to do?’” The last thing that either of them were really thinking about at the time was a documentary, but realizing just how close he had come to death made Smith take evaluation of his life and gave him motivation to continue moving forward with the documentary.
Still from “Chasing Amy” (1997) Source: IMdb
From the very beginning, Smith seemed to know that he was was going to be forging his own path and steering clear of the typical Hollywood schmoozing and boozing. Smith’s approach to filmmaking can be simply stated that he makes the movies that he and his friends would want to see, and it is that authentic and confident nature that makes his films resonate so well with his fans. Ingram likens this approach to filmmaker Richard Linklater and his film SLACKER, which was also made on a budget and out of passion for the work itself. The film served as a major inspiration to Smith, with Ingram stating, “For Rich’s bravery to go out and do it themselves, Kevin felt a kinship to that, so he felt confident in his ability to do it himself.”
Sprinkled throughout the documentary are interviews with many people in Smith’s life, whether they be friends and family, co-stars, industry professionals, or people that he looks up to—like the late, great Stan Lee. Of all the people featured, though, Linklater was the hardest to lock down. “The only person I chased was Richard Linklater,” Ingram says. “I really, really wanted him, and he was really busy at the time . . . I had to write him a letter about it, but I knew that he was an important voice . . . fortunately, he finally said yes, and he ended up being wonderful.”
The greatest achievement of the documentary is how it emphasizes the sincere love and passion that goes into Smith’s films. Many of them are semi-autobiographical, loosely based on stories or people from his life, and the care and detail that are exercised through telling these stories are what connects Smith to his fans. “Kevin is a very touchy-feely guy, Kevin is one of the funniest guys I know,” Ingram concludes. “But one of the things about humor is that humor is a great armor. He’s also one of the most sensitive people, and a lot of people who are the most sensitive also have the best sense of humor.”