View Askew Productions


View Askew Productions is an American film and television production company founded by Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier in 1994. Actors Ben Affleck, Jeff Anderson, Matt Damon, Chris Rock, Walter Flanagan, Bryan Johnson, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Brian O'Halloran, Ethan Suplee and Smith himself are just some of the stars that frequently appear in projects under the View Askew banner.

History

Smith and Mosier founded the company in 1994 to produce their first film, Clerks, which was the first film in what is now known as the View Askewniverse. After the film became a success View Askew obtained a larger budget and produced Mallrats in 1995, which was a critical and commercial failure but found success after being released on home video. This film was soon followed by Chasing Amy in 1997, and Dogma in 1999.
Beginning the new millennium, View Askew briefly produced ', a short-lived animated series based on Clerks, which only aired six episodes. They later released Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, which starred Smith and old friend Jason Mewes as their characters originated in Clerks and appear in most View Askew and View Askewniverse related material, Jay and Silent Bob. This film was later followed by the first non-Askewniverse film, Jersey Girl. Although it was the first film not set within the previously established View Askewniverse, it did feature many of Smith's frequent cast members.
Two years after Jersey Girl, View Askew released Clerks II, the first true sequel to a previous Smith film. This film features the main characters of the film Clerks continuing ten years later. This film was also recently followed by the second film not to take place within the View Askewniverse, Zack and Miri Make a Porno.
The company has also released several of Smith's non-fiction works, such as his four question and answer DVDs, An Evening With Kevin Smith in 2002, ' in 2006, ' in 2008 and ' in 2011. It has also produced Sucks Less with Kevin Smith, a show which features three UCLA students who are enrolled in a class about cinematography in which Smith is their teacher.
In addition to the various Smith-directed films, the company has also produced movies for other directors including Malcolm Ingram, Bryan Johnson, Vincent Pereira, and Brian Lynch.
The original logo of the company was a smiling clown with a 5 o' clock shadow dressed in women's lingerie and platform pumps. This logo gained controversy due to its content. The logo was later changed to a cartoon Jay and Silent Bob with movie equipment.

Films