Kevin Smith is stepping back behind the mic, this time not for a film set or podcast, but as the keynote speaker at Storytelling360’s State of the Story conference.
The filmmaker, best known for building a career out of sharp dialogue and low budget defiance, will headline the event this Sunday (March 22nd) at the Harmony Gold Theater in Los Angeles.
He joins a stacked lineup that reads more like an awards season roll call than a panel schedule. Oscar winners Cord Jefferson, Diablo Cody, and Graham Moore are all locked in, alongside Emmy winners like David Wain and former DGA president Paris Barclay (per Hollywood Reporter).
A room full of storytellers, no filters
Storytelling360 isn’t pitching itself as another industry echo chamber, the concept is simple, get some of the sharpest voices in film and TV into one space and let them unpack what storytelling actually looks like right now.
That includes names like Nia Vardalos, Black List founder Franklin Leonard, and producers and executives shaping projects behind the scenes.
The event has shifted venues this year, moving from the Writers Guild Theater to Harmony Gold amid ongoing labour tensions, it’s a subtle reminder that even conversations about storytelling don’t exist in a vacuum right now.
Smith still doing it his way
Smith’s inclusion makes sense, few filmmakers have navigated the industry quite like he has.
From the stripped back grit of ‘Clerks’ to the cult sprawl of the View Askewniverse, Smith’s built a career on saying exactly what he wants, whether it lands cleanly or not. That same energy has carried through recent projects like ‘Clerks III’, ‘Jay and Silent Bob Reboot’, and ‘Moose Jaws’.
He’s not the most polished voice in the room. That’s kind of the point.
From cult filmmaker to keynote speaker
The first run of Storytelling360 pulled in heavyweights like Spike Lee, Marta Kauffman, and Tony Kushner, so landing Smith as keynote feels less like a curveball and more like a continuation of that mix, Prestige meets unpredictability.
Whether he leans into craft, chaos, or somewhere in between is anyone’s guess, for a conference built around the idea of storytelling, that’s probably exactly what they’re after.
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