CLERKS (1994)

Kevin Smith, inspired by Stranger Than Paradise, turned his camera on his own nothing-much-happens life, shooting at night on a budget of $28,000 in the same convenience store he worked in by day. Clerks reflected the stifled suburban lives of a generation spoon-fed on pop culture and stalled out in go-nowhere McJobs. In other words, Smith tapped into a lucrative base of indie film's most passionate ticket buyers: guys just like himself.