Jeff Anderson

Jeffrey Allan "Jeff" Anderson (born April 21, 1970) is an American film actor, flim director, and screenwriter best known for starring as Randal Graves in Clerks and Clerks II. In between he has appeared in other Kevin Smith-directed films and has written, directed, and starred in Now You Know.

Early life

Born in Long Branch, New Jersey and raised in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, Anderson attended Henry Hudson Regional High School, with his aspiring writer friend Kevin Smith from which they both graduated in 1988.^[1] While Anderson was working at AT&T, Smith was working on his debut movie Clerks. As a joke, Anderson auditioned for the role of "Jay," and based on this audition, Smith later offered Anderson a lead role as video store employee Randal Graves; a seemingly foul-mouthed apathetic slacker, who along with his morally elevated best friend Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) belittled, aggravated, and alienated their customers whilst avoiding any real work at all opportunities.

Career

For his role in Clerks, Anderson was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance. In every scene in Clerks he had gum in his mouth. He claims it helped him relax. Anderson often says that when he is recognized as Randal it is always by voice, not appearance. Anderson had a disagreement with Smith over his salary for Clerks; he claimed he should have been paid more after the surprising success of the film.^{[citation needed]} The feud with Smith ended just before production began on Dogma.

Anderson attended NJIT to study architecture, but dropped out to move to Los Angeles, where he provided voiceover work for numerous television and radio commercials^{[citation needed]}.

In 2002, Anderson wrote, directed and starred in his own debut film (as writer/director) Now You Know, the entire writing process only lasting 3 months. Anderson received a nomination for Best Male Performance at the Chicago Film Festival for his role in "Love 101" and has been seen in Peter Bergstrom's Something Cool. Anderson also started his own production company in Hollywood. In 2006, Anderson reprised his role as Randal in Clerks II.

In 2008, Anderson appeared in Kevin Smith's romantic comedy Zack and Miri Make a Porno as Deacon, the cameraman and film editor for the porno made by leading stars Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. The film was released October 31.

Filmography

• Clerks (1994)
• Dogma (1999)
• Love 101 (2000)
• Clerks: The Animated Series (2000) (TV series)
• Rennie's Landing / Stealing Time (2001)
• Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)
• Now You Know (2002) (actor, writer, and director)
• The Flying Car (2002) (short film)
• Clerks: The Lost Scene (2004)
• Clerks II (2006)
• Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)

References

External links

• Jeff Anderson at the Internet Movie Database
• Jeff Anderson at Allmovie