Austin, Texas (CNN) -- Podcasting saved Kevin Smith's career. 

So said the filmmaker (and you can throw a few slashes after that title these days) at the South by Southwest festival here on Monday during a panel called, appropriately, "The Business of Kevin Smith." 

"I had no idea, but that would become the f---ing center of everything I'm doing now," said Smith, who broke into moves after making 1994's indie hit "Clerks" for roughly $25,000. 

"The ultimate freedom that allowed me to walk away from the 'heroin' [money] of the movie business -- what gave me the strength to walk away -- was [expletive] podcasting." 

Smith said he was working on "Zach and Miri Make a Porno," which he wrote and directed, when he realized the passion that led him to make movies like "Dogma" and "Chasing Amy" was gone. 

"For a while I became a filmmaker and for a while a professional director," he said. "But I really felt like I'm an artist." 

Smith said he decided to take advantage of his access to celebrities and gift of gab to launch a new project. And he deployed a technique he said has always served him well: do what you love and what you're good at, then figure out how to make money doing it. 

And that led to "SModcast," a weekly podcast that he and friend/co-producer Scott Mosier launched in 2007 and do to this day. 

It was free. But as its online audience grew, the opportunities to make money arose. 
What's his podcast called?
And that led to "SModcast," a weekly podcast that he and friend/co-producer Scott Mosier launched in 2007 and do to this day. 