Barbara Crampton is an icon of horror cinema. Initially earning the accolade during the ‘80s when she starred in films such as Re-Animator, Chopping Mall, and From Beyond, Crampton returned to the genre in You’re Next, and has not looked back since. The latest credit on her horror resume comes in the form of SXSW Midnight horror anthology, Grind. Mixing horror and comedy, Grind tells four interconnected stories based around the gig economy, hustle culture, and evils of late-stage capitalism.
Grind tackles the modern work landscape through four timely perspectives – the hustle culture of an MLM, the endless repetitiveness of a food delivery driver, the online horrors of a content moderator, and the unionization of a familiar-feeling coffee shop. Grind shows what it means to be a worker in a world defined by wealth inequality and ruled by endlessly greedy oligarchs, one not so far removed from our own. This is a film for anyone who’s ever hated their job, had a bad boss, or felt taken advantage of at work. In other words, it’s a film for all of us.
Barbara Crampton features throughout Grind, but primarily within the segment called MLM. Directed by Brea Grant, MLM follows Jessika Van’s Sarah as she decides to empower herself by being her own boss selling La La Leggings. Essentially an Avon style system, just with leggings, Sarah soon finds that Crampton’s Founder takes her sales agents not hitting their targets very seriously. The first full segment of Grind, MLM delivers a lot of zany fun, whilst still conveying an important message about the state of the working world. Ahead of Grind’s premiere at SXSW, THN spoke with Barbara Crampton and Jessika Van to uncover what it was about Grind’s script and MLM director Brea Grant that made them both sign up.
Grind will receive its World Premiere at SXSW.
