''American Job'' is a 1996 independent film directed by Chris Smith. Shot in a satirical pseudo-documentary style, the film follows Randy, a young man living in a Midwestern US town, as he tries one mundane job after another, including monitoring a machine at a plastics factory, working as a clean-up person at a fast-food restaurant, cleaning motels, and becoming a telephone solicitor.

Inspiration

The film was directly inspired by the 1987 magazine "American Job" created by Randy Russell, which was a collection of job stories from low-wage workers around the United States.

Synopsis

''American Job'' is a narrative film about Randy Scott (Randy Russell), a youth caught in the dismal confusion of living and working in the world of minimum wage. The film follows Randy through a number of low-paying, menial jobs including fast food dishwasher, custodian, telemarketer, and factory worker. It highlights the sheer boredom of minimum wage work and is a slightly comical and occasionally depressing look at what life is like in the US minimum wage arena.

Production

''American Job'' was filmed in 1995 in the midwestern United States for $14,000 (USD). It was director Chris Smith's first film.

Reception

In 1996, the film was part of a roving national exhibition as part of the Fuel Tour. It screened in 1996 at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

as part of the museum's Cineprobe series, and was also screened at the 1996

SXSW Film Festival South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, T ...

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. It has received positive reviews by various media outlets. Nicolas Rapold of ''

The New York Sun ''The New York Sun'' is an American online newspaper published in Manhattan; from 2002 to 2008 it was a daily newspaper distributed in New York City. It debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of the earlier New Yor ...

'' later called it "Easily one of the decade's best indie debuts" and likened it to Mike Judge's 1999 cult workplace comedy ''

Office Space ''Office Space'' is a 1999 American black comedy film written and directed by Mike Judge. It satirizes the worklife of a typical 1990s software company, focusing on a handful of individuals weary of their jobs. It stars Ron Livingston, Jennifer ...

''. The film also garnered director Chris Smith with a 1997

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glas ...

nomination for the

Someone to Watch Award The Someone to Watch Award, sponsored by Kiehl's, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. History The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant. The award was first given at the 1994 a ...

.12th annual Spirit Awards ceremony - FULL SHOW , 1997 , Film Independent on YouTube
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References

External links

* {{Chris Smith Films directed by Chris Smith 1996 films 1996 documentary films American documentary films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films