In Sweeney Todd, the infamous meat grinder is a very important visual symbol for the story. The director wanted it to be industrial-sized and lightweight. I thought about how I could accomplish both of those goals and landed on a water jug.

I mounted the water jug to a base with some 2x3 legs. I then crafted the meat grinder’s mouth out of corrugated plastic and stuck it into the top of the water jug. I also added a crank to the backside to make it feel more mechanical. After some metallic paint and weathering, I was able to achieve the industrial look we wanted.