Industry – Induction

By: Jennifer Vintzileos

We open to Pierpoint & Co. going through a rigorous recruitment process. With several interviews being conducted, we meet key players Harper (Myha’la Herrold), Yasmin (Marisa Abela), Robert (Harry Lawtey), Gus (David Jonsson) and Hari (Nabhaan Rizwan). As each of them are selected to join the program at Pierpoint, they quickly learn from Senior Associates Eric Tao (Ken Leung) and Sara Dhadwal (Priyanga Burford) that their work over the next six months will determine who stays and who gets cut. Time to get to work.

The focus starts with Harper, a college graduate from Binghamton University who wants to carve her own way in the financial world but appears to be hiding something from her prospective employer. As Pierpoint requests a copy of her college transcript, Harper seems to stall and stammer her way through promising them just that. We later learn that her friend with questionable benefits Todd (Branden Cook) helps her to secure a copy of said transcript by way of forgery. Why Harper must stoop to this level is still yet to be determined, but she is tenacious and go-getting, especially when her superior Daria (Freya Mavor) invites her to a dinner with an important client.

Meanwhile, we also meet people-pleaser Yasmin who makes sure to get everyone’s coffee and lunch orders correct and Robert the consummate party-boy that seems to be attracted to Yasmin while continuing to live life on the edge. There is also Gus is the hopeful prospect trying to maintain some semblance of balance between work and fun and Hari the workaholic/overachiever with a bit of a Red Bull/pill-popping addiction.

As everyone settles into their roles at Pierpoint, it is clear the pressure to be the best takes a toll on each recruit. Hari starts practically living at the office with his Pellegrino and Red Bull clinking in his bag as he comes in, sleeping in the bathroom in short spurts to make sure he gets not only the pitchbook completed for the company but his co-worker’s projects as well. Yasmin continues to try and impress her coworkers by delivering on sustenance, carefully sorting through every order as though imperfection is unacceptable. Robert takes to partying it up in the clubs at night, taking drugs and never sleeping. His roommate Gus still tries to maintain that balance, even if it comes off as a bit of pretentiousness at times. And Harper, who seems to have the most success at the moment, attempts to woo the client Nicole Craig (Sarah Parish) and succeeds—until she realizes Nicole is only trying to make the moves on her in the process.

After her semi-awkward night with Nicole, we watch as Harper returns to the company apartments and settles in until she sees Hari has been sent home for the night from his advisor at Pierpoint and managed to drink himself into exhaustion. Making sure that he is safe, Harper leads Hari into her apartment where they sit and share their own fears and insecurities about their journey at Pierpoint. They both fall asleep and when Harper awakes, Hari is gone and back to the office and his pill-popping ways to keep proving himself.

During another long day at the office, Hari is now tasked to finished up the pitchbook for a huge meeting. When we see everyone else at home relaxing or partying at a local club, he is finishing up the huge project for their 6:00 am deadline. Unfortunately, we also see that Hari makes a mistake in font type on one page, something that he later realizes after the book has gone to the printers and he tries to fix his faux-pas. As he sits in one of the bathroom stalls after the phone call does not go his way, Hari loses consciousness and collapses. When Robert finds him in the stall it is too late. After everyone sees him wheeled out in a body bag, Sara announces to the recruits that Hari is dead.

That morning Harper received her transcripts from her friend Todd and was about to upload them to the company, yet she hesitates. Instead, Harper goes to work. After learning of the news of Hari’s death she makes the decision to listen to Eric on calling back Nicole. Blowing past their awkward car encounter, Harper pushes Nicole to decide on the option they had discussed and succeeds in her first big sale. Eric reminds her to remember this feeling and finally sees what he had hoped for in Harper. Instead of going home to the company quarters, Harper decides to check into a hotel suite and celebrate her success with a room service burger overlooking the city of London. She finally uploads her fake transcript to Pierpoint—ready to take on her future.