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William Grefé

William Grefé

Director, writer, producer and actor, also cinematographer · Born May 17, 1930 (96) · Miami, Florida, USA

William Grefé (born 1930) is an American writer and director of films, best known for his work in the exploitation field. For most of his career, he has worked in Florida. He also worked for several years with Ivan Tors. In 2009 a documentary was released about his work called From the Swamp: The Films of William Grefe. In 2020 a four-disc Blu-ray collection He Came from the Swamp: The William Grefé Collection will be released by Arrow Video.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 17, 1930 (96)
From
Miami, Florida, USA
Works as
Director, writer, producer and actor, also cinematographer
Titles
12 on MovieCove · 28 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Up 9% in 30 days

What are William Grefé's films like?

Across their 10 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Morality.

Genres

Horror3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 10th percentile
: browse their Horror movies
Action2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 14th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 9th percentile
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Survival
26%
Morality
21%
Self
19%
Power
12%
Society
12%
Ideas
8%
Bonds
2%
Violence3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRevenge2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themeGreed2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 10 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 1 · Dark 4

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 4 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 6 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 4 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 1

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 1

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 8 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
9
Absurd
5
Dread
4
Bittersweet
2
Contemplative
2
Other
6

How their films linger

Fun6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet1
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous6

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch William Grefé's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 9 of their 12 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (8).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for William Grefé's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

28 credits, 12 with a MovieCove page; 5 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Naked World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Actor

  • Underwood (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    as Al

  • Thumbs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Director · Writer

  • Cool as Hell 2(2019)

    as Dad

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Consider Us Even (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Director

  • Bikini Swamp Girl Massacre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    as Uncle Bill

  • Biohazard: The Alien Force (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    as Mr. Babb

  • Dark Universe(1993)

    as Old Tom Hanning

    Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films

  • Just A Chance (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Director

  • Masterblaster (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)

    Executive Producer

  • Cease Fire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Producer

  • Bacardi and Coke Bonanza ‘81 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)

    Director

  • Whiskey Mountain(1977)

    Director · Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Mako: The Jaws of Death(1976)

    Director · Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 8th percentile of all films

  • Impulse(1974)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • The Godmothers(1973)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Stanley (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • I Eat Your Skin(1971)

    Second Unit Director

    Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films

  • The Psychedelic Priest(2001)

    Director · Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films

  • The Naked Zoo(1970)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 8th percentile of all films

  • The Hooked Generation(1968)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films

  • The Wild Rebels (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    Director · Writer

  • Death Curse of Tartu(1966)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films

  • Sting of Death(1966)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films

  • The Devil's Sisters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Director · Screenplay

  • Racing Fever (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • The Checkered Flag (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Director · Writer

  • Jack-O 2: Blood Moon Rising (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer

Career shape

A full career of 28 titles, 27 of them dated from 1963 to 2020.

Highest rated

Impulse (1974)

Midcredits 21st

Most popular right now

Mako: The Jaws of Death (1976)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting6 of 28: 6 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting18 of 28: 6 only directing, 12 with another role · typical Midcredits score10thWriting11 of 28: 0 only writing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score8thProducing9 of 28: 3 only producing, 6 with another roleCinematography1 of 28: 0 only cinematography, 1 with another roleOther crew1 of 28: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

28 titles, 12 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 11 of them.

By decade

1960s7 · crew1970s8 · crew1980s3 · crew1990s3 · 2 acting · 1 crew2010s5 · 3 acting · 2 crew2020s1 · acting

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do William Grefé's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 10th percentile, the median of all 12; across their 10 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 17th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

17thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Approval · how many liked their films

11thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Reach · how many have seen their films

40thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Midcredits score across 12 titles, by percentile

  • Below 25th12

Shape of the crowd

8 of their 12 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Panned2
  • Divisive2
  • Mixed8

Most divisive · actor

Cool as Hell 2 (2019)

99th percentile spread · 61% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director

Impulse (1974)

Midcredits 21st · 29% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 45/100 and the pacing 25/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does William Grefé work with?

People who share at least 2 of William Grefé's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Julio C. Chávez shares the most, 8.

Writers

Actors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers