Yale
WORLD PREMIERE
OPENING NIGHT
DANCES WITH FILMS LA
JUNE 18th 7:30pm
Chinese Theater Hollywood
TRAILER: Starring Caitlin McGee, Kevin Dunn, Rachael Harris, Dominic Leeder, and Benjamin Mackey.
FEATURETTE: Go behind the scenes with the cast and crew.
The Story
Abandoned by her beloved father, YALE PARKER, when she was nine, MACKENZIE (MAC) MITCHELL’s adult life has been consumed with alcohol and run-ins with the law causing a deep rift with her son, RYAN, 12. When Ryan needs an emergency kidney transplant, his only chance at survival might be the last person Mac wants to ask for help — her father, who she hasn’t seen for thirty years. Their reunion is complicated when Yale reveals a jaw-dropping secret that he has eight other families that he kept hidden from her all her life…and one of them might be a match to save her son. As this odd couple set off on an epic road trip to track down her half-siblings, an unexpected bond begins to form between them, ultimately both learning that ‘genes’ run deep.
Director’s Statement
“YALE — not the college, but the title of my latest film — is a funny, and deeply personal story … and most of it really happened!
I was moved by Van Billet’s script, as all directors know, we have nothing without a great script. I loved the journey of Mac, the protagonist. She's a mother desperately searching for a rare kidney donor to save her son's life, while also dealing with unhealed wounds from her childhood. Regrettably, her only hope is to locate her father, Yale, who abandoned her 30 years ago, and shares her son’s rare blood type. As a father myself, I connected to the weight that Mac is carrying, and the devastating news of feeling completely helpless to save her child.
Yale is a philanderer, a liar, and a lousy stand-up comic. He's also a bigamist with multiple lives, and scattered children - with seemingly no remorse about any of it. One of my favorite moments is when Mac confronts Yale about abandoning her, and she begins to learn the why in all its complexity.
For me, making movies is so much more than having a vision or choosing great locations to tell the story. The humor and drama in ‘Yale' come from people behaving badly. It was important for me to play the discomfort straight and let the silences sit for the most impact. Yale and Mac are both pushed against their own shortcomings, but they soon learn that to save her son’s life, they must first heal their shared past. The challenge for me was to take two very flawed and unlikeable characters and make sure the audience roots for them.
Working with such a magnificent cast was a dream. Kevin Dunn has amazing comedic timing as Yale, and Caitlin McGee plays Mac with such humanity and humor running underneath every line.
Directing ‘Yale’ was an extraordinary journey. My mission in life is to tell impactful true stories; it’s the reason I get up each day. I believe that if we can see ourselves in these stories, it shapes how we see the world and life’s possibilities. I hope the film’s unique take on family, forgiveness, and humanity in all its messiness resonates with you as deeply as it did for me.”
- Jay Silverman, Director
About the Writer
The script for “Yale” is based on the incredible true story of writer Van Billet’s maternal grandfather, Yale Parker, a colorful strip club comedian who abandoned eight families, and his daughter, who, after 30 years, tracked him down to ask him to donate his kidney to save her son. When he first learned about his family lore as a young teen, he couldn’t believe it was true and knew he had to write about it. Having collaborated with the producers on a previous film, Van worked closely with them for over five years to bring his family’s remarkable story to the screen.
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