Christine Whelan FEO, March 28, 2024, VOL. 5 ISSUE 15
Who’s Yer Father? is a filmmaker’s love letter to the Maritimes.
Upon opening in Charlottetown, PEI in November, this fast-paced, dark comedy with an Eastern Canadian twist made the No. 1 film at the box office, knocking Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour out of the top spot.
Recently, Who’s Yer Father? has received three Canadian Screen Awards Nominations. Susan Kent and Chris Locke are both nominated for Performance in Leading Role, Comedy, and Fatema “Fate” Hoque is nominated for Best Makeup.
And on March 25, Monday Night at the Movies brought this award-winning film to Fort Erie, complete with a Q&A screening.
Monday Night at the Movies, located in the Meridian Centre of the Arts at the Greater Fort Erie Secondary School, showcases the best Canadian and International films from the TIFF Film Circuit Library, for residents and visitors to the Niagara Region, in Fort Erie.
Writer/director of the film, Jeremy Larter came to Fort Erie, along with co-producer Geoff Read, to interact with Fort Erie residents in the Q&A screening.
It was Jeremy’s first visit to Fort Erie. Born and raised a Prince Edward Islander, now living in Prince Edward County, Larter stated, “I’ve been to Niagara Falls, but not as far as Fort Erie.”
After growing up in PEI, the writer/director lived in Toronto for several years. “When I met my wife, whose family lived in Prince Edward County, we moved to Prince Edward County.”
This is Larter’s second feature-length film.
About the Film, From It’s Maker
Jeremy shared two influences that tie into the making of the film — his background and a fascination of his.
“Much of it is based on my experience growing up in PEI. I worked as a lobster fisherman one summer.” The wharf where he worked, the golf course where he golfed and the country store where his mother worked when he was growing up are all in the film.
“All those experiences are set into the film in different ways, through different characters.”
He and one of the co-producers have been friends for 30 years. “I’ve known Geoff since I was 13 years old. We’ve worked on many projects together.”
When asked about the title, Larter clarified, “Who’s Yer Father? is a common expression in PEI referring to, if you meet someone for the first time and you’re trying to make a connection. So, first, you may know someone’s father. If not their father, then their cousin or sister.” Adding lightly, “The degrees of separation are small in PEI.”
Sharing his second influence, “Private investigation is something I’ve always been interested in, been fascinated in,” to the point of almost taking a course to become an investigator.
“The film is very funny but it’s also very sweet.” He says it has a great love story at the heart of it.
Remarking on the setting of the film, Jeremy has noticed that many people have connections to the East Coast. “We’ve been traveling to different places around Canada to be a part of these Q & A screenings. It’s a lot of fun to see people react, with the comedy especially. Having that laughter together is really fun to be a part of.”
The writer/director says Prince Edward Island supports the film. “It’s one of the few that was shot completely on PEI, set in PEI.”
The movie is streaming now on Paramount + and Amazon Prime. To find other ways to access the film, search Who’s Yer Father? on Facebook.
Photo provided by Jeremy Larter
