Rhymefest’s In My Father’s Housedocumentary debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival yesterday (April 16) at the SVA Theater in downtown, New York City.
A diverse crowd gathered to view Rhymefest’s tale of reconnecting with his estranged father, who suffers from alcoholism.
After years of pondering why he wasn’t able to achieve similar success as his Chicago Hip Hop counterparts, Rhymefest set out on a journey to find the missing piece in his life.
He purchases the house that he grew up in as a child, but still longs for the father that abandoned him during his youth. The movie chronicles Rhymefest’s year-long quest to help his father, Brian Tillman, get “clean” and acclimate into society once again.
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“I just wish you was there more when I was growing up,” Rhymefest says to his father at one point during the film.
“I wish I was there more, too,” his father responds.
Rhymefest finds out that his father didn’t have a healthy relationship with his own father. Tillman tells his son that he was abused, and ultimately didn’t want Rhymefest to have to endure a similar childhood.
“I was that kid gang banging on the corner,” Rhymefest says. “I felt like a failure because I didn’t have a father.”
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After Rhymefest buys his father an apartment – his father’s first home off the streets in 25 years – he finds out that his dad has relapsed, after promising he would no longer drink.
A defeated Tillman asks his son,“I’ve been doing this for so long, how can you change me now?”
Rhymefest’s immediate family structure isn’t without flaw. As he’s developing a newfound relationship with his father, Rhymefest questions whether or not one of his kids is actually his. A blood test later determines that he is the father and he is relieved.
Rhymefest, his wife and father received a standing ovation for sharing their story in In My Father’s House.
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The film is set to be shown again today (April 17) at the Bow Tie Cinemas in Chelsea, New York and on Sunday (April 19) at the Regal Cinemas in Battery Park.
Check out the trailer below:
