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92NY’s Goldman Center for Children and Family provides an exceptional array of programs designed to support children at every stage of their development.
Nov 18, 2025
Step into an utterly compelling story of identity and connection at our preview of Rental Family, starring Oscar-winner Brendan Fraser in his first leading role since The Whale. Set against the neon-lit streets of Tokyo, Fraser plays Phillip Vandarpleug, an American actor adrift until he lands an extraordinary gig: working for a “rental family” agency that employs stand-in relatives to step into strangers’ lives.
The film follows Phillip as he plays roles — husband, father, friend — to clients wrestling with loneliness, obligation, and the theater of social expectation. As performances deepen into genuine relationships, the boundary between artifice and authenticity begins to dissolve.
After the screening, join us for a live onstage conversation between Brendan Fraser and Happy Sad Confused’s Josh Horowitz. They’ll peel back the curtain on everything from Fraser’s decision to learn Japanese for the role (“I’m an excellent mimic,” he admitted during the TIFF premiere), to the film’s inspirations, cultural themes, the moral paradoxes of surrogate intimacy, and director Hikari’s vision for negotiating cross-cultural storytelling.
Don’t miss the chance to see Rental Family before its national release, and to hear from Fraser himself on what it means to play family, to belong, and to perform the spaces between. This event will be a live taping of the Happy Sad Confused podcast.
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