New movie has local ties to BSHS faculty

“Waffle Street” is the film adaptation of a man’s journey to find a new passion after being laid off during the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Unbeknownst to many students, the man behind the story, the memoir, and the movie, has ties to our very own Big Spring High School. James Adams, the author, producer, and real life Adams from the film is a relative of English teacher, Lisa Yinger.  According to an article in the Patriot News, before he was laid off, Adams said his life was “Five star everything.” In the same article , Adams talks about what went wrong with his job “Too many people chasing assets, layer upon layer of debt” was his response. In an interview with PawPrint, Adams says the idea of a movie was brought up “Not long after it (the book) was printed in August 2010.”

“Waffle Street” follows Jimmy Adams’ fall to the bottom of the employment chain, when he is fired from his job as a hedge fund bond trader. In the midst of his search for employment, he stumbles upon a 24-hour diner and plants himself there. Adams’ new co worker, and ex-con named Edward preaches the hard truth about life, cooking, and finance. After being laid off, Adams says he was surprised. “My firm had already been through two prior waves of layoffs, and given that I was working on a rather high-profile project, I thought I would probably be spared if another round materialized.” He still keeps in contact with the real life Edward and said, “We talk every few weeks.  I saw him at two screenings we held in North Carolina last year.”

In an exclusive, one-night only screening on Saturday the general public will be able to view “Waffle Street” at the Carlisle Theatre before its digital release this spring. The film will begin at 7:30, and tickets can be purchased online at the Carlisle Theatre’s website. After the screening, James Adams himself will do a Q&A session, and book signing.

Fellow teachers at Big Spring are very delighted to hear about the movie and the book. Amanda Frankford, a science teacher at the high school, says “I am very excited and I think it’s really cool.” Frankford plans on seeing the movie via its digital release later this spring, after she has the opportunity to read the book.  Lauren Hetrick, a history teacher at the high school, is also very excited about the movie. “I would like to see the movie, and the book is on my to-read list; it’s just a matter of time.”

Yinger herself is ecstatic about the movie. “It’s so much fun. I can’t wait to see the movie. This is all so exciting.” She said, ” I am excited to see some of the changes in the movie, and see certain characters that I know, and to see how his relatives in the movie are portrayed.” Yinger also told PawPrint that the movie screening is going to be somewhat of a family party, because so many relatives of Adams in the area are coming to see it. Yinger herself will be attending with a few friends who formerly taught at Big Spring. Yinger has read the book, so there might not be too many surprises.   “Yes, I read it when it first came out, and I actually gave it to Mr. Ginter to read. He told me after he read the book, he actually stopped at a Waffle House to see what it was like in there.”

There will be a digital release of the film in the spring.