Interview with Kayci Lacob - Director of ‘The Book of Jobs’

Silicon Valley is no longer the romanticized promise of innovation it once was—it's become a pressure cooker of expectations, a place where success is measured in venture capital funding, and where your neighbor's kid has probably built an app before learning to tie their shoes. Kayci Lacob sets her debut, The Book of Jobs, against this backdrop of relentless ambition; painting an unflinching portrait of a young woman trying to find her place in a world that seems to have no room for anything but the next big innovation.

Kayci Lacob spent much of her childhood and adulthood in Silicon Valley. Her journey from Stanford graduate to filmmaker wasn't a linear path. "I definitely knew this is something I wanted to do, or at least give it a good try when I was young, and see if I could make it work now, instead of having to try to come back to it later," she shares. "When COVID hit, I moved back home temporarily, and that's where things with the writing side really took off for me," she explains.

Lacob's debut film exudes frantic energy unique to a place where even the air feels charged with potential. It's a love letter to the Bay Area, but one hidden between lines of code and stock options. This isn't the Silicon Valley of idealized tech booms—it's the Silicon Valley of sleepless nights, of rejected dreams, of wondering if you're the only one who doesn't have it all figured out.

"I come from an extremely privileged community," Lacob admits, acknowledging the weight that comes with the unspoken expectations of growing up in the Bay Area. "There is this feeling that I had growing up where how frivolous to just want to go into art, start something art related, whether it was writing or movies, unless you were gonna do something really serious."

"It's tough because there's inherent privilege coming from a place where you know you're not going to be homeless out on the street because your script didn't sell, or you didn't get that acting job, or you didn't sell your manuscript. I think it leads to a little bit of guilt," she reflects, alluding to a unique sense of opportunity and obligation.

This tension between the siren call of creativity and obligation to submit to the expectations of Silicon Valley's definitions of success envelops the heart of The Book of Jobs. With her debut, Lacob attempts to answer a question: What happens when you don't fit the mold in a place that's constantly reshaping the world?

The film’s protagonist, Claudia, functions as Lacob’s on-screen surrogate, clumsily navigating the overwhelming atmosphere of the Bay Area. "A lot of the events that happen in Claudia's story are inspired by true events, and a lot of her feelings and emotions resonate with what I believe it feels like growing up there," Lacob reveals. Yet, she's not afraid to be critical towards her avatar. "I think Claudia is a mess, really. She's the chaos. She's the tornado in her own life."

At the center of this storm looms the figure of Steve Jobs, his messianic shadow feeling larger than life. The Book of Jobs uses Claudia’s comedic obsession with Steve Jobs as a means of personifying the obsession with innovation. "I personally was not super obsessed with Steve Jobs specifically," Lacob confirms. "It was more a depiction of what he represents." In her hands, Jobs becomes an embodiment of Silicon Valley's romanticized promise.

Despite the noise and excitement in its exaggerated setting, The Book of Jobs shines best in its quiet moments. The relationship between Claudia and her parents captures an honest relationship filled with unspoken tensions and all the same, tenderness. Lacob's own personal loss fills the film with a raw, palpable grief.

"My mom never saw the movie," Lacob shares. "In fact, she never saw us go into production. She passed away in June of 2023 right as things were getting going with pre-production of the movie, but I like to think that she would be proud of how she was portrayed by Judy."

Judy Greer's portrayal of Claudia's mother reflects Lacob's own relationship with her late mother. "When it came to that personal side of things, Judy was the sweetest person ever," Lacob says. "She knew about the circumstances off the bat. When we first talked, before she'd accepted the role, she wanted to learn more about my story. She had heard about my mom, and what really meant a lot to me was that she cared as an individual, not just as an actor. I didn't have the chance to tell her that much about her, because suddenly we're in production, but she cared. She really cared about how important that role was to me."

Confronting her mother's character on screen was an emotionally challenging experience for Lacob. This loss permeates the film, particularly in one scene where Claudia's mother finds that her cancer returns. "Filming that... It was like I got to process my grief through art. It was therapeutic in a way I never expected." Lacob recalls a moment during filming: "I felt my mom there with me. I hate those cheesy things people say, 'Oh, they were there,' but I did... I walked on the set that day we were rehearsing, and I felt totally fine with all the mom stuff up until that point. And then during the rehearsal, I started to really break down, and I just went downstairs for a minute, and I locked myself in an empty room, and I just talked to her for a few minutes." She continues, "We had an extra chair out that day, coincidentally near video village, and I felt like that was her chair. She was helping us stay calm for that scene."

Claudia’s father, inspired by Lacob's relationship with her dad, was an equally difficult character to bring to life. "If there's going to be a villain in this movie, it's the dad," Lacob explains, before clarifying, "But I think he comes out redeemed. I think all the characters in the end are redeemed and have qualities that shine."

Showing the film to her father was not an easy moment for Lacob. "I was terrified to show my dad the movie," she admits. "The father character isn't exactly painted in the most flattering light. But he got it. He told me, 'This is your story to tell. We weren't perfect, and that's okay.'" For Lacob, filmmaking functioned as a way to communicate in a new lens with her family, opening up new avenues of conversation and confronting the past.

"We've talked about stuff. We're both pretty future-oriented, so if there's stuff in the past, he just kind of wants to leave it there and look forward. And I struggle with that a little more, but I'm trying to learn how to do it. I think doing these things, the movie, the writing, that's how I process that, looking back, and forgiving people and whatever." The Book of Jobs exemplifies how the cinema, in all its magic, can help us accept and understand our own stories.

The Book of Jobs’ capacity for universal resonance can be found in its specificity. As Lacob puts it, "I think the more specific you are, sometimes the more universal a feeling can be, in a weird way." The film closely examines the experience of growing up in Silicon Valley and reflects it back to anyone who’s ever felt out of step with the world around them. The Book of Jobs isn’t just Lacob’s story; its themes resonate with a wider audience. It encourages us to reflect on our own lives, whether it’s our individual journeys, grief, or complicated family dynamics. 

Lacob’s latest film invites us to pause and reflect, to make peace with where we come from. Claudia’s messiness is part of what makes her compelling—just as unpredictable and human as the city she calls home—reminding us that the greatest innovation may simply be the courage to embrace who we are.