WE'RE ALL GOING TO THE WORLD'S FAIR / Feature Film / Sundance 2021

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Director and screenwriter: Jane Schoenbrun

Producers: Sarah Winshall and Carlos Zozaya

Casting director/co-producer: Abby Harri

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Late on a cold night somewhere in the U.S., teenage Casey sits alone in her attic bedroom, scrolling the internet under the glow-in-the-dark stars and black-light posters that blanket the ceiling. She has finally decided to take the World’s Fair Challenge, an online role-playing horror game, and embrace the uncertainty it promises. After the initiation, she documents the changes that may or may not be happening to her, adding her experiences to the shuffle of online clips available for the world to see. As she begins to lose herself between dream and reality, a mysterious figure reaches out, claiming to see something special in her uploads.

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This debut feature from writer-director Jane Schoenbrun is exactly the type of striking, singular work the NEXT section was created to showcase. Schoenbrun dives into deep emotional terrain, exploring themes of identity and isolation while skillfully building in online wormholes and creepypasta. This haunting contemporary work thrives as the audience stares into the eyes of lead actress Anna Cobb, who provides a captivating performance. (Sundance Film Festival)

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CRITICAL PRAISE for WE’RE ALL GOING TO THE WORLD’S FAIR

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“One the 15 best movies at Sundance. A tender and intimate teenage journey... We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is a warm hand for those still trying to figure themselves out.” -Jourdain Searles, The Hollywood Reporter

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“The highlight of Sundance... a transfixing portrait of creepypasta obsession” -AA Dowd, The AV Club

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“Critics Pick. An auspicious, wildly smart narrative feature debut... You don't need to be an internet geek to vibe to 'World's Fair,' you just need to be human." -Kate Erbland, Indiewire

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"A lot of porous ambiguity [is placed] on the actors' shoulders, and Cobb carries it with persuasive, unaffected assurance, maintaining a consistent sense of Casey's girlish uncertainty even as she tries on various other poses and identities for size . . . JLB [is] eventually revealed, in a jarring shift from the film's otherwise wholly child-oriented point of view, to be a middle-aged man (Canadian horror stalwart Michael J. Rogers, cleverly cast)." -Guy Lodge, Variety

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“Jane Schoenbrun is redefining trans horror. A nuanced exploration of how the web can both comfort and manipulate” -Juan Barquin, Bitch Media

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“A signal flare sent back in time from the most exciting corners of the medium’s future.” -David Lynch, Kens5

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“The first horror film made by, and for, those raised on the internet... it's hard to think of a better movie about today’s extremely online culture.”- Brett Arnold, Yahoo! Entertainment