"Eighth Grade" (2018) Trivia Quiz

Answer: YouTube

Bo Burnham's first YouTube song "My Whole Family" was a joke for his friends and family that he published on the newly released platform. It achieved immediate success. "My Whole Family" features dramatic irony as a gay character expresses lament that those in his life think he is gay - "even my boyfriend thinks I'm gay". Bo later expressed regret at the prejudices reflected in his early material, such as homophobia, and makes it a key element of his 2021 special "Bo Burnham: Inside".

Answer: Motivational speaking

There is an irony to her videos, like "being yourself", in which she ineloquently encourages non-existent viewers not to perform for others' benefit. Her videos are unscripted, unedited and shot on her phone. Bo Burnham watched YouTube videos with zero or single-digit views from young people as research.

Answer: Single father

Kayla's father Mark is a consistent presence in her life, though she is extremely closed off from him. He sees some of the unhealthiness in Kayla's relationship to social media. In a key moment towards the end of the film, Kayla expresses to him that he must be disappointed that she is a loser and he gives a naturalistic reassurance of how proud he is of her.

Answer: Most Quiet

Kayla lacks friends at middle school and says that high school will be an opportunity for her to make some. It is up to viewer interpretation what mixture of excitement, fear and denial she feels. School, it seems, has never been a happy place for her.

Answer: Pool party

Kayla has a panic attack in the bathroom, but forces herself to swim and attempt socialization with the popular kids who she believes she wants to be. Soon she is overwhelmed again and sits inside on her phone, asking her dad to pick her up early. However, her crush Aiden asks her to come back outside and she sings karaoke.

Bo Burnham suffered panic attacks while onstage performing musical comedy in his twenties. A big impetus to the film was that it was his very youngest fans who most closely shared his experiences of anxiety.

Answer: Banana

The world tells Kayla that in order to be a successful young woman, she needs a man, and in order to attract a man, she needs to do things she is uncomfortable with. Though depiction of teenagers and sexuality needs to be done extremely carefully, it is a modern reality that most pre-teens are exposed to age-inappropriate descriptions and depictions of sexual activity through friends and the Internet.

Answer: School shadow program

Olivia is paired with Kayla to show her around the school. She goes above and beyond in friendliness to Kayla and invitations to a social event outside of school. Olivia tries to restrain her male friends from making Kayla uncomfortable, but is not fully successful.

Answer: Truth or Dare

Riley - the older boy - asks Kayla about her sexual activity and takes his own shirt off before daring her to do the same. Though he never touches her, his behaviors are still sexually aggressive. He ignores her obvious expressions of discomfort and pressures her by linking popularity to sexual activity. Bo Burnham said that the scene shows societal failure: though Kayla has sex education, she never learns about consent or what to do when feeling uncomfortable.

Answer: Burns it

The Kayla of sixth grade asks about Kayla's friends and relationships. She enlists her dad's help to burn the time capsule in the garden. Her low self-esteem, previously buried beneath a faux optimistic attitude, comes to the fore.

Answer: Chicken nuggets

Gabe's eccentric mannerisms are not off-putting to Kayla, who finds him interesting. He wants the dinner to go according to his design. For instance, he "accidentally" leaves an archery certificate on the dining room table so he can tell her about it, while claiming it is stupid.

Their conversation switches from whether Kayla believes in God to imitating lightsabers with silverware, with neither seeming to recognize any tonal shift. They have a nice time free from the judgement or pressure of peers or expectations about how they should act.