Jane Schoenbrun returned to Fantasia International Film Festival with Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, a follow-up to I Saw The TV Glow that mixes slasher conventions with surreal visual flourishes and a distinctly queer perspective. The film’s Canadian premiere in Montreal was accompanied by a panel featuring Schoenbrun, lead Hannah Einbinder, Avalon Fast, Louise Weard, and Alice Maio Mackay.
Cast, tone and approach
Hannah Einbinder plays Kris, an awkward queer indie filmmaker sent to a snowbound camp to revive the fictional, controversial Camp Miasma franchise. Gillian Anderson appears as Billy Presley, the reclusive star of the original film, while Jack Haven portrays the slasher figure Little Death. Schoenbrun has said they wanted this film to feel more communal and lighter in tone than their previous feature, aiming for a hang-out vibe even amid horror set pieces.
Festival conversation and production notes
- At Fantasia, the group discussed the importance of community filmmaking and hiring practices that include transgender artists on set.
- Avalon Fast confirmed that footage is being shot for a behind-the-scenes documentary about making Camp Miasma.
- Cinematographer Eric Yue and Schoenbrun leaned into classic slasher imagery—dramatic shadows, practical blood effects—while also crafting surreal landscapes to heighten the film’s emotional currents.
Notable sequences and influences
The film opens with a sequence of artifacts that sketch the lore of the fictional franchise, and includes an extended killing sequence reportedly shot in one take and set to Counting Crows’ “A Long December.” Schoenbrun cited influences like The X-Files and Twin Peaks, and the film wears homages to slasher titles such as Sleepaway Camp and Friday the 13th, alongside references to Videodrome.
The Fantasia panel also explored the pressures placed on trans and queer filmmakers about what stories they should tell, and how trans artists are reclaiming production roles. Schoenbrun emphasized making work that feels familiar and lived-in while avoiding the expectation that every project must be explicitly about transness.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is slated to open in theaters on August 7th.
Source: Horror Press — Fantasia 2026: ‘Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma’ Is Jane Schoenbrun’s Best Yet