TV: How Did Theatre Shape a Young Bo Burnham? The EIGHTH GRADE Creator Explains!

Eighth Grade, the first feature film from writer and director Bo Burnham, is one of the most talked about movies of the summer. With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 98% (as of August 9), the comedy-drama follows an eighth-grader (Elsie Fisher) who struggles to finish her last week of classes before embarking for high school.

As the film takes the world by storm, we're catching up with Burnham to chat about where his inspiration for the movie came from, why he considers himself 'a comedian for 13-year-old girls', and how his love for the arts began with theatre in his own middle school years.

Burnham began his performance career as a YouTuber in March 2006, and his videos have been viewed over 214 million times as of December 2017. Burnham signed a four-year record deal with Comedy Central Records and released his debut EP, Bo Fo Sho, in 2008. His first full-length album, Bo Burnham, was released the following year. In 2010, Burnham's second album was released, and Words Words Words, his first live comedy special, aired on Comedy Central. His third album and second comedy special, what., was released in 2013 on his Youtube channel and Netflix. Burnham finished first overall in voting in 2011's Comedy Central Stand-up Showdown. His third stand-up comedy special, Make Happy, was released exclusively on Netflix on June 3, 2016.