A few weeks ago, many of us within the Southern California haunt community noticed a strange Instagram account, WhatWeLearnedHere, began following us. Honestly, most of us didn’t pay much attention at first.

“Oh, cool,” we thought collectively. “Another haunt to check out this season!”

But then things got a little strange. The account began to post these odd things. First, it was a video, black and white, of what looked like someone exploring a basement with a flash light. And then one with strange, disembodied hands. And then perhaps looking out a window with a plant on the windowsill? Each video is dark, hard to make out, and slightly unsettling.

Not to mention the photos. All black and white, as well. Of someone wearing a ski mask. Or a overturned cup. A dark and lonely road. All with quotes about fear attached to them.

But those photos didn’t just turn up on their Instagram page. They also were sent directly TO us, in our direct messages. Sometimes just a photo. Sometimes with a message.

And that’s when we all began talking about it.

“Who is this? What are they doing? What are they about?” Those seemed to be the most common questions asked. But no answers were forthcoming, and we remained, as most haunts like us, in the dark.

I reached out to them, via their Instagram, to try to find out a little more information. Thankfully, they were open to an interview, where I was able to pry a little more information out of them. But not much.

In fact, I still don’t even know who I am speaking to. The creative team behind “Fear is What We Learned Here” is a mystery to me. When we initially were setting up the interview, they offered to meet me, in-person, at a cafe in Los Angeles. Alas, due to my hectic schedule, I had to decline, and conduct the interview over email.

I’m kicking myself over that now.

But, perhaps it’s better that they remain shrouded in mystery for the time being. If nothing else, it will just add to the enigma of the experience itself.

I had so many questions, though, and I tried my best to get them all answered. Who are they? What are they doing? Are you really just doing 20 performances?! SO MANY QUESTIONS!

I initially wanted to write more about them, but because so little is known, it’s probably just best to present the interview in its question and answer format.

JEFF: In your own words, what is “Fear Is What We Learned Here” all about?

FIWWLH: As we state on our Instagram, we are looking to explore deep fears that all human beings face in their lifetime. Without giving too much away, we are more interested in looking at how people are affected by things like the fear of loneliness rather than specific phobias or fear triggers. The entire experience is presented in the context of a dream and we ultimately want to provide an intense psychological experience within a cohesive narrative, rather than a disjointed collection of jump scares or torture scenarios.

JEFF: What inspired the team to create “Fear Is What We Learned Here”?

FIWWLH: Our inspiration comes from many places. We have gone through many immersive theater productions and haunts including Alone, Blackout, Sleep No More, and Then She Fell, so certainly we have taken cues here and there from that world. As strange as it may sound though, our most prominent sources of inspiration for this piece were FromSoftware’s Dark Souls (EDITOR’S NOTE: They are referring to the video game, Dark Souls), and a two volume album series entitled “Musick to Play in the Dark” by Coil.

We should also note that music in general is very important to us, and although we have seen it expertly integrated in other immersive productions, we wanted to take it one step further. The entire experience is very much choreographed to music and sound, and we hope it elevates and defines the dream much like a great score can elevate and define a film.

JEFF: By remaining so mysterious, I assume all of this is to allow you to amp up the mystery surrounding the event, so people have no idea what to expect?

FIWWLH: Certainly. We have found that the lead up to shows in this genre can be a powerful and effective part of the experience and so we wanted to build and put our own unique twist on that. We really want the Instagram, the email correspondence, and the website to be a companion piece to the performance itself. Though we want audience members to remain in the dark (pun intended) as to actual content contained in the experience, the information we provide is not random and actually very closely resembles the structure of the performance. We challenge our audience members to draw the parallels after they have experienced it for themselves.

JEFF: What do you expect to learn, as your name implies, from the people who participate? And on the flip side, what should they expect to learn from you?

FIWWLH: We are already learning from our audience members and it has been fascinating to see how different people take the exact same information. Some have eagerly embraced it, others have been utterly confused by it. Overall though, we have been tremendously encouraged by the response and we look forward to learning more about our audience throughout the weeks leading up to the experience.

As for what audience members should learn from us, it may be overly ambitious but it is our sincere hope that people walk out inspired to live their lives differently, more passionately, and more authentically. After all “it is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.”

JEFF: If you had to compare to other haunts, what would you compare this to? If anything at all? Is ‘haunt’ even the right word to use here?

FIWWLH: We wouldn’t really compare this to other haunts directly. We certainly (and mostly out of necessity) take elements from haunts that have come before us (going through alone, signing a waiver, safety word, etc.) but we really want to distance ourselves from the title “haunt.” Sure, there are elements of darkness and horror throughout the experience, but again we want the darkness to be an extension of general insecurities or fears of humankind. Although it’s not an exact parallel, think of how the Babadook is used and what it represents in the context of a “horror film.”

For the most part, we are not showing the audience literal manifestations of these fears, just theatrical interpretations of them. Screenshot Productions is just starting. We are very excited to bring this experience to a select few this season, but we also have our eyes on the future. We are certainly open to doing other horror-related shows, (and are considering making an annual horror experience each October) but we also have a pretty large-scale production in the works that more closely resembles something like Then She Fell, as opposed to anything in the haunt world.

JEFF: Have you, collectively, ran or been a part of a haunt experience before?

FIWWLH: Yes. Both of us were involved with Blackout Haunted House. Both acting and stage managing. We deeply respect Josh Randall, Kristjan Thor, and the entire team there. We just wanted to do our own thing with “Fear Is What We Learned Here.”

JEFF: When you say 20 performances, does that mean only 20 people will be able to partake in it?

FIWWLH: That is correct…for now.

And that, my friends, is all they wrote.

Thankfully, through the course of our correspondence, I was lucky enough to secure one of the 20 spots they will have available this October. I remain grateful to the team behind “Fear Is What We Learned Here” for that. I anxiously await the next step in the experience, and what comes next for everyone.

While details about the event overall, and how to participate, have been few, they assured me that they would be releasing more information about the experience in the near future.

For now, I am content to sit back, and wait to see what fear is going to teach me.

For more information on “Fear Is What We Learned Here,” be sure to check out their website at www.whatwelearnedhere.com and follow their Instagram page.