As the World Descends into Chaos, Rich People Have a Very Pressing Concern: Where Can They Go on Vacation Now?

As the child of teachers, my summer vacations were always a months-long affair. We’d pile into my parents’ vintage VW bus and ramble around the country; our biggest concern was a breakdown in a region free of Volkswagen-savvy mechanics. But in these troubled times, those used to wandering the world—especially those who gravitate to the luxury travel circuit—are faced with far more serious worries around personal safety and political disruption, Hannah Seligson reports. Like my family, many of those travelers are spending the summer on a jaunt through the US instead of heading to less predictable destinations overseas. I guess my clan’s meanders in the van were just ahead of its time.

Also ahead of his time is Kane Parsons, the much-buzzed-about director of hotly anticipated A24 release Backrooms. The 20-year-old’s first feature film, which is rooted in internet lore Parsons consumed as a middle-schooler, began as a DIY project the then-teen uploaded to YouTube. In advance of the movie’s release, Parsons speaks with Olivia Tauber about his process, his future plans, and what it’s like to be the youngest director in A24’s history. Let’s just say that unlike the rest of us, a vacation is not in his near future.