In a World...

The film's title was inspired by the phrase used by Don LaFontaine to start many film trailers.[7] According to Bell, almost no notable film trailers have employed female voice-over talent except for Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), which used Melissa Disney.[8] Bell had been intrigued that the prototypical "omniscient" voice behind film trailers was male. This inspired her to write a story in which a female protagonist sought to overcome this prejudice,[9] resulting in her feature-length writing, directing, and producing debut.[10]

Bell wrote the screenplay with particular people in mind, hoping they would be interested in the project, explaining, "I was inspired to cast not only people who are great comedians but [...] who have a complex life [...] I knew that there was a profundity there that I wanted to tap into."[11] Bell also recruited her then boyfriend Scott Cambell as an art assistant for the film.[12]

Filming took place over 20 days in Los Angeles.[2] Bell did extensive preparation work before the film, bringing lengthy notes.[8] She deliberately filmed using shots in the style of a drama, although the film is a comedy.[13] The "nose kiss" scene was suggested by Ken Marino, and it made Bell laugh so much she told him he would need to do it twice.[2]

Locations include:

• The Scientology Celebrity Center[11][14]
• The California Club[14]
• The Millennium Biltmore Hotel lobby[14]
• KCET Studios[14]

The sound studio scenes were filmed at The Marc Graue Voice Over Studios, Burbank. Studio A, Studio 4, the hallways, reception area, kitchen and the upstairs entrance to Studio 3 are all shown.

In a World... marked Lake Bell's feature film writing, directing and producing debut.

Review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 92% based on 106 reviews. The site's consensus is, "A funny, well-written screwball satire for film buffs, In a World... proves an auspicious beginning for writer, director, and star Lake Bell."[16] Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 79/100 based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[17] This was the second highest Metacritic score for a comedy film in 2013.[18] According to polls conducted by CinemaScore, audiences gave the film a B+ rating, on a scale from A to F.[19]

A.O. Scott of The New York Times praised Bell, writing that she "plays Carol with a perfect blend of diffidence, goofiness and charm, has written and directed an insightful comedy that is much more complex and ambitious than it sometimes seems."[20]

While noting that Bell is a former contributor to the publication, The Hollywood Reporter's Todd McCarthy comments that the film is "a lively, sometimes very funny comedy" that offers an "amusing peek into a seldom-visited corner of showbiz," that is the world of Hollywood voice-over talent.[21] McCarthy describes Sam as "genial and intimidating" and Carol as a "charming, neurotic live wire" who is also "shapely and quick-witted."[21] Carol "has great delivery herself and is wonderful with accents and dialects," according to McCarthy.[21] McCarthy notes that "all the actors pop with well-defined personalities," but that Melamed "formidably dominates" the film.[21]

British critic Mark Kermode praised the film for its "sharp and very snarky" humor, said it "has just enough bite, and stays on the right side of bitter," and reserved special praise for Melamed, whose performance he called "absolutely brilliant." He also praised Bell for avoiding the smug, self-serving insider view that other Hollywood films fall foul to, and the well observed characters, and although he does not think it will be a huge hit, says he thinks it deserves to do well.[22] According to National Public Radio, "Underneath the comedy, it's a moving story about female empowerment," with Bell's character Carol serving as voice-over industry counterpart to Rocky Balboa.[4]

John Anderson of Variety notes the picture achieves its most important goal of making the voiceover industry something of interest to a broad audience.[23] He describes it as "a rollicking laffer about the cutthroat voiceover biz in Los Angeles" and "a film with too many laugh lines to be absorbed in one sitting."[23] Anderson describes Bell as a "magnetic, intelligent, blithely screwball leading lady in the Carole Lombard tradition."[23]

The film opened in three theaters on August 9 with a total gross of $70,980, making it the weekend's number one in terms of overall per-theater-average gross ($23,660).[24][25] Roadside Attractions planned to gradually expand, and roll-out the film to more theatres.[24]

In a World... won Best Screenplay at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival,[26] where it debuted on January 20.[27] Bell said she felt she had already won simply by being accepted for competition at Sundance.[2] Bell was nominated for Best First Screenplay at the 2014 Spirit Awards.[28] Bell was honored with the Breakthrough of the Year Award (shared with Joshua Oppenheimer — The Act of Killing) and was listed in the Best Actress top 10 honorees by the Dublin Film Critics' Circle.[29]

The film was recognized by the National Board of Review as one of the top 10 independent films of 2013.[30]