Author André Aciman: 'I wrote about gay love, not realising I was taking on the taboo'

[@kevbee1947]

What an engaging man! Didn’t want the interview to end. So nice to hear an intelligent exchange of ideas.

[@jackiew6402]

I saw the movie just because I had watched the Oscars. I watched it again, on the same night, because I wasn't quite sure what I'd seen. I read the book because I no longer had any doubt that I'd just seen something I'd take with me forever. Four years later...still thinking about the book.....the *book*.....

[@IvoYordanovBaritone]

Yes!

[@suesi-snshn431]

He's such an genius I would love to have him as a professor, he's so wise and he's still so underated

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@mkaylagomez1959]

@@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr if you’ve read CMBYN you’d realise that it’s incredibly insular following the events within Elio’s family. We know Elio’s family accepts it but it’s still not outright spoken about. And even when spoken about by his father is still incredibly vague. It’s still a secret. They’re still sneaking around. They didn’t encounter homophobia because they were not open about their relations.

[@allitupsar2065]

you didnt get it. its not about being gay, its about love. and then, should he not write because he is not black? or his characters? there was not a word about lesbians, should I now ignore the whole story? please, open your mind, and, moreover: open your heart

[@xelakram]

This gentleman is fascinating! A wonderful interview! Thank you so much.

[@bramsalbarote2406]

he speaks as he writes. what a gem in the world of literature.

[@jayashree8879]

"Is it love if there is no obsession" -Andre aciman

[@denisa2004]

i'm truly disappointed in people nowadays, i listened to this interview and i love it, it touched my heart, this man touched my heart, his words and way of thinking, he is truly a good person. and i knew that people will find him naive, because he sees the good in people and believes in a world that can be and do better. its such a disappointment to see the way you people think and act and take people words. i started crying reading your comments and other comments that I've read along the internet about mister Andre and his book. how dare you people call him a pedophile, how dare you? he is surely not one. and be serious right now, there have been so many cases of minors being with adults, what does even make a person an adult? if we take it by law, a person over 18 is an adult, but do we even ask ourselves, are they truly and mentally an adult? a 16 years old or 17 or etc can be more of an adult then a 20-25 years old. I've had a family friend she was 33 i think, she had a kid, and she acted like a kid, she had only 4 classes of education, she didn't even go to middle school, you cannot call that women mentally an adult, yes by law she is, but mentally she is not, and i am not saying this just because she didn't had a good education, i am saying this because i stayed with her and had a lot of conversations and she wasn't mentally grown. i dont want to say bad words about anyone right now, but you are the ones that are shallow and dont have a truly understanding of the world, you arent spiritually mature enough, or at all. life is beautiful, people are beautiful, and people do make mistakes, stop talking trash about obama, he only wanted good for this planet/world, he loved you and us. i am not an american citizen, i am from europe, but i know he only wanted good for his country. you people only see the bad in the others and criticize any little mistake, but Mister Andre on the other hand wants to see the good in people and has a better understanding of the world then most of us. please have more empathy and love is not disgusting, even if the person is 17 and the other one is 24 . if there is communication and understanding and the older person is not taking advantage of the the other person, then there is nothing wrong. love is so beautiful and we shouldn't criticize others for their love, because we wouldn't want to be criticize. be kind and be accepting, because we want to be accepted for who we are so we should accept others too. and dont you dare toy with my words and trying to make arguments like 'ohh so we should accept all, so pedophiles and zoophiles and etc are okay too? because its love?' because ive seen people try and twist others people words. i never said that, and the true meaning of pedophilia is a person who is sexually attracted to children. a 17 years old is a teenager, not a child, and yes if a 40 years old or a even a 30 years old would want to be with a teenager, yes that would be pedophilia, and it isnt okay, because there are 2 different worlds, of a 30-40 and 16-17 years old. but once again this kind of things cant be explained and understood with only a few words, everything is different. now once again BE KIND and stop being ignorant people, and have a change of heart and be open to new perspectives and understandings

[@sirmigz]

Thanks for writing this indeed Kindness is a language that the deaf can hear and the blind can see. ❤️

[@denisa2004]

@@sirmigz thank you for the kind replay❤

[@moma-b]

I understand your rage so much. Yet, please be aware of that people are always the essence of their life experience. Some people have more than others. Also the understanding of the world and human behavior - some people understand it better than others. Sure there are malicious people (just seeing the result of their behavior, not the cause) and there are kind people too, and yes, education means a lot, I agree with that. Still, all this doesn't mean people are bad. They are just ignorant. Imo the responsibility of those who have better understanding is to share their knowledge and educate the others so they can grow. And you have to find the voice to do that and that voice is not the voice of rage or voice of demand but the voice of kindness. Exactly the way how André talks. Show a good example and learn the art of persuasion and you can better the world. :)

[@denisa2004]

@@moma-b i agree with what you said. and i now realise that i did talk with a lot of anger and maybe demand. i was just really upset and angry at those people. i don't judge them or think they are bad people. i just let myself get too angry over some silly comments. but i do agree and understand what you are saying. i should control my anger a lot more. this is actually my first comment on youtube (in which i'm telling my opinion and etc). oh well, thank you for the replay and nice words.

[@denisa2004]

@@moma-b and i do talk big words for my age. i have myself so much more to learn. i just wrote what i wrote on the spur of the moment, without analysing the way i am talking and addressing this matter. however, thank you for the actually really good advice. i am in a constant of discovering and learning things about life and myself.

[@ZeeDellissimo]

Such an intelligent and beautiful man with bright mind

[@sirmigz]

So much admiration and respect for this man. I saw the movie CMBYN and was able read the books including Find Me. Thanks for sharing your talent and telling the world that love is all we want. At the end of the day all we ever want is to feel that we are special, that we are admired and that we are loved. ❤️

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@sirmigz]

@@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr Wow I should check that out

[@DavidThomas-fz1qi]

Thanks Channel 4 for this interview - I've read of speaking events across American by Mr Aciman so this was lovely getting to hear him for myself. :-)

[@reinadumalisile3812]

04:07 I was 14 when I left, so "I REMEMBER EVERYTHING" ..... I died y'all , I died

[@Sentientmatter8]

He celebrated Christmas like Elio. I wonder if Elio's move to be more open and proprietary about his Jewishness despite having multiple other identities he could exist in while not standing out was Acimans way of confronting his own complicated feelings towards this identity.

[@RobertYoung-rl5sh]

What an inspiring man! I wish I could have a chat with him.

[@chronicleinstone]

Wonderful interview with a great thinker.

[@chanyeol5598]

One of the best writers and just man that has ever existed in this century.

[@McGothlette]

I love everything André Aciman says. Thank you!

[@IvoYordanovBaritone]

Intelligent and witty and charming. And a good person. WOW

[@yalgiz100]

Thanks a lot for interview, I love André Aciman, s book and himself as a great great hunman

[@Achhantei]

Such an inspiration!! His story of not belonging, of being seen as a foreigner in the country of your birth - resonates so much with me! I am an Indian who is half bengali and half mizo and I look more south east asian than "Indian" because of my mizo mother and yet to my mother's side of the family and people from my hometown, I look too much like an outsider, a 'vai'. To the rest of India, I look either Nepali or somewhere from south east asia.

[@bprabhu559]

I'm so sorry for your experience. I hope you meet people who love you for who you are and see you beyond these man made identities. - love from a fellow Indian ❤

[@mjcard]

The thing about being Jewish is that no matter how much you want to eliminate this fact, how assimilated, when it comes down to it, non-Jews will never let you forget.

[@CashelOConnolly]

Oh the irony you’ve just told everyone you’re Jewish are you now pissed off with yourself

[@mjcard]

Radical Rainbow No I am not Jewish. However I have Jewish friends and over the years I have noticed that it doesn't matter how ' unjewish ' they are, people so often get around to bringing it up, in a myriad of ways. It seems to me it's not possible for them to just be in society without the constant reminder that they are Jewish, different. So, I am puzzled by your comment. Even if I were Jewish, why would I be ashamed to admit it? Who are you? What an absurd and taunting comment for no understandable reason.

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

This man lives in a world that he created in his head.The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@jagna2531]

Thank you, internet, for giving me an opportunity to meet this miracle of a man.

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@jagna2531]

@@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr I kind of agree but it is nice to imagine the world when homophobia doesn't exist and live in it for a little bit

[@sirmigz]

4:08 I remember everything

[@alaflilawlila4488]

Oliver oliver. I remember everything.

[@kaleidxscxpe]

elio elio elio elio elio

[@sirmigz]

@@alaflilawlila4488 Now playing Visions of Gideon by Sufjan Stevens 😭😭😭

[@sirmigz]

@@kaleidxscxpe Fireplace scene 🤧🤧🤧

[@pauletteflyntz1274]

That was the moment my heart was ripped out and broken forever.

[@kevin-dr7zc]

What a genius!! RESPECT

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@redd4poetry]

Great interview. He is a treasure!

[@starcrib]

awesome interview, uniquely pertinent in a time of right wing hysteria and the delusional grinder social media platforms.

[@xrmoff]

why's grindr delusional? it's one of the few platforms trying to overcome society's painful bias towards traditional hetero-monogamous relationships

[@starcrib]

@@xrmoff hahahahahahahahaHhHHh...🦖💨

[@asmrpillow457]

@@starcrib why's that funny? he's spot on

[@adorablemea]

You bring yourself where ever you go. Wow

[@user-qd9io7gb4x]

This movie is about two souls. I hate to put them in a catalog of gender, there are just two human being having found each other and having recognized their chemistry and accepted their love. Thank you for the book. The movie is great, and the book is therapy :)

[@sacraminerva]

What a beautiful soul

[@aliciabiundo7186]

Una maravilla este escritor como volcar en palabras sentimientos q.no es fácil transmitir me encanta leer y los libros q.llegan son los de q.te hacen parte de la historia y el final te deja un mensaje lo felicito!!!

[@amitsgvlog]

Beautiful

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@ashikagracelyn8549]

What a wonderful man.

[@Poemsapennyeach]

Good interview....bril...thanks.

[@reinadumalisile3812]

makes sense that he started as a poet. his texts are filled with quotables.

[@aveuch]

He speaks in long form essays. This isn't an interview/conversation.

[@IlexJ]

aveuch exactly what I was thinking!

[@yanouzegers6804]

It is just the way this man is. If you’d read his books you’d see that it is exactly the way this man thinks and writes. Many people really appreciate the way he writes, so it is just your choice whether you like it or not.

[@mahogany466]

That’s just how he is and it reflects in his writing

[@sirmigz]

Because of the interviewer

[@AnthroHistorian]

5:50 - When a jewish guy and muslim guy undress, I don't think there is any difference. Aciman being a learned man should know this fact.

[@kevinkazakevich5766]

They are teaching in Alabama that people that are not married should be intentionally unemployed. They teach this in church and they try to enforce it a variation of this at the University in bad grades.

[@lucyislight9949]

Right-wingers may preach "moral" concepts but hypocritically practice the opposite.

[@hugster2000]

I'm surprised the interviewer didn't get this guy to walk out like he usually does.

[@jaytwice1975]

Where can I read the dissertations Andre wrote?

[@nonsequitur9332]

15:29 "can you think of someone who's truly truly evil? i can't think of anyone....basically nobody's really that evil and people like being kind..." OH GOD, really..... (hitler/donald trump/hitler/donald trump/hitler again...)

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

This man lives in a world that he created in his head. The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@maarten271]

@@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr I truly hope you don't drown in that self pity of yours. Every author writing about gay love tackles those same challenges, which are real challenges for a lot of people, but are heavily discussed. It's important these topics keep being discussed as long as they're relevant, but showing how things could be instead of showing how things are has just as much (if not more) of a positive effect on the conversation. Listen to his answer on exactly this point you are making and decide for yourself: 13:46.

[@aliciabiundo7186]

Una lastima q.estos reportajes no sean subtitulados al español ...

[@APR944]

💙💙

[@CarlosEduardo-iw9jr]

The Moonlight story is much better than the CMBYN story. This straight white author ignores homophobia and creates a utopia in his history.

[@aliciabiundo7186]

Cuando se escribe de esta forma es pq.es amante de la libertad

[@tylerpham4797]

10:15

[@tylerpham4797]

13:05

[@jamalmaking2445]

This wasn’t a ‘gay’ movie it was a predatory movie. A 17yr old boy entering a relationship with a grown man is predatory by nature. I can’t believe it was given a green light & given an Academy Award.

[@APR944]

I somewhat agree, the age seventeen is very young in most places though a concerting relationship between a seventeen year old and someone older is legal and widely accepted. However there is something unsettling about it.

[@xrmoff]

Strongly disagree, age of consent in most places is 16 so don't be hysterical - teenage guys know their own mind, have you ever met one?

[@DavidThomas-fz1qi]

@@xrmoff Agreed. Cannot judge a period drama (set in 1980s Italy) by today's hysteria. The relevant ages were 17 and 24 in period where the Italian age of consent was 14yrs. The physicality of Mr Hammer artificially exaggerated the apparent age difference (whereas what was on display was experience being asked to share by a young man experiencing the hard drives of his youth) but of course I wouldn't have changed a thing about the casting. Great fondness and very glad CMBYN was made.

[@trinityplatt8303]

agreed. this author is a huge creep and the story is gross. not because it's gay, but because elio is SEVENTEEN.

[@goodemorning8967]

Carrot Del Rey age of consent in Italy is 14

[@randymarsh3636]

Up the old marmite motorway..... beautiful.🤢🤮

[@mmlas8683]

This explains why i found the film so weird & out of touch.. The person behind it is a balding straight man.

[@snowstrobe]

And the straight actors... The film was unwatchable, but the CIS loved it.

[@Raul-vlc-86]

@@snowstrobe what are you talking about. James Ivory is gay and he adapted the book for the screen, and Luca Guadagnino, the director, is a gay man too. (?) ...and does it really matter?

[@snowstrobe]

@@Raul-vlc-86 Yes it does... the actors screamed straight. It matters when a guy 'playing' gay doesn't even blip on the gaydar.

[@Raul-vlc-86]

@@snowstrobe im not sure about that because i believe in empathy, which means that you put yourself in the shoes of a different person. So for me its fine that straight people make films about gay people or whatever. Regarding the question of the performers...frankly, there are quite a lot of gay people who look straight and you wouldnt tell by the look. Thats a bit thinking by stereotype. Anyway, nobody is obliged to like this film (i like it but i dont feel so passionate about it)

[@mjcard]

Drawn So do you find it strange for gay actors to play straight roles? It's called acting for a reason.

[@thatfangirl1145]

HE SAID HE WAS ATTRACTED TO 12 YEAR OLD GIRLS, LITERALLY SEXUALLY ATTRACTED, WTFFFFF WHY IS HE SAYING HE