#shout out to every translator in the skam fandom because y'all are the best idk how you do this kind of stuff daily

[itsodilou]

Here’s a translation of Maxence and Axel’s last radio interview by Fréquence ESJ at the 2019 Paris Pride on june 29 (you can find the interview easily on YouTube by typing “fréquence esj axel auriant”, I also left a comment there with the translation) 

I : Hello, we are receiving Axel Auriant.

A : Hello, I’m sorry, I lost Maxence in the crowd. I think he’s gonna get here soon…

I : So Maxence is coming. We should say, for the people who are listening to us, Axel Auriant, you are an actor in the famous TV show SKAM, in which you have the role of…

A : Lucas.

I : Lucas, that’s it.

(the guy that is behind the computer says that his name is Lucas too, and Axel and the interviewer joke about it)

I : So Axel, it’s true that you are in a duo in Skam with Maxence, who…

A : Yeah, I feel guilty doing this interview without him, but he doesn’t text me back…

I : Oh okay, so you lost him in the crowd ?

A : Yeah, he asked me to get him something to drink and they didn’t let me…. I am telling you guys my whole life… They didn’t let me get out with this drink, so I drank this thing, which wasn’t alcohol. (they laugh) And I lost Maxence.

I : I mean, there’s a lot of people here today. The gay pride, there was tons of people. On the stage, there’s all of the artists that we previously mentioned and there’s even more people. By the way, Axel, have you ever been to pride before ?

A : Yeah, several times actually, with friends, it’s a good occasion to get together, to dance, to be together….

I :  And had you ever done a pride that was like this ? With so many people.

A : Honestly, I don’t realize. But it’s always, in terms of emotions I mean, it’s always a great moment to share, where we’re together and that’s what I love, when I come here (to pride), we dance, we laugh and we celebrate love.

I : And you even lost your partner, by the way.

A : I lost my partner, who found love elsewhere, apparently.

I : Yeah, because you are in the TV show Skam with Maxence…

A : Wait, Maxence texted me. Should we play some music while we wait for him ?

I : Sure, if you want. We can also chat or we can put music while waiting for him, if he’s getting there in a few minutes…

A : He’s gonna be here in 3 minutes.

(they announce the music that they’re gonna be playing and there’s a cut ; now Maxence is here)

I : Our guests are finally here. Before, we had the poor Axel, who had lost his other half…

M : I was dancing to Léonie (one of the artists that was here I guess)…

A : I told you !

M : … I  was in a trance, you guys, her music is so beautiful.

I : We’re our guests today also because this year, you are parrains (godfathers) of the pride march.

A : Yeah, exactly.

Other radio guy : We should introduce them.

I : Yeah right, I am forgetting the most important things. We have Axel Auriant, who we already heard, and Maxence Dunet-Fauvel.

M : Danet-Fauvel.

(the interviewer apologizes for his mistake and they all joke about it)

I : So, Axel and Maxence, you are godfathers of this 2019 pride march. How do you get selected to be godfathers ? How did you react when you found out ?

A : (Axel makes a dumb joke about e-mails). The PR person at Skam was contacted and she sent us an email. The exact same day we replied.

I : You accepted right away.

A : Obviously.

M : It’s an incredible gift. We don’t exactly know how we were selected. We were in a TV show called Skam, for those who don’t know, it’s a tv show for teens. Each season deals with a different topic, and the season where we have the main roles with Axel deals with discovering that you’re gay when you’re in high school.

I: It was season 3, right ?

M: Yes, it was season 3. And we were… Actually, no, we received the Out d’Or afterwards. I think that we were selected because we made things change this year, especially among teens, and I think that it’s extremely important. We saw hundreds of them today. We’re really moved to be able to carry this voice and this message.

I: During the pride march, when you were walking or right now, here at Place de la République, do people recognize you ? Do they come up to you ?

A: Yes, a lot. But they’re always nice and that’s what really moves me. When you shoot a tv show, you don’t realize the impact that it can have on people’s lives. And if it could at least open minds and have the expected effect, and that really moves us, especially on a day like today. So yes, we have been recognized a lot, even if I don’t like this word. A lot of people came to talk to us, dance with us…

M: It was really really cool.

I: Is there young people who tell you that they’re gay and that seeing you on screen, even if it’s fictional, gave them the courage to come out ?

M: Yes.

A: Everyday. Everyday we get messages. When we started shooting, we had a drink…

M: Five (he means five drinks).

A: Maybe even six.

M: Or eight.

(they remind everyone to drink responsibly)

A: And we told each other, if we could help one teen to embrace who they are at this point in their life, we would have reached our goal. And receiving so many messages, it feels like the best reward, it’s so beautiful and that’s why we were a part of this story and now the adventure continues.

I: Sadly this year, there has been an increase of homophobic acts. Did you also get homophobic messages or threats ?

M: Of course.

A: Yes, but those threats make up only 10% of the messages we get. It’s a minority. It’s people who are behind a screen, and it’s so much easier to send: “f*ggot, I’m gonna fuck you up” when you’re behind a screen with a PSG (Parisian football club) logo as your profile picture. (it makes all of them laugh and Maxence says he needs to gag him for saying that). No, but it’s true, we get those messages. And it’s important to say that yes, we get them, but we also receive so much love.

M: We get so much more love than hate, and we see it even today. It really moves me, I loved being a part of this march. I did it with everyone, I was in the crowd, but with my role in mind.

I: You’re carrying a voice, sort of.

M : Yes, and that’s what crazy with this amazing job that we do. When we work on a role, we’re at home, we’re even really scared and to see that we managed to create those characters that people relate to and that help people, it’s a beautiful victory for us.

I: When you got cast for Skam and got the script, what did you find interesting about your characters? Axel, you play Lucas and Maxence, you play Eliott in the show. When you got these roles, what attracted you to those characters ?

A: Personally, what I really liked about Lucas was that he had a sort of shell in the first two seasons, and then you discover more about him and about what he’s going through. He’s like a lot of young people, in front of his friends he cracks jokes, he acts as if he was okay but you realize that it’s a mask, that the reality is completely different, that he wears a mask to protect himself. I found this character really interesting, he’s lost and he wants to love but it’s hard for him, at least in the first two seasons he’s questioning a lot and he has to face society, his friends, all of the prejudices that we can have when we’re lost and everything that we were told as children. I really loved this character, and I still do.

I: Axel, your character was here since the beginning whereas Eliott was introduced in season 3.

M: Yeah, he appears in season 3 and he is new in the school. Personally, what I loved in Eliott, it’s that he’s the most multicolored character that could have been written for me. He’s a wonderful human, with so many hues…. It gives me shivers to talk about it. They wrote me the perfect character as he is so complex and full of color, he’s really sensitive, very touching. He’s an artist, he is a lover, his whole life revolves around love, he doesn’t ask questions, he just goes for it and obviously he makes mistakes because he’s a human being but that’s also what I love about him. He is a lover, and me too, so I could really relate to him. (then they talk about the noise as they’re right next to the stage and Axel mentions that they’re gonna go on stage later).

I: So what happens next ? You’re gonna go on stage right ?

M: Today, yeah, we’re gonna go on stage and say a few words. I really don’t want to make a long speech because I haven’t prepared anything (Axel laughs).

A: This morning we looked at each other and we were like: What do we say ?

M: Personally I just want to thank everyone. Today we saw stunning people, I kept saying “everyone is beautiful, everyone is beautiful”. It’s amazing, it should be like this every day, the streets should be full of color all the time, not just for the LGBT community but for everyone. The streets should be more colorful, and I say that but I’m always wearing black… The streets should be more joyful and it should look more like this amazing day.

A: And the reality of life, that is to say there’s love everywhere and you just need to search for it. What Maxence said is so beautiful, Maxence for president !

I: Axel and Maxence, you play a couple in Skam, a couple of young homosexuals. Is it true that…? (Maxence interrupts him)

M: Wait, I’m just gonna correct you or I’m gonna get wrecked, my character is pansexual. Axel’s character is gay, mine is pansexual. Last time, I didn’t correct a journalist and I got a lot of backlash on Twitter, so…

I: You’re absolutely right to remind us. Last question before you go on stage, is it important today to show more gay couples or pansexual couples etc. ?

A: It’s important to show life. We should stop saying “more gays, more like this or like that”. The reality is that today, homosexuality, like every sexuality, are in the world, they’re here. And we’re here to put stories to life, and to put to life what some people live. And we should show as much as we can, we should show as many footballers, intersex people, pansexual people, bisexual people as we can, because that’s what people live.

I: Yeah in the show you see sex scenes, kisses…

A: Definitely. And it’s important to say that we should show those things, show what those people really live, without being scared of censorship or bad reactions because we do this job to live and to put these characters to life. (to Maxence) maybe you want to add something ?

M: I just wanted to add something, I completely agree with Axel and I think we should show more LGBT people on TV because we’re in 2019, but we are so behind on this topic that we need to show it to people, shove it in their faces. Today people should go outside, get naked, do whatever they want

A: Okay let’s go (he starts removing his shirt)

M: Yeah, do it! It needs to be shown, those people need to be bothered, those people who still live in the stone age, we need to show them that that’s what it is to live on this earth and to be human, it’s to be free to do what we want, fuck! We fought for years to be free, for years ! We’re almost succeeding, but we’re still struggling on certain topics, it’s unbelievable.

I: You’re full of emotions, Maxence. There’s a lot of emotion in your eyes.

M: Yeah, it really gets me going, it’s like racism, there’s things that I don’t understand. This hatred of difference, this hatred of others but fuck ! You’re all so beautiful ! Fuck, guys stop it ! Love each other for fuck’s sake!

A: Love each other.

I: We’re gonna stop here because you have to go apparently.

M: Yeah we need to go.  

(then they make weird noises and act like goofs, they say thank you and Axel kisses the microphone)