V124: Hunter Schafer

from V124: Rock & Romance With Hunter Schafer

Model-turned-actress Hunter Schafer fuses genres this season, leaning into the fantasy and edge of the Spring 2020 collections. The Euphoria breakout star also talks defying norms, sci-fi, and trans-inclusive creativity with musician Arca

Photography Inez and Vinoodh | Fashion Alex White Interview Arca

**Hunter wears dress Fendi Boots photographer’s own Hat and veil Lidow Archive**

**Jacket and pants Balenciaga Boots R13 Bag Galaxy Army Navy Earrings Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello**

Arca: I am so happy to be interviewing you. [But] honestly, [also] freaked out that you were into the idea…

Hunter Schafer: I am so excited to talk to you!

A: It feels serendipitous, because when I watched Euphoria…Your first scene, with [your character] Jules using the syringe [for hormone injections]…I was screaming so hard because I’ve never seen that on TV before, with proper production and cinematography. It was so moving.

HS: Oh my god, thank you so much. I mean, I’ve literally been listening to you since high school. Your sound so specifically represents my experience… “Saunter” is one of my favorite songs!

A: I love that you know that song by name. Most people don’t bring it up! [Speaking of experience], I heard Jules was based on you. Is that right?

HS: Yeah, that is correct!

A: How was that? Transitioning is such a personal experience. Was there something redeeming about sharing it, and maybe demystifying it?

HS: Yeah, right! It didn’t feel natural at first. Part of surviving was just, like, getting through shit. Letting it rest, and not addressing it. I think that’s what I had been [doing] up to that point: just going and going, fighting to be on the other side of my transition. There was so much that I was working toward, and I was so excited to [be out of] North Carolina that I don’t think I’d ever looked back on [that experience].

A: Wow! So powerful.

HS: Very. That’s what felt unnatural, I was like, “Oh shit.” Remembering things that I hadn’t thought about until [that point]. That happened throughout the entire season: As we worked through different scenes, I’d have to remember a new detail, to dig up an artifact from within myself, and hold onto that moment for the scene. I imagine you do that in your work.

A: That’s one way acting and making music could be similar: No matter how personal [it is] to you, there’s always this weird, speculative aspect to it. So it’s personal but not that personal; [For example] a love song can be about one person, but it can also be about multiple people.

HS: That’s a mood...I think [the process of acting] can also be like writing a letter to someone—combining experiences that have a common thread.

A: That reminds me of this interview with [science fiction writer] Octavia Butler—do you know her? I think you’d be into it. I’ll send it to you—it relates to what we are talking about. Are you interested in sci-fi? What gets you off when you think of your dream project?

HS: Oh, yay! I haven’t heard of her, but I love sci-fi. I really want to do something sci-fi-related!

A: Yas…Go off!

HS: That’s what I grew up on—comic books and Teen Titans. All of that was so important to me, so I feel like I owe it to my younger self. And the aesthetics would be sickening…Who’s serving better than a superhero with armor? That’s what I wish I could look like all the time.

A: Let’s see if we [can] link up for a sci-fi collab. Actually, your last Instagram post is pretty superhero.

HS: Thank you! That would be so sick. It’s always low-key what I am trying to channel, in some way or another.

A: To be real, transness is pretty sci-fi...

HS: Yas. Period! I think that’s why a lot of trans people can tap into a certain aesthetic that has sci-fi elements [so well].

A: And commit to it, too—it’s not something you [necessarily] take on or off. I support body-mod of all kinds. The vessel that you inhabit, your body, is the only thing that’s [truly yours]: It’s not property or money. Why not share your values and your beliefs through it?

HS: Yeah, true…When I hear “body-mod,” I think of people putting, like, studs under their skin. But I guess it can extend to any alteration you put your body through, huh?

A" Yeah, love it! I mean, the studs, the splitting tongues…I [support] all of it! I wanted to ask you about your visual art, too. I think it’s so sick.

HS: Thank you, thank you! My original plan was to model in order to support my visual art. At that point, I thought, I wish I could be making money off of [my art] because it’s all I want to do. But then I got swept up in [acting], which is wild: I went to an arts high school, and was always focused on visual arts; [performing] was this exciting and tantalizing activity. Now it’s the opposite; I am monetizing performing.

A: It’s beautiful to have that, no matter what medium you work in— anything that gives you oxygen, that [relieves] the pressure of monetizing your creative practice within a capitalistic system.

HS: Now I am trying to lock down my [visual] art practice again. But it is a blessing to [be able to] have both—[acting] and art.

A: Variety is the spice of life, for everything. I wouldn’t even want to use the same moisturizer every day!...Watching Euphoria, I was totally transfixed with the character of Jules. It’s a really special performance. Who’s been your closest artistic collaborator, would you say?

HS: I don’t know if I’ve ever worked closer with anyone than Zendaya on Euphoria. It was such an extensive process, and a very intimate one. And also Sam Levinson, [the creator], who helped me get to those places I hadn’t been since I was a teenager…

A: Is there anything you imagine for the character of Jules, like in the longterm, hypothetically?

HS: Ooh…I know she has dreams, [many of] which she stated in the first episode. Which is just what I did in a way: escaping to New York, and working or interning in fashion...And that was [part of the character] before I was even cast, so it was really freaky to see that written into the script. So, I feel like that’s definitely her path.

A: I don’t have a vision for Jules—I’m just a bystander, finding out what happens with everyone else. But I love watching Jules, and will cheer her on in whatever she does. [She’s] just so fucking cool!

HS: [Laughs] Aww, thank you. You are like her voyeur mother. A I am so into that! That makes me so happy.

VISIT VMAGAZINE.COM FOR AN EXTENDED INTERVIEW

**Skirt and belt Louis Vuitton Bra LaQuan Smith Custom wings Kayleigh Snowden**

**Earrings and necklace Bulgari On eyes Chanel Les 4 Ombres in Warm Memories**

**Shirt and pants Giorgio Armani On hair Oribe Swept Up Volume Powder Spray**

I don’t know if I’ve ever worked closer with anyone than Zendaya on Euphoria. It was such an extensive process, and a very intimate one.

—Hunter Schafer

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V124: Rock & Romance With Hunter Schafer