Dylan Gelula

Interview by James Patrick Herman  Photographs by Jeff Vespa

Where are you from?

Philadelphia.

Are you a Sundance virgin?

To be sincere: I am. And I so don’t even know what to expect that I feel good about it. I can’t be stressed out because I don’t know what to be stressed out about.

How does it feel to be a Sundance sensation?

It just means that I am another step closer to everybody figuring out the ruse that I’ve pulled: That I am talented and you should hire me. People keep doing it and saying things like I’m a Sundance sensation. But I am a giant fraud.

What’s the buzz about your movie?

It’s about a girl who is self-assured and confident in her sexuality but less so in other people’s ability to handle it, so she hasn’t come out. And she finally falls in love for real.

Tell me about your character.

She is really smart and cool — the kind of teenager who is going to have the most awesome adult life and just the shittiest adolescence. Which is the best kind of person. You know when people are ahead of their high-school selves? That is how I would describe her.

Are you suggesting that there is a converse relationship between loneliness in adolescence and popularity in adulthood?

Look, all of my friends had no friends in high school. That is how you develop your personality. What if I was socially successful as a kid? I don’t think I would have read as many books. Instead of hanging out with people at lunch, I read books. And now I am a well-read adult.