Ansel Elgort
I hated the ballet, but I liked performing. I did 20 shows, and I couldn't get the smile off my face.Collection: Smile
My dad grew up in Washington Heights. I grew up in New York in Manhattan. So we're purebred New Yorkers.Collection: Dad
There are big parts of my life that I don't share. I don't share myself eating dinner with my family. I don't talk about who I'm dating. That's private; that's me.Collection: Dating
My mom is very romantic. As is my dad. They appreciate real romance.Collection: Romantic
I like romantic dates - going on a long walk in Central Park and then taking the subway downtown and going out to eat and ordering oysters. After that, you walk around again and talk.Collection: Romantic
I had a birthday party with my family and friends at a house, and Chipotle catered. It was beautiful.Collection: Birthday
I love Marlon Brando and James Dean. That was when it was all about the star and the script. Nowadays, everything has to be action-packed.
I'm a total goof. When I'm being really comfortable with my friends, I can be very goofy.
I'm not going to go on Twitter and rant about something.
Human beings are a wonderful virus in some ways.
I have a lot of weird interests, but everything I do is artistic.
I don't believe in spending money lavishly, now that I'm making money.
Girls love it when you have some weird nerdy thing in your room. It makes you look less threatening, even though I'm, like, very threatening. I'm the most threatening guy ever.
My style is clubby and groovy - you can jump to it, but you don't just have to just jump to it. It's not just really bass-heavy and hurts your ears; you move with it, and it sounds kind of tribal.
As an actor, you want a director who makes you feel comfortable in a place that you can really create and try a lot of different things.
A lot of high school students on TV and in Broadway are played by people in their late 20s and even early 30s. That seems weird to me.
From an early age, I understood the concept that, if you're not the star, then your job is to not pull attention away from the star.
Picture-taking is an ensemble art - like theater.
My dad was always taking photos of us at home, and even on set - he'd bring us along and stick us in the photos in the background. It was almost the beginning of acting for me, like, 'Hey, you go over there and play basketball in the background, and don't even think about the camera.'
I write music because I love it. Sometimes more than anything in the world.
Most actors nowadays are models turned actors. That's why a lot of young actors are terrible. You have to learn how to act. It is not something that you can just do.
I think it's important I stay connected to every part of my personality. I play basketball. I rock climb. I paint. I'm a little bit scattered, but it's so I can convincingly play all these characters.
I'm starting to get a following on Twitter. That's a really awesome power to have. It gives me the opportunity to make any kind of art I want.
All I want to do is work.
I want to do movies, television and theater. Whatever comes along.
Just in terms of the opportunity I've gotten is amazing. I consider myself super, super, super lucky.
My dad's a photographer. So I suppose he named me Ansel just in case I would take over the family business. I guess I failed him.
I think that most people who are just artists, who are getting famous, would trade a lot of their fame back for some normalcy, pretty much immediately.
I want to encourage people. One of the things I do encourage people is that - that Internet is a place where we should share our ideas and be positive, not negative.
I'm looking forward to, as an actor, having to do some stuff that's out of my comfort zone. It makes for interesting work and when you're uncomfortable doing something; then it's going to be interesting when they film it.
I think everyone should have social media - all young people, at least.
I absolutely should be on social media, and I think every person who's an influencer should be, and should be doing good things.
Even on Facebook, like, I wouldn't share everything with my friends, because that's obnoxious.
I always wanted to be part of a movie that creates a different world.
If I messed up at the Oscars, I wouldn't be invited back.
Parents can't monitor what you are doing on Snapchat.
Technology moves so fast and social media moves so fast because everyone wants the new thing, but also, everyone wants to be where their parents are not. Once the mom got a Facebook and a Twitter and an Instagram, I don't want to be there anymore.
You are your main news platform, so no publication has as much power as you do about posting about yourself.
I like strong women. Physical women.
I love when a girl is like, 'I can't hang out. I have to go to class.' And I go pick her up, and she's all sweaty in a leotard with her hair in a bun. That's the hottest thing ever.
I love to cry. It's great.
The first movie I ever cried at was when I was 10 years old and saw 'The Notebook' in theaters. I was like, 'Whoa, so weird. Crying at a movie? I'm not supposed to do that. So weird.' I didn't know that art could make you do that.
Just because you live 20 years or 100 years doesn't make it less meaningful. They're both short amount of times. So all we can do is just live in that time, whatever time we're given.
You know what I'm realizing? I always love a place if I like the movie I'm doing there. I've heard people say, 'I hate Pittsburgh,' and I'm like, 'I love Pittsburgh so much!' I loved what I was doing there, and I loved Austin for the same reason.
I think if you only work, then you won't have a life. It's tough to have a life when you're working a lot.
When I was in lower school, I graduated from fourth grade, and the principal gave us a summer assignment to take a 30-minute reflection period every day. And, of course, there were no cell phones at the time. She said to just think. And that's lost. It doesn't exist anymore. Just imagine being on a couch and just thinking.
I go to dinner with my friends, and we're like, 'Let's put our phones on airplane mode so we can really enjoy each other's company.'
So many movies just have two pretty people thrown together.
The first show I did was 'The Nutcracker' ballet. I was one of the kids who comes out in the beginning.
My dad photographed a lot of beautiful dancers. My mom was a dancer.