Director Luca Guadagnino also asked him to appear in the film

Call Me By Your Name, a queer coming-of-age film starring Armie Hammer and Timothée Chalamet, premiered at Sundance earlier this year. Director Luca Guadagnino asked Sufjan Stevens to contribute to the film’s soundtrack—it includes a Doveman remix of his Age of Adz track “Futile Devices,” “Visions of Gideon,” and “Mystery of Love.” It appears that Guadagnino also asked Stevens to narrate the film and even make an appearance. “He initially asked me to be the voice of the older [Chalamet character] Elio; to contribute to that voiceover,” Stevens told Deadline in an interview. “He also asked if I wanted to appear in the movie as a bard, performing the song, almost as a break in the narrative.” But Stevens didn't think it was the right move.

I got back to him and I said, “I think this voiceover is a mistake, and I think the interruption of me singing the song is a mistake.” I think he was just thinking out loud. I don’t know if he was really committed to the idea. So I said, “I’ll write you some songs, but that’s all I think you need from me.” And he agreed. When I saw the first edit, he said, “You were right, this doesn’t need a monologue or an interruption.”

Call Me By Your Name’s soundtrack marks the first time Stevens has written original material for a movie. It also features previously released music by Ryuichi Sakamoto, Giorgio Moroder, the Psychedelic Furs, and more. Stevens’ recently released the single “Tonya Harding” in tribute to the figure skater.