Heartbreak high, for the Snapchat generation

“Even though the show is about an LGBT character, the overarching theme of the story is to be true to who you are as a person,” Cimino says. “And I think that is a message that every person needs to hear. And what every person realises is that, I need to true to myself.

“At the same time, I don’t think it’s a story that is exclusive to people that are heterosexual or cis people,” Cimino adds. “That is something that applies to every gender, every sexual orientation, everything like that.”

Albertalli’s book, while somewhat distant from the text of the film’s television spin-off, was a touchstone for the cast, says Cimino. “For me it’s definitely a tool to help me set the tone,” he says. “It helps a lot to understand where we came from and where we’re going to carve out an arc in the show. The book and the movie are so phenomenal and sets the tone of the sweetness of the show.”

Sear had not read the book nor seen the film when he took the role in the television series. “Subconsciously I thought I’ll save [the film] until after but I did read the book and it was useful, because every project has its own world and its own sort of quirks in that world and so it was definitely helpful. Then you hope you can add something fresh and new to it.”

In terms of the school’s social sphere, when the audience meet Benji he is someone who has already gone through his rite of passage. He has discovered his sexuality and found the space for his acceptance. In effect, he has courage and clarity while Victor silently struggles.

“Benji represents things to Victor, that Victor probably wants to embody more and he sees the confidence and he sees the way he’s just embracing who he is and he’s celebrating who he is and being proud about it,” Sear says. “I think that’s an admirable quality in anybody. And I think it is an attractive trait. And that’s something that attracts Victor.”

Cimino adds that the two boys are defined by their very different life experiences, outside of their school lives. “To some people, it comes easier because of, maybe, they had a more accepting family…,” Cimino says. “Everybody has social conditioning and a different human experience than every other person. Certain things are going to come easier to certain people than it comes to other people.

“When Victor looks at Benji and sees who he wants to be, he sees this courageous, young, brave, gay man that is not only wildly handsome but also just true to who he is,” Cimino adds. “[Benji] doesn’t have to try to be anybody else because he’s comfortable with who he is. He likes who he is. And he’s already gone through that self-discovery phase.“

The high school does not resemble the ones that viewers who are substantially older than both the characters and the actors playing them remember. But for the two younger actors, born in the generation of social media, there are some familiar touchstones in the fiction.

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Sear was schooled in the UK, “and that’s already a big difference there,” he says. “We all had blazers and ties and stuff, whereas in America, you can get to wear what you want to most high schools, sort of express yourself that way. So, it was pretty different. And I think things have probably changed quite a bit. I’m 23 now, I left school at 16. I get the sense things have evolved.”

Cimino, in contrast, was schooled in the US but online, so he did not attend an in-person high school. “In middle school I was a theatre kid and I did all of that stuff, and we had the theatre kids, the jocks, the band kids, the computer nerds … there were whole bunches of different groups of people. And we had kids that were part of the LGBT community. There are factions and sanctions.

“And I think that happens when you grow up too,” Cimino adds. “You still have your factions, they’re just bigger. You have people that work at a certain place, they all hang out. You would be like, I hang out with other journalists. For me, I hang out with other actors or musicians. You surround yourself with like-minded people. You find your tribe.”

Love, Victor is on Disney+ from February 23.