Award Winning Director Nabil Elderkin on The Family We Choose

Photographer and filmmaker, Nabil Elderkin, joins Nabil Ayers on Identified for a conversation about his Iranian-American identity, childhood in Australia and the United States, family history, the Baha’i faith, vulnerability, creativity and belonging.

Born in Chicago to an Iranian mother and American father, Nabil Elderkin moved to Australia at three and spent his childhood moving repeatedly between Australia and the United States. Nabil talks about adapting to new schools and communities, experiencing loneliness, becoming guarded, and eventually recognising how those childhood experiences impact adult relationships.

Nabil also discusses his Iranian ancestry, his family’s Baha’i background, his mother’s experience of leaving Iran, and his complicated relationship with his American ancestry.

Guest: Nabil Elderkin
Host: Nabil Ayers
Executive Producer: Kieron Banerji
Produced by Palm Tree Island

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Identified is a podcast series that explores identity, race, culture, and family through personal conversations. Hosted by author and music executive Nabil Ayers, each episode dives into lived experiences that reveal how our backgrounds shape who we are—and how we find belonging.

Nabil is the author of My Life in the Sunshine (Viking, 2022), and has written for The New York Times, The Guardian, and GQ on themes of race, music, and personal history. He’s also the President of Beggars Group US, co-founder of Sonic Boom Records, and founder of the record label The Control Group / Valley of Search.

Identified brings together notable voices for reflective, vulnerable conversations about where we come from—and where we’re going.

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