Intimacy on screen

Whether it’s a stroke of a cheek or a sex scene, filming intimate content for movies and TV is a delicate business. When badly handled, it can even cause the actors harm. Kim Chakanetsa talks to an Indian movie director and to a pioneering intimacy coordinator about ensuring actors feel safe on set while filming simulated sex scenes. Also: has the #MeToo movement fuelled a demand for better boundaries, and how is the industry responding?

Ita O'Brien is a British movement director and intimacy coordinator for film, TV and theatre. She worked on the set of I May Destroy You, Normal People, Gentleman Jack and Sex Education. She has developed the 'Intimacy on Set' guidelines for those working with intimacy, scenes with sexual content and nudity.

Alankrita Shrivastava is an Indian screenwriter and director. Her 2017 movie, Lipstick Under My Burkha, was initially banned in India for containing 'contagious sexual scenes'. She explains the challenges of shooting sex scenes in Bollywood, where nudity isn't allowed, and how to put women's desire at the centre of the narrative.

Produced by Sarah Kendal and Alice Gioia for the BBC World Service.

IMAGE DETAILS
Left: Alankrita Shrivastava (credit Komal Gandhi)
Right: Ita O'Brien (credit Nic Dawkes)