Intimacy Coordinators. Why do we need them?

After recently conducting an in depth research project titled: A Critical Exploration into How the Recent Role of the Intimacy Coordinator has Enhanced safeguarding and the Representation of Sexuality Within the Film and Television Industry. I thought I would share some of my findings and conclusions.

See below some shocking facts about the first intimate scene filmed and the abuse which surrounded it.

When considering the work of ICs today, it is imperative to reflect on the history of intimate scenes and how they were produced before the role was introduced. Sex scenes have been a part of cinema for over 80 years, with the first theatrically released non-pornographic sexual scene appearing in the 1933 Czech film by Gustav Machatý, Ecstasy (Dirks, 2020). Ecstasy 1933 caused great controversy on its release, due to its scenes in which lead actress Hedy Lamarr can be seen running and swimming naked, as well as featuring in an off screen female orgasm scene, subsequently leading to the film being banned in many countries including Italy, Germany and the United States (Gardner, 1988). Not only was this the first film to feature a sex scene, Ecstasy’s intimate scenes were also the first to be followed by claims of exploitation and sexual misconduct, as Lamarr later stated in interviews that the director tricked her into filming the nude scenes. ‘When, during an outdoor scene, the director told her to disrobe, she protested and threatened to quit, but he said that if she refused, she would have to pay for the cost of all the scenes already filmed’ (Liberty Magazine, 1938). Revealing the abuse and deceit surrounding the filming of these scenes, emphasises how entrenched in sexual misconduct the film industry is. As even the first intimate scene to exist was not filmed in a safe, consenting way, stressing the importance of working with an IC to prevent this kind of abuse.