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In recognition of a growing awareness of sexual misconduct in the film industry, SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) has published a landmark document designed to regulate filmed sex scenes.
The standards and protocols within the document will help maintain the “personal and professional dignity” of actors performing in nude or simulated sex scenes, said SAG-AFTRA in a statement.
The guidelines are part of a wider drive to eradicate sexual misconduct in both the film and television industries and will draw upon the use of “intimacy coordinators” to oversee sensitive scenes containing nudity or sex.
Intimacy coordinators will be tasked with making sure sets are closed, checking if agreed boundaries are maintained in the final cut, and overseeing the rehearsal process.
According to the SAG-AFTRA statement, this unique role will be “advocating for performers’ safety during hyper-exposed work and ensuring that a production’s creative needs are met.”
It comes after a number of actors said they didn’t feel comfortable about the nude scenes they were asked to feature in. Emilia Clarke revealed, when speaking on actor Dax Shepard’s podcast, she used to “cry in the bathroom” before nude scenes.
The standards set out by SAG-AFTRA will, it is hoped, “change the culture while helping to ensure the safety and security of our members while they work.”
The statement adds: “It’s the latest development in our ongoing effort to eliminate sexual harassment in the entertainment industry through strategic partnerships, raising awareness and expanding contract and legislative protections.”
Amanda Blumenthal, founder of Intimacy Professionals Association, said SAG-AFTRA’s document “signals to the industry just how important it is to do what we can to make sets safer and to protect performers.”
She also praised the guidelines for still allowing creative freedom to flourish, allowing “for flexibility from show-to-show so that the process can be customised to work with each unique production.”
The SAG-AFTRA document comes after it published Four Pillars of Change in 2018 in response to the #MeToo movement which included conduct guidelines regarding on sexual harassment. It was followed by further demands such as the call to end to auditions and interviews taking place in private homes or hotel rooms.
Recently, Directors UK issued 96 guidelines covered protocols when “directing nudity and simulated sex”. Bill Anderson, who has overseen episodes of Doctor Who and Mr Selfridge, and who was part of the team who produced the guidelines for British productions, said these “rules” were not to be seen as “a prescriptive list of don’ts and potential transgressions”, but as a beneficial resource for cast and crew.
“There are these grey areas at the moment,” Anderson said. “Actors want to do daring work, but they also want to be able to go home and read a bedtime story to their kids without being horrified about what they’ve done on set a few hours earlier.”
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