Intimacy coordinator
staff member who supports actors in sex scenes
An intimacy coordinator (or an intimacy director or an intimacy co-ordinator) is a member of a film, television or theater production crew who ensures the well-being of actors performing scenes with intimacy, simulated sex or nudity and the quality of those scenes.
Quotes edit
- I want to dedicate this award to the director of intimacy Ita O'Brien. Thank you for your existence in our industry, for making the space safe for creating physical, emotional, and professional boundaries so that we can make work about exploitation, loss of respect, about abuse of power, without being exploited or abused in the process. I know what it's like to shoot without an intimacy director — the messy, embarrassing feeling for the crew, the internal devastation for the actor. Your direction was essential to my show, and I believe essential for every production company that wants to make work exploring themes of consent.
- Michaela Coel in her Leading Actress award acceptance speech at BAFTA TV Awards 2021, as cited in "Michaela Coel Dedicates BAFTA TV Win to 'I May Destroy You' Intimacy Director", Variety (6 June 2021)
- Lots of people have lots of opinions about intimacy coaches and it's a relatively new job and I think people are still working out certain parameters. Some people will say, "Oh, I don't need them." But if that intimacy co-ordinator prevents that one actor from experiencing life-changing trauma then of course it justifies the other 99 people who don't need it. I needed it on this, definitely.
- James Norton in an audio interview on Today (BBC Radio 4), as cited in "Happy Valley's James Norton on 'disturbing' new role in A Little Life", BBC News (10 March 2023)
- I think if you're a young woman on a set, which is largely peopled by men, the crew will be 90% men and the women won't be on the set with you, because generally speaking we do not have parity on any level on film sets, it's all men. And that's a very uncomfortable position for a young woman who's starting in the industry, but it is absolutely essential that there is someone there to protect them. Absolutely essential. It's not to say that they're going to be in there all the time arranging your boobs, it's that they can be there in case you might feel that there's a position that you've got into that you're not quite comfortable with, you know, your bum hole's waving in the air, and you just think I don't feel quite comfortable… I've worked with young actresses who've been truly traumatised by their experiences on set. And so, my passion for intimacy co-ordinators and protection for young women particularly, and young men, I mean, it's not necessarily an easy thing for any person.
- Emma Thompson speaking to Andrew Marr on LBC, as cited in "Emma Thompson says intimacy co-ordinators essential after Ian McKellen comments", Evening Standard (9 February 2023)
