Podtalk: Dr. Jessica Steinrock, Appearing at FACETS on Intimacy Coordination, Apr. 15, 2023

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CHICAGO – The world broke open and came to a more evolved place after the digital campaign of #MeToo and #TimesUp late last decade. In the entertainment industry especially, the stories of institutional sexual harassment was legion and pervasive. From these ashes, a phoenix arose in the form of an on-set Intimacy Coordinator, who has made a culture of consent part of the acting in love scenes … especially dealing with nudity or simulated sex.

Dr. Jessica Steinrock is a co-founder and CEO of Intimacy Directors & Coordinators, and will appear this weekend at FACETS Chicago, moderating a panel on the topic as part of a screening of “Body Parts: Bravery, Betrayal and Baring it All.” For tickets and more information, click FACETS CHICAGO.

The Event: April 15th, 2023 at FACETS Chicago
Photo credit: Facets.org

The background and history of the on-set intimacy coordinator began in a theater context … interrelated to other disciplines, according to Dr. Steinrock. In 2006, an MFA thesis created the intimacy director on stage. As stage violence begat stage fight directors, the notion of intimacy direction for actors was born. At the same time, #MeToo was emerging, and the two entities intertwined in the intervening years. Enter the cultural moment for #MeToo and #TimesUp, and the need for intimacy coordinator was invented with HBO’s “The Deuce” (about the 1970s porn industry) and became a necessity for other sets involving love scenes or nudity.

Jessica Steinrock’s organization, Intimacy Directors & Coordinators, began to fulfill that necessity by branching out the theater intimacy expertise and forming the new service for the media industry, with founders Steinrock, Alicia Rodis and Marie Percy. They essentially created a hub for consistent information and definitions for the field.

In a Podtalk with Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Dr. Jessica Steinrock of Intimacy Directors & Coordinators speaks of the evolving dynamic …

In a video excerpt from the interview, Dr. Steinrock makes the pitch …

By PATRICK McDONALD Editor and Film Critic/Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com