British Filmmakers Asked To Avoid Sex Scenes Over Coronavirus Pandemic

British film and TV directors have been advised to avoid sex scenes during the pandemic and encouraged to be creative when depicting intimacy in their projects.

Directors UK, the professional association for screen directors in Britain, recently said that sex scenes with physical interaction should be avoided while social distancing is required due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization updated its Directing Nudity and Simulated Sex guidelines to reflect the working environment that is required during the global health crisis.

The updated guidelines indicate that the directors should be creative when it comes to having the cast portray the intimacy between characters. They also encouraged the filmmakers to follow the way classic romances like "Casablanca" and "It Happened One Night" portrayed intimacy because both were filmed under the Hays Code that was introduced in the 1930s. The code prohibited the depiction of sex on screen.

The updated guidelines also recommend that the characters "could be shown fixing their own clothes/re-dressing after the event" or showing their limbs moving under bedclothes. The other option is to show "the closing of a bedroom door and leave the action to the viewer’s imagination."

Bill Anderson, who directed episodes of "Doctor Who" and who was part of the team that worked on the guidelines since June, encouraged filmmakers and writers to come up with different ways to show intimacy and encouraged them to consider if a sex scene is really necessary.

"At this time when so many people are watching TV, I think that audiences are really hungry for intimacy and connection," Anderson said.

"Intimacy is not biology, it’s about mutual vulnerability, an openness and sharing of trust between human beings. If you shoot a sex scene that doesn’t have intimacy in it you’ve totally failed – what you’ve produced is a poorer cousin of pornography.”

He added that shows like "I May Destroy You" and "Normal People" that contain multiple sex scenes might not really abide by the guidelines.

"Normal People" had a lot of intimate scenes that a 22-minute compilation of sex scenes from the 12-part series was uploaded on the adult site Pornhub. Ed Guiney, executive producer of “Normal People” and co-founder of Element Pictures, was disappointed that it happened because it violated copyright and was disrespectful to the actors. Pornhub immediately removed the clip from the site.

For productions that require sex scenes, the guidelines suggest to include motion capture and digital performances or animation to "composite the required encounter." Another alternative is to cast real life couples who do not need to socially distance.

Director Jessica Hobbs, who is part of Netflix's "The Crown," added that filmmakers should think outside of the box to continue working safely during the pandemic.

“For the next few months at least, maybe a year we need to be creative in the way we approach intimacy. We’re not saying ‘shut everything down’, we’re saying let’s look at our material and try to make it safe in the current climate,” she said.