Michael Andrew Keerdo-Dawson, Diego Alejandro Barajas Riano, Kreet Maurer
Research objective:
This project explores how intimacy can be represented in contemporary narrative cinema by focusing on how to write and direct intimate encounters between screen-characters who take pleasure in intimacy for the sake of the act itself. By employing slow cinema as a mode of inquiry, the project reduces narrative disclourse in favour of duration and minimalism making the intimate scene less of an extrinsic functionary of the plot but rather a part of the whole with intrinsic value in and of itself.
The project aims to unfold and reflect on the relationship between the writer-director and the actors and intimacy co-ordinator in the process of their creation. What negotiations, tensions, compromises, idea generation, and discussions occur within that relationship and what are their bearing on the overall collaborative process of developing intimacy scenes in a safe and responsible way. Intimacy co-ordination is a relatively new role in Estonian film production and how directors work with intimacy co-ordination is under researched.
The outcomes will include a film experiment with intimacy and slow cinema, an academic article on the process of collaboration with actors and an intimacy-coordinator, an academic article on intimacy scenes in slow cinema, an industry talk about the process of writing, directing and working with actors and intimacy co-ordinators, and public talks contributing to ongoing debates around representation of intimacy in films.
Project period:
01.09.2026–31.12.2027
Project funder:
Estonian Ministry of Culture / Artistic Research Programme of the Ministry of Culture