“In terms of sex being presented on film, mainstream or even independent, film has foresworn it,” Mitchell summarized. Still, the taboo’s controversial nature remains at the forefront of mind for artists willing to admit their interest in and seriously consider the artistic merit of showing real sex. The depiction of unsimulated sex on screen has taken many forms across decades, continents, and political landscapes. I just went with what they wanted to do.” Sex is our music in ‘Shortbus.’ We really only did one sexual rehearsal. It uses sex as a medium, as a delivery system for ideas and characters and emotions, just like ‘Hedwig ’ uses music. Mitchell continued, “‘Shortbus’ isn’t about sex. And so I said, ‘I never want you to do anything you don’t want to do, but I do want you to challenge yourselves so we can challenge the audience.’” Mitchell told IndieWire about filming the cult classic, “Certainly, a lot of films had used sex, but they were pretty grim, and I wanted something more fun and funny, but still emotionally deep. John Cameron Mitchell set out to “honor” sex as a pastime for real people, much like art, music, or cuisine, in his second feature film, 2006’s “Shortbus.” “This prostitution is not profane it’s a sacred act that we give them.” “Actors are prostitutes because they’re asked to play other feelings,” Breillat told IndieWire. for more than two decades.) Breillat’s later work, 1999’s “Romance,” tells the story of a woman desperately seeking human connection and featured similar scenes, including sadomasochistic sex play. (The lead actress Charlotte Alexandra was 20 during production, and the film wasn’t released in theaters in the U.S. Sex on film is nothing new, and yet unsimulated intercourse in non-pornographic movies continues to raise eyebrows and draw eyeballs.įrom Vincent Gallo’s controversial directing for “Brown Bunny” to Robert Pattinson’s masturbatory method acting in”Little Ashes,” genuine intimate encounters captured on film - however staged they may be - can pull audiences into the bigger stories their writers and directors are trying to tell.Ĭatherine Breillat’s first film in 1976, “A Real Young Girl,” adapts her own controversial novel about a 14-year-old exploring her newfound sexuality.

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