How the ‘Heated Rivalry’ Intimacy Coordinator Shapes the Show

Filming an intimate scene is never as spontaneous as it seems. There is choreography, negotiation and planning, especially in a show like Passionate rivalrywhere sex is not just a set decoration but one of the main ways of telling the story.

Based on the bestselling novel by Rachel Reid and one of the biggest surprise TV hits of the year, the steamy queer hockey drama follows the long, sometimes tense and often passionate relationship between Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie). “They don’t talk a lot. They fuck and text, and that’s kind of what they do,” creator Jacob Tierney said. The Hollywood Reporter.

Which means that, from the start, Passionate rivalry had to find his intimacy – not just visually, but emotionally and ethically. The person tasked with that responsibility was intimacy coordinator Chala Hunter, whose job it was to help translate the show’s often explicit scripts into scenes that felt grounded, consensual, and dramatically truthful.

“I approach every scene with the same goal: to make sure everyone consents to what they’re doing and that we’re all on the same page about the action that’s going to happen,” says Hunter.

Below, Hunter discusses how working on a queer storyline shaped her approach, working with Tierney, Williams, and Storrie, and how she helps actors feel comfortable on set.

How do your introductory conversations with the actors go? Especially in a show like Passionate rivalrywhere gender is part of the language they use to tell the story.

My intention is to ensure that any actions that take place on the day of filming have been fully consented to by all parties involved. [and] so everyone – including the crew – knows what’s going to happen, so we’re all on the same page. The consent document is obviously essential. I take the content of the storyline — anything that involves nudity, simulated sex, intimacy or hyperexposure — literally. [and] I report it in a breakdown. Then I bring that content to the artist and get a sense of their boundaries and level of consent.

That means having a conversation about scripted action that allows them to feel like they have the right to tell the truth, that they have the right to say, “I’m comfortable with this, but I’m not comfortable with this.” Or: “I’m comfortable with all of these scripted actions as long as A, B, C, D happens.” » [The conversations] are very detailed. This requires a lot of listening on my part, not just active listening, but a kind of deep empathetic listening. I detect if someone is maybe not completely saying what they want to say, and then I try to ask more questions to really flesh it out to make sure that if they agree to something, they do it with confidence. Not because it seems coercive or because they feel pressured or because they feel like they’re supposed to say yes.

Sex and intimacy are fundamental to Passionate rivalryespecially at the beginning. How has this shaped your collaboration with Jacob Tierney, as well as Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie?

What that practically meant to me was knowing the scripts inside and out. I have read them many, many times. I do a full analysis of it in this giant spreadsheet system that I have, so I feel like I have a really good internal tracking system of the narrative arc that’s playing out through the intimacy of this landscape.

I am fortunate to have worked with Jacob in the past. We adore each other [and] have a great collaboration. I always try to respect the director’s process and space and actors, but I felt pretty comfortable saying, “Do you think the way this scene is playing out, the way this intimacy is playing out in this moment makes sense given where we are in the story?” Or make small narrative offers. “I wonder if, emotionally, it should be a little more like that. What do you think? Do you want to try one like that?” That sort of thing.

When I’m on set, I look at the monitors, but I literally listen with my whole body – I feel what’s going on for them, I know if the story is being told well, keeping an eye on all the technical things simultaneously. I definitely brought that to my work, my [work] with Jacob and also to my collaboration with Hudson and Connor. Fortunately, we all got along really well, so it was a very pleasant exchange.

In telling queer stories, are you, as an intimacy coordinator, looking for different things than you would if it were a heterosexual couple? Are there any different considerations?

Context plays such an important role in [this role]. The context in the story, but also the context in which the actors live, which includes all sorts of things about who they are, the space we’re in, the time of year, what’s happening culturally and socially at that time. Context, context, context.

I thought about it all the time in a holistic way, thinking about how these characters’ identities and their lived experiences influence some of the [physical] the actions we describe, but also how this might influence their vulnerability or lack of vulnerability. But I try not to make assumptions about whether it’s a heterosexual story, a queer story, or a story involving people of any gender or sexual orientation. I try not to make assumptions, do as much research as possible, and then really look to the actor to direct and respond.

There have been comments, I’m sure you’ve seen them, that this is not what gay sex is like. How do you respond to this?

Everyone has their own experience of what is authentic and what is not. It’s not my place to tell anyone what is or isn’t authentic to them. Everyone has their own subjective experience of being in the world and certainly of what feels authentic to them. The intimacy is even more exacerbated, [and] it’s a very individual and specific experience.

These scenes put the actors in vulnerable positions. How do you make them feel more comfortable?

I try to bring a very grounded, direct and calm energy to the whole thing. I’ve set that tone early on in conversations with actors where, ideally, I’m trying to build trust with them, letting them know that I’m their advocate, that I’m there to support them and make sure that whatever happens in the filming of this intimate content that they’ve consented to.

I feel like my approach is [coming from a] direct, founded [and] real place. I felt it removed the curse. [I’m] just name things for what they are and give people the space to feel uncomfortable, to feel shy, to ask questions, to actually feel empowered to just ask for what they need or express what’s going on for them. I find that if I approach things with openness, relaxation and frankness, it’s really [helps] the actors must feel free and comfortable. Even if they feel a little embarrassed or nervous. It’s a vulnerable thing to do.

Connor and Hudson must build their own repertoire as characters and actors. As we mentioned, intimate scenes play a big role in the story. How do you help build that relationship to feel comfortable in that sense.

Both Connor and Hudson are so talented and wonderful as people that they really built their own with Jacob. When it came to intimate moments, we all caught up. Honestly, I felt like it happened very organically in this case, it felt like it was some kind of dream artistic collaboration.