After years of work to make intimacy coordinators an industry standard in film and television, SAG-AFTRA has filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to be the official union reps for all intimacy coordinators in negotiations with major studios.
“Working in scenes involving nudity or physical intimacy is some of the most vulnerable work an actor can do. Intimacy coordinators not only provide assistance in navigating these scenes, but they also create a safety net for performers ensuring consent and protection throughout the entire process,” SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher said in a Wednesday statement.
“Shifting the power imbalance that has been ingrained over a century is challenging but important work. Work that can be done even more effectively with the backing of a union,” she continued. “Intimacy coordinators have our backs on set and now it’s our turn to have theirs.”
Developing and training a network of intimacy coordinators has been a major initiative of SAG-AFTRA dating back to the start of the #MeToo movement in 2017. Under the leadership of then-president Gabrielle Carteris, SAG-AFTRA worked to define clear responsibilities, protocols and training procedures for intimacy coordinators who choreograph and oversee any scenes involving nudity or intimacy and facilitate communication between filmmakers, producers and actors.
In 2022, SAG-AFTRA passed a resolution to create a pathway for intimacy coordinators to become official members of the union, and this NLRB petition would allow the union to achieve that goal.
“Intimacy coordinators are important partners for our members when they are working on some of the most vulnerable scenes possible,” SAG-AFTRA national executive director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland added. “As part of our union, they’ll have the strength of our 160,000 members standing behind them when they sit down to negotiate a deal that will bolster the foundation of this role, create job opportunities, safely expand and ensure diversification of the talent pool and improve safety on set.”
