The director confessed he'd never filmed a BL before. What followed was a five-hour-long workshop of shame——just to figure out the sex scene angles.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡofAv0rgucW
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The audition for Guiltbound went surprisingly well.
Though Jiang Zhilin and Shen Yanxing were both actors “recommended” by the clients, there was nothing second-rate about their performance.
Their timing, emotional shifts, even that elusive, barely-there tension—it all felt rehearsed to perfection,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlO0clk12cr
and yet, absurdly natural.
The director initially thought it was a fluke.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDvW3B16xG
That is, until he asked:
“Have you two worked together before?”
The two men exchanged a glance.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0sNCsbCZ5F
It was like someone had poked a mutual wavelength.
Then they nodded.
“We’ve known each other since we were kids. Our families are close——childhood friends, basically.”
At that moment, the art lead snapped her notebook shut with a smack.
“I knew it!” she roared, like a prophecy had just come true.
“I told you! That whole ‘look and instantly understand’ thing?42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVa0Tp7eeQ9
“That’s not acting. That’s telepathy!”
That day, the crew walked out of the audition on a total high.
For a brief moment, they thought the worst was behind them——42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EnQC8pXPz
the grueling prep, the mental breakdowns, the nightmare of pulling a shoot structure together in a single day.
But one day passed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkbLzcNJFN
And the go-ahead never came.
No call sheet.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3e7KPutEg5
No camera directions.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM28Nd5dYWh
No sign of a start.
Which is how this meeting came to be.
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Everyone was gathered around the conference table.
The director had his head bowed so low, he was practically face-down against the surface.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI0loNC834I
Hands on his lap. Completely still.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXb68S5tJIW
Deep in thought.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ieCh4QiqO
And unmistakably, quietly, giving up.
The screenwriter cracked first. His voice was low, but clearly irritated.
"Sure, the client said we had full control——but that doesn’t mean we can afford to waste time." “What’s the holdup? Why haven’t we started?”
The art lead sipped her coffee through a straw, her tone laced with resentment.
“I’ve mentally played out this scene a million times——42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QBm0Fp9h7
and we still haven’t shot a thing!”
The manager added, calm but resigned:
“The boss has been blowing up Instagram Stories every single day. I think he’s on the verge of exploding.”
Still, the director didn’t look up.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUr8azFriYq
But his shoulders twitched.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDN5d6pASwx
Like he was wavering. Or suppressing something.
Five seconds passed in silence.
Then, finally, he exhaled.
“I’ve never——” His voice was too soft. Barely a breeze.
“What?” The screenwriter frowned.
"Louder, please. We’re not the client!" the art lead said, deadpan.
The director finally looked up.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7d5VHRHjdP
Face flushed like he’d just run an 800-meter.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkwkbXaGby
Sweat on his brow. Eyes full of hesitation.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVcGjKpnqG0
Then suddenly—like he couldn’t hold it in anymore:
“I said——I’ve never filmed a BL before!!”
The air froze.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf1i29uvtU2
Time slowed to a crawl.
And then——
“Aaaaaugh!!!”
The director let out a cry of despair and slammed both hands over his face, words spilling out like a busted fire hydrant:
“I did so much research!”
“There are so many types of lube!42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJ9C9H0vGw
Saliva, Vaseline, body wash, actual lube—I couldn’t even pick one!”
“And the prep! The cleaning! The stretching!42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrTyrMe9Sd
The angles! The visuals! The audience expectations!!”
“I even downloaded entire SFX packs just to figure out if I should record the moaning live!!”
“And now what? I feel like I’ve been mentally corrupted,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGoVGYAPCwt
and I still don’t know how to shoot the damn scene!!”
He collapsed back onto the table, face fully pressed to the surface like he wanted to merge with it.
All that remained in the room was the ticking of the wall clock.
“So that’s what this is about…”
The screenwriter cleared her throat gently.
“To be fair, I didn’t write that part out in detail.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUM1S4YaEyQ
I kind of skipped over all the props…”
“There’s a big difference between writing it down and actually filming it,” the art lead muttered.
The manager nodded, voice calm and measured:
“What the audience wants isn’t just a sexy shot.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XOpHfmPI5
It’s tension that feels real—something that makes the scene convincing.”
“Right now, the problem isn’t that you can’t shoot it.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamfD12oEfg
It’s that you don’t know how to make it both believable and beautiful.”
The director nodded again.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSXtQcGUMR
Still didn’t lift his head.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWGMG2arZB
But everyone understood.
This wasn’t some unspeakable shame.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQL1IwEeV1v
Just an honest admission from a creator42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd5JZE2fmdR
facing a story he didn’t yet know how to handle.
And so began what would become42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlh3YG2Z7f1
the most awkward—and most sincere—creative meeting in the history of the crew.
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42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOF04DOP4xQ
They split up the research.
Analyzing what kinds of scenes wouldn’t overwhelm the actors,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QlzmHmWJ3
what kind of movements could hold emotion without slipping into something pornographic.
Even the lighting——42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq1RJ1afw6O
which angle to shoot from,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFRfsXFVIN
to avoid making it all look like a cheap adult film.
The manager laid out a timeline.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwrc8xfouoE
The art lead sketched out framing options.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOozjqZhUnp
The screenwriter rewrote parts of the scene flow.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrSng5hsWPd
The director took so many notes he went through three pen refills.
The meeting lasted five full hours.
When they finally walked out of the room——
The director looked pale, like he’d just crawled back from a war zone.
The manager’s expression was grim, like he’d just left a military briefing.
The screenwriter shook his head, dazed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKbLFNgs787
“Why the hell are there so many names for these positions…?”
Only the art lead was positively glowing.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgOjEhdvxhq
Eyes bright, cheeks flushed—she looked downright radiant.
“This was a journey of self-discovery.” She let out a gentle sigh.
The others all quietly avoided her gaze.
The screenwriter made a mental note:
“Your face really does reflect your soul.” Turns out it’s true.
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