Making it faking it
When it comes to sex on screen, Australian films often disappoint. The aptly-named Jonathon Rodgers gets down and dirty to find out why
"There is a lack of confidence in our filmmaking that leads us to avoid sex"
In 1974, Alvin Purple hit Australian screens. The sex comedy about an average guy who was somehow irresistible to women was a massive hit.
"Alvin Purple has a really sort of joyous, liberated attitude towards sex," says Dr Jane Mills, film critic and author of The Money Shot: Cinema, Sin and Censorship. "But what have we seen since? Very little."
Film and television director Dean Francis (Crazy Richard, Vermin) agrees. "In cinema terms, I'd say Australia is virtually sexless," he says. "There's a lack of confidence in our filmmaking that leads us to avoid sex, which results in sexless characters who therefore feel somewhat two dimensional."
In July Francis is running a series of workshops at training and production support facility Metro Screen; he hopes they will redress this problem, by helping directors learn how to shoot a sex scene.
"The focus of the course is on the director's craft," he says. "So the principals that we discuss apply equally to a stunt scene or a two-handed dialogue scene."
The mechanics of shooting sex scenes aren't that different to shooting action sequences, but particular skills are imperative. "Across the board, the key thing you need to confront as a director is the relationship with an actor," Francis says.
Graham Blundell is a veteran writer/producer, and was also the star of Alvin Purple. His own experiences have left him questioning the credibility of screen sex. "When you've been around for 40 years, you know trust doesn't get you that far," he says. "There's a truism in television that the only times directors actually touch actors is during a sex scene," Blundell jokes. "Particularly when rehearsing positions with the female actors."
Inexperienced actors can run into serious trouble on the set of a sex scene. "Actors without a depth of experience might be ‘blocked'," says Dean Francis, "unable to access aspects of their emotional repertoire because of insecurity or lack of trust."
This was certainly the challenge for musician turned actor Peter Fenton in 1998 when he was cast in Praise - a film that explored underperformance in the bedroom.
"I approached it with a fair bit of anxiety because I'd never acted before, let alone stood naked on a film set," says Fenton. "I imagined there would be a bunch of cowboys working on set who'd all point at my [skinny] bottom and make jokes like, ‘Who stole your arse?'?"
The set for a sex scene, he points out, is a fragile environment. "It would only take an inappropriate comment or an actor to see someone roll their eyes. Everyone has to be acutely aware of that. Otherwise we just wouldn't be able to get it on."
Dean Francis agrees hiring an understanding crew is step one. "I've seen crew members becoming hysterical at the very mention of a sex scene," he says.
"There's casting on screen and casting off screen," Fenton observes. "When people put these crews together there must be thought and consideration going into who's on set."
Not knowing what is happening behind the camera is part of the fear actors face. "You just don't know what they're actually doing with the camera," says Blundell. "You know it's out of your control."
There are ways a director can counter this. "One thing I'll be doing in the course is getting the directors to do some acting," Dean Francis says. "Because a lot of directors don't know how difficult it is to appear in front of a camera."
Professional crews, careful framing and modesty garments (skin-coloured undies) all help to keep the experience positive. And there are other techniques.
"The wiser and older actors have tricks for protecting themselves," Blundell says. "Women have tricks for protecting their breasts or their arse, like blocking with their arms, but making it appear like it is part of the action."
Surprisingly, the star of Alvin Purple thinks sex on screen is overrated. "The reality is in terms of storytelling, sex on screen is absolutely unnecessary unless it's about the nature of a particular aspect of sexuality," he says. "Audiences can get soft and hard porn online at the push of a button. They don't need to see it on screen."
But Dr Jane Mills disagrees. She thinks we should be seeing far more bump and grind on screen, not less.
"Repression turns everything into an under the counter, dirty little secret," says Mills. "That's dangerous. When sex is associated with guilt, I think we're in trouble. By denying it on screen, it actually becomes something shameful and frightening. That's a problem."
There are only be 15 places in the Metro Screen Directing Sex Scenes workshop, July 12th & 13th.