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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3YcJye0GSP
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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,17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHJc8fvDI9
and yet, absurdly natural.
The director initially thought it was a fluke.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtagfFkBlpK
That is, until he asked:
“Have you two worked together before?”
The two men exchanged a glance.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIeup3MY3e1
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?17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Oza1wJlrs
“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——17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrSkrXCzUWU
the grueling prep, the mental breakdowns, the nightmare of pulling a shoot structure together in a single day.
But one day passed.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPGKU1u79f
And the go-ahead never came.
No call sheet.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡURY2soYFhc
No camera directions.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Ad72ZZLE9
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0y2n0Juej
Hands on his lap. Completely still.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbUNN6BOEnV
Deep in thought.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2wlJFsmgz
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——17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡihYetXOyPt
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQ1N9jokNg
But his shoulders twitched.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7ip7hckYc
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeuNXSa1F33
Face flushed like he’d just run an 800-meter.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEzwDEOTkl
Sweat on his brow. Eyes full of hesitation.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSJjGz11fb
Then suddenly—like he couldn’t hold it in anymore:
“I said——I’ve never filmed a BL before!!”
The air froze.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG7fq7cNzFU
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!17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzDALDZ0wyi
Saliva, Vaseline, body wash, actual lube—I couldn’t even pick one!”
“And the prep! The cleaning! The stretching!17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡacqXW2Tv3b
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,17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡesBmvYLC5j
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkCEFguXtt
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVJwQg81gz
It’s tension that feels real—something that makes the scene convincing.”
“Right now, the problem isn’t that you can’t shoot it.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwjGorkvJLu
It’s that you don’t know how to make it both believable and beautiful.”
The director nodded again.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9BkaOwuaFn
Still didn’t lift his head.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLdCenZ6vk
But everyone understood.
This wasn’t some unspeakable shame.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlo3C66h5vC
Just an honest admission from a creator17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqRs1ToOcWz
facing a story he didn’t yet know how to handle.
And so began what would become17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmggzAHNGoI
the most awkward—and most sincere—creative meeting in the history of the crew.
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They split up the research.
Analyzing what kinds of scenes wouldn’t overwhelm the actors,17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmH1PgTWkSD
what kind of movements could hold emotion without slipping into something pornographic.
Even the lighting——17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMt0neNsR5L
which angle to shoot from,17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLMSJnu9yPO
to avoid making it all look like a cheap adult film.
The manager laid out a timeline.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJV3FvBwPc0
The art lead sketched out framing options.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi83hmKL6Tu
The screenwriter rewrote parts of the scene flow.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RKIBkszlB
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.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi9TczKUEbD
“Why the hell are there so many names for these positions…?”
Only the art lead was positively glowing.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFodZzkmhs
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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