
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANAcktwHb5PFp
36Please respect copyright.PENANA5pkoYjBFUK
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,36Please respect copyright.PENANAqaZXbVCF1Y
and yet, absurdly natural.
The director initially thought it was a fluke.36Please respect copyright.PENANAP7qbDI2kYS
That is, until he asked:
“Have you two worked together before?”
The two men exchanged a glance.36Please respect copyright.PENANAXNifC2de3f
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?36Please respect copyright.PENANAQAqFstXC38
“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——36Please respect copyright.PENANATnXXQlHuE2
the grueling prep, the mental breakdowns, the nightmare of pulling a shoot structure together in a single day.
But one day passed.36Please respect copyright.PENANAXc0LIaHuIe
And the go-ahead never came.
No call sheet.36Please respect copyright.PENANAXcTtiITU37
No camera directions.36Please respect copyright.PENANAxT72uJDlYR
No sign of a start.
Which is how this meeting came to be.
36Please respect copyright.PENANAmgBoIZ0P3G
36Please respect copyright.PENANAmRhpzBkxqe
Everyone was gathered around the conference table.
The director had his head bowed so low, he was practically face-down against the surface.36Please respect copyright.PENANAExjn3eN3bf
Hands on his lap. Completely still.36Please respect copyright.PENANAPGuv0f1nk6
Deep in thought.36Please respect copyright.PENANA7s4rq5hS5X
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——36Please respect copyright.PENANAkeKLry7cjE
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANA6NLLNScA7o
But his shoulders twitched.36Please respect copyright.PENANAtsmqYLwFXZ
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANAehrIHsHOSq
Face flushed like he’d just run an 800-meter.36Please respect copyright.PENANADgiz5Ch41W
Sweat on his brow. Eyes full of hesitation.36Please respect copyright.PENANAphxeDjYhLg
Then suddenly—like he couldn’t hold it in anymore:
“I said——I’ve never filmed a BL before!!”
The air froze.36Please respect copyright.PENANAJ955Lt4pSN
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!36Please respect copyright.PENANAnSGy8DM80Q
Saliva, Vaseline, body wash, actual lube—I couldn’t even pick one!”
“And the prep! The cleaning! The stretching!36Please respect copyright.PENANAvHgxME48gz
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,36Please respect copyright.PENANATWRKbaNoYO
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANA4539Ah7uod
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANAqOZgUZYgx6
It’s tension that feels real—something that makes the scene convincing.”
“Right now, the problem isn’t that you can’t shoot it.36Please respect copyright.PENANAPt4wozyTva
It’s that you don’t know how to make it both believable and beautiful.”
The director nodded again.36Please respect copyright.PENANAlwZ3iVTdbd
Still didn’t lift his head.36Please respect copyright.PENANA9ovJfmDjlv
But everyone understood.
This wasn’t some unspeakable shame.36Please respect copyright.PENANASVqWtu5Hr5
Just an honest admission from a creator36Please respect copyright.PENANAHU4lnQcwWY
facing a story he didn’t yet know how to handle.
And so began what would become36Please respect copyright.PENANAA1NrGd26uF
the most awkward—and most sincere—creative meeting in the history of the crew.
36Please respect copyright.PENANAPJdenbjsAn
36Please respect copyright.PENANACY08nclhTM
They split up the research.
Analyzing what kinds of scenes wouldn’t overwhelm the actors,36Please respect copyright.PENANAUpN2iVLxeZ
what kind of movements could hold emotion without slipping into something pornographic.
Even the lighting——36Please respect copyright.PENANASV9IV2x688
which angle to shoot from,36Please respect copyright.PENANAqwCVmBb6Lc
to avoid making it all look like a cheap adult film.
The manager laid out a timeline.36Please respect copyright.PENANAHNvKpTjyvY
The art lead sketched out framing options.36Please respect copyright.PENANAFdFaTlxMVq
The screenwriter rewrote parts of the scene flow.36Please respect copyright.PENANAKXVKis0SGq
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.36Please respect copyright.PENANATJdtmRujd9
“Why the hell are there so many names for these positions…?”
Only the art lead was positively glowing.36Please respect copyright.PENANAiSS204wZkq
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.
ns216.73.216.247da2