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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BDLRuFc7r
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNOP7Wxd4r
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,11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABH08MON7y
and yet, absurdly natural.
The director initially thought it was a fluke.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQYLDIhq3yF
That is, until he asked:
“Have you two worked together before?”
The two men exchanged a glance.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLz4LfTMi0V
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?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CSnn5eRxg
“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——11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVTmzwgLM8i
the grueling prep, the mental breakdowns, the nightmare of pulling a shoot structure together in a single day.
But one day passed.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZ6IvJxfx8
And the go-ahead never came.
No call sheet.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡye2phBkAgM
No camera directions.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFjarnXySY
No sign of a start.
Which is how this meeting came to be.
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jak6BYSf6
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsDVS74VCgi
Everyone was gathered around the conference table.
The director had his head bowed so low, he was practically face-down against the surface.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9jgsROhiDQ
Hands on his lap. Completely still.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfX75KIb0B
Deep in thought.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA74xPncBb6
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——11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsywNE9v79
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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRmBsZ9dtpf
But his shoulders twitched.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrLs15T635
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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxG5o0jNldi
Face flushed like he’d just run an 800-meter.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvL1xMDb3KE
Sweat on his brow. Eyes full of hesitation.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxaYPnFSVbs
Then suddenly—like he couldn’t hold it in anymore:
“I said——I’ve never filmed a BL before!!”
The air froze.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgz2SBAX8tP
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!11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTI9upg7dEU
Saliva, Vaseline, body wash, actual lube—I couldn’t even pick one!”
“And the prep! The cleaning! The stretching!11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRa8cdW20Yh
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,11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0bEHAqeQFz
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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsehobVWWJp
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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAAQ0vaeBcs
It’s tension that feels real—something that makes the scene convincing.”
“Right now, the problem isn’t that you can’t shoot it.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gdl6lmv9U
It’s that you don’t know how to make it both believable and beautiful.”
The director nodded again.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqOx2YxU5Mb
Still didn’t lift his head.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf5gtNpcAPQ
But everyone understood.
This wasn’t some unspeakable shame.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FApYf8zvi
Just an honest admission from a creator11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuLANSJZ9d3
facing a story he didn’t yet know how to handle.
And so began what would become11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgfgBdllUMJ
the most awkward—and most sincere—creative meeting in the history of the crew.
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIlG6hfYfO7
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoMt4bGwDlQ
They split up the research.
Analyzing what kinds of scenes wouldn’t overwhelm the actors,11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡua7pVHZ7LA
what kind of movements could hold emotion without slipping into something pornographic.
Even the lighting——11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPCTerX2sl
which angle to shoot from,11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHRdFnBPkG
to avoid making it all look like a cheap adult film.
The manager laid out a timeline.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6rzyLjBrfH
The art lead sketched out framing options.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5A6Axlxyrc
The screenwriter rewrote parts of the scene flow.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvsnwXsQmu3
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.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW9YgxIh2ya
“Why the hell are there so many names for these positions…?”
Only the art lead was positively glowing.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqRADPWBsVM
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.
ns216.73.217.11da2
