IDC Boundary Setting & Advocacy 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An actor discloses a boundary during a pre-production intimacy meeting but later says they feel comfortable ignoring it on set. What is the IDC's recommended response?
- Honor the original boundary and privately check in with the actor before proceeding (Correct answer)
- Accept the on-set statement as the updated consent and move forward
- Inform the director that the boundary was formally waived
- Document the change without further conversation
Correct answer: Honor the original boundary and privately check in with the actor before proceeding
Boundaries disclosed in a safe context may be walked back under social pressure on set, so the intimacy coordinator must privately verify the actor's true comfort level.
Question 2: Which term describes the phenomenon where a performer agrees to something on set due to power dynamics rather than genuine willingness?
- Enthusiastic consent
- Coerced compliance (Correct answer)
- Informed refusal
- Boundary expansion
Correct answer: Coerced compliance
Coerced compliance occurs when hierarchical pressure causes a performer to comply without genuine consent, which intimacy coordinators are trained to identify and interrupt.
Question 3: During a table read, a writer jokes that a sex scene 'doesn't really need an intimacy coordinator.' As the IC, your best first step is to:
- Publicly confront the writer to establish authority
- Privately educate the writer and producer about the IC's role in risk management (Correct answer)
- Agree and offer to consult only if actors request it
- Escalate immediately to the union
Correct answer: Privately educate the writer and producer about the IC's role in risk management
A private, collaborative conversation with key stakeholders is the most effective way to build support for the IC's role without creating adversarial dynamics.
Question 4: An actor's contract stipulates a nudity rider prohibiting genital exposure. On the day, the director requests a longer shot that would violate this. The IC should:
- Allow the shot if the actor verbally agrees on set
- Halt the shot and remind the director of the contractual limitation (Correct answer)
- Defer to the producer's on-set decision
- Let the actor decide without intervention
Correct answer: Halt the shot and remind the director of the contractual limitation
Contractual nudity riders are legally binding documents, and the IC must enforce them regardless of in-the-moment verbal agreement, which cannot override the written contract.
Question 5: What is the primary purpose of a 'no list' in intimacy coordination?
- To list scenes the director does not want in the film
- To document specific acts, body parts, or scenarios a performer will not engage in (Correct answer)
- To identify crew members prohibited from the closed set
- To record post-production edits requested by talent
Correct answer: To document specific acts, body parts, or scenarios a performer will not engage in
A 'no list' catalogs each performer's explicit limits, giving the IC and production a concrete reference for what must never be requested or choreographed.
Question 6: When advocating for a performer's boundary that conflicts with the director's creative vision, the IC's most effective framing is to:
- Remind the director that union rules require compliance
- Present alternative choreography that achieves the creative intent within the performer's limits (Correct answer)
- Threaten to halt production if the boundary is crossed
- Ask the performer to reconsider their boundary for artistic reasons
Correct answer: Present alternative choreography that achieves the creative intent within the performer's limits
Offering creative alternatives positions the IC as a problem-solver rather than an obstacle, making boundary enforcement more sustainable and collaborative.
Question 7: A co-star repeatedly makes off-script physical contact with a performer during blocking. The affected performer has not spoken up. The IC should:
- Wait for the performer to report the issue themselves
- Interrupt the rehearsal and address the unauthorized contact directly with both actors and the director (Correct answer)
- Report only to HR after the shoot day is complete
- Coach the affected performer on how to self-advocate later
Correct answer: Interrupt the rehearsal and address the unauthorized contact directly with both actors and the director
The IC has a duty to intervene immediately when unauthorized physical contact occurs, even if the performer has not yet spoken up, because power dynamics may silence them.
IDC Boundary Setting & Advocacy 2
An actor discloses a boundary during a pre-production intimacy meeting but later says they feel comfortable ignoring it on set.
What is the IDC's recommended response?