Intimacy Coordination
Tessa is an intimacy coordinator for film and live theater. She serves as connective tissue between production, director, actors, and other departments to facilitate safe, smooth, and inspired days of performing and shooting scenes involving nudity and/or intimacy.
Tessa will be speaking at the Intimacy Professional Summit!
Curve, stretch, twist, and breath, all while learning some new techniques and language to spice up your choreography. This workshop will weave together gentle modern dance movements with accessible movement practices. Enjoy this chance to move your body while absorbing some practices that will help you support all performers, including those with disabilities. This workshop will provide you with new methods to adjust and adapt your choreography using desexualized language drawn from modern dance.
What is an Intimacy Coordinator?
An Intimacy Coordinator (IC) supports the safety and wellbeing of the cast and crew while helping the director achieve their creative vision. An IC coordinates with other departments to ensure a smooth shoot, establishes consent and boundary practices, and serves as a resource on-set for all cast and crew. They can also help bring scenes to life with choreography and an expert eye for authentic storytelling.
When should I hire an Intimacy Coordinator?
A production should hire an IC for scenes involving nudity, simulated sex or sexual activity, sexual violence, or if an actor or member of the production requests an IC. In addition to supporting the director and actors, Intimacy Coordinators are a resource for everyone working on set.
Why bring Tessa on board?
Tessa brings a sense of calm and grounding to any creative process. Decades spent dancing and acting while fighting Lyme Disease have given her an abundant toolkit of creative and supportive approaches.
She has worked in disability services as both an artist and an advocate, and she is passionate about bringing inclusive practices to film and theater.
An experienced problem-solver, Tessa skillfully balances the needs of the production and creative vision with practices that help each actor do their best work.
Training:
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Mental Health First Aid Certification
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Intimacy Choreography
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Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
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Gender and Sexuality
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Disability in Media
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Accessibility Advocacy
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Modern dance, Ballet, Jazz, Physical Theater, Capoeira, Tai Chi, Droznin