This one’s about awkward first times — featuring skinny jeans, bad geometry, and absolutely zero game.

Ariel and Morgan sit down with intimacy coordinator and author Brooke M. Haney to break down the chaotic, vulnerable, and surprisingly tender hookup scenes from Booksmart: a film that proves intimacy on screen doesn’t have to be polished to be powerful.

They get into it all:

• Why awkward intimacy can still be choreographed and is not an excuse to skip process
• The storytelling power of wardrobe choices, body language, and messy logistics (yes, including skinny jeans and sneakers)
• And why representation of imperfect queer intimacy matters when so many people learn about sex from movies

It’s thoughtful, nerdy, hilarious, including shop talk from kit items and choreography language to the very real production challenges of filming intimacy on beaches, in pools, and under rapidly disappearing sunlight.

Buy Brooke's book "A History of Intimacy Professionals in Entertainment" Here!

Buy Brooke's book "The Intimacy Coordinator's Guidebook" Here!

Listen to us on the podcast "Happier in Hollywood" Here!

Want to watch along? Our reaction covers the pool sequence (~1:04:00) and the bathroom hookup scene (Time Code: 1:14:42–1:18:00). We cut around the clips, so it won’t sync perfectly, but you’ll absolutely get the point.

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CREDITS — Booksmart (2019)

Director: Olivia Wilde
Writers: Emily Halpern; Sarah Haskins; Susanna Fogel; Katie Silberman
Producers: Megan Ellison; Jessica Elbaum; Katie Silberman...
Actors: Kaitlyn Dever; Diana Silvers; Victoria Ruesga
Studio: Annapurna Pictures / Gloria Sanchez Productions
© 2019 Annapurna Pictures. All rights reserved.

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