In February this year, the New Yorker published this article. It was an article entitled ‘The Sex Scene Is Dead. Long Live the Sex Scene’. The article’s theme, in the form of a dialogue, was whether sex scenes in feature films are declining and moving to dramas such as Euphoria. The article is an interview with the New Yoker’s staff, which begins with the question. The depiction of sex in Euphoria is indeed quite extreme. On the other hand, as this article shows, the focus of recent high-profile films has been on spectacular experiences, such as Marvel’s franchise films. The depiction of sex in public seems to have been suppressed (An article in playboy by Kate Hagen, posted in 2019, states that sex in film peaked in the 1990s and is at its lowest rate since 1960 as of 2019).

So what about TV in Euphoria? To begin with, let us look at the changes in TV. Marieke Jenner proposes the concept of ‘TVIV’. This refers to a new era in television, including streaming (Jenner, 2018). In this context, the concept of Trans TV was proposed by Goddard and Hogg (2018). This refers to changes in television technology and industry that have led to the portrayal of queer, trans and ethnically diverse characters. Sense8 (2015-2018) and Transparent (2014-) are examples. In this context, HBO’s 2019 release of Euphoria plays a very symbolic role. (It has now been released up to season 2). To return to the beginning of the story, in Euphoria, there are pretty graphic expressions, including sexual descriptions. In addition, the representation of Trans TV sexuality and social issues are also presented in a very realistic way. The post-cinematic direction of the production company, A24, is also remarkable (music and images are closely linked like a music video very effectively due to Drake’s involvement).

It can be seen that the content portrayal of drama productions, such as Euphoria, which is considered Trans TV, has changed significantly.

On the other hand, as mentioned at the beginning, the ‘film ‘places more emphasis on spectacle. This has been noted by Elsaesser and others, who point out the similarities with early cinema(Elsaesser, 2016). In short, film and TV development have led to a significant change in content trends. The impact on the content of changes in streaming and multi-device phases such as TVIV and Trans TV has also affected film (which can be said to be mutually influencing each other) and is resulting in a significant change in the content industry. The changes in the sex scene discussed in the New Yorker may be one of the effects of the above-mentioned itinerant changes.

References

• Alexandra Schwartz, V.C. (2022) The sex scene is dead. long live the sex scene, The New Yorker. Available at: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-interview/the-sex-scene-is-dead-long-live-the-sex-scene (Accessed: November 30, 2022).

• Hagen, K. (2019) The Black List’s Kate Hagen explores sex in Cinema – Playboy, The Playboy Symposium: Sex in Cinema. Available at: https://www.playboy.com/read/the-playboy-symposium-sex-in-cinema (Accessed: November 30, 2022).

• Mareike Jenner (2019). Netflix And The Re-Invention Of Television. S.L.: Palgrave Macmillan.

• Goddard, M.N. and Hogg, C. (2018) “Introduction: Trans TV as concept and intervention into contemporary television,” Critical Studies in Television: The International Journal of Television Studies, 13(4), pp. 470–474. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/1749602018798217.

• ELSAESSER, T.H.O.M.A.S. (2016) Film history as Media Archaeology. AMSTERDAM University PRES.

Kenji Shimada 30/11/2022