On Friday, the four-part HBO docuseries Sex Diaries premiered with the first two episodes; the remaining two will air on Friday, December 23. The series, spearheaded by Jenny Carchman (“The Fourth Estate,” “Gossip,” HBO’s “One Nation Under Dog”) and produced by Vox Media Studios, is inspired by New York magazine’s popular Sex Diaries series, which began in 2007 and has published over 700 intimate diaries exploring the most personal of topics and a wide range of situations and sexualities. Sex Diaries is available to stream on HBO Max.
Here’s the official description of the Sex Diaries docuseries:
Sex Diaries chronicles eight New Yorkers in short, intimate profile as they navigate sex and dating in the city. The verité portraits are woven together with video diaries that share personal reflections on dating, cultivating relationships and exploring sexual desire, and include check-ins with Alyssa Shelasky, editor of New York Magazine’s “Sex Diaries” column, as diarists recount the ups and downs of their experiences. A contemporary look at a search for connection, Sex Diaries offers a range of unique explorations of sex, intimacy, and relationships today.
Watch the Sex Diaries trailer here:
Of particular note to Residence 11 readers is that sex edutainer Dirty Lola, host of the show Sex Ed A Go Go, who we interviewed here, and who’s one of our keynote speakers at the Residence 11 Desire Summit on Sex and Relationships taking place February 11 in Los Angeles, is one of the New Yorkers who appear in the Sex Diaries docuseries. The series is co-executive produced by Sex Diaries editor Alyssa Shelasky, author of the memoir This Might Be Too Personal (read an excerpt on dating as a single mom).
In a The Cut essay on how she gets people to bare all their intimacies for Sex Diaries, Shelasky wrote:
However it plays out, I try to make the experience as easy as possible for the diarists and to handle them with care. I make sure to protect their trust, and above all else, I never judge anything they tell me. When you tell me you’re having an affair, I will assure you that you’re not evil. When you tell me you’re hurting, I will share that I’ve been there too. When you tell me you’re weird, I will tell you that you’re cool as hell. And I will mean it all. Our relationships last only a few days and are driven by very direct questions and blind faith that we won’t lie to each other, then they’re over.
If watching Sex Diaries inspires you to rev up your own sex life, get tickets to the Desire Summit now. We’ll be live in Los Angeles and livestreaming the exciting one-day event with over 20 speakers to help you have the most fulfilling sex and relationships possible.