this shoot came together after i finally watched brokeback mountain and thought ‘wow, this is so peak’. gorgeous countryside, horses, beautiful dudes. 5 stars on letterboxd.

when an opportunity came where aryan (@aryan.pulappadi) expressed a similar interest in the idea, i quickly responded with a hell yes, and we were able to make plans from there!

i wanted the shoot to remain true to the country aesthetic, which feels very masculine (and can unfortunately therefore be quite homophobic), and show how this gay romance can be intimate, sexy, and ‘manly’.

in the end, it was very important to me to challenge certain country ideologies in this republican time, but also gay representation and how men can be masculine, hot, and gay simultaneously.

*plus, who doesn’t love a bit of yaoi.