The team behind a new Sydney-based reality series has responded after a filming notice at Bondi Beach appeared to tell “non-attractive” people to stay out of camera range.
The sign, placed near the Bondi Pavilion, advised beachgoers that filming was underway for FLEX, described as a “micro-reality” series following eight “good-looking Bondi locals”. “If you enter this area, you may be captured on film,” the sign read. “If you think you’re fit and/or attractive enough to get featured in the background, please make yourself known to our production team. If you feel this isn’t you, please stay out of the shot.”
The wording quickly drew criticism online. In the Bondi Local Loop Facebook group and on Reddit, people described the sign as “exclusionary” and “f***ed up”. “Is this satire or real?” one person asked. “I thought this was parody,” another wrote. One commenter said it gave them the “ick” and they felt “ill” reading it, while another called it “so vain it’s pathetic”.
Ben Davies, founder of production company Ronde, said the tone was intentional and was designed to lean into the Eastern Suburbs stereotype. “FLEX features fit and attractive people, trying to navigate life, career, love and body image in the Eastern suburbs,” Davies said. “There is a very strong association of the Eastern Suburbs with vanity and elitism, so it was a running joke for the Ronde team to lean into this perception during filming in a way that can drive a bit of conversation around what it is we’re making. “We wanted the public to ask questions, speak to the producers and spread the word.”
He added that while the sign drew plenty of backlash online, some locals engaged with it in person, including members of nearby run clubs who approached the team, with some “nominating themselves” to appear in the background.
