In a new editorial collaboration between NOWNESS and Dazed Beauty, filmmaker Amy Gwatkin presents this satisfyingly sensual study of slime. "We wanted to steer away from Nickelodeon-style sliming, and towards a more close up—but not too serious—exploration of a physical sensation that skirts between disgust and ecstasy," explains the London-based director.

In order to achieve this sublime result, Gwatkin recruited Ami Evelyn Hughes, editor of GUT Magazine, to immerse herself in a sloppy and unlit vat—where the act of being slimed is transformed into a gratifying visual and sonic experience that edges between grossness and greatness.

"Casting Ami was really important because she went that extra mile to actually be fully submerged," explains Gwatkin. "Slime has associations with procreation, protection, putrefaction and the alien, so it was good to work with a palette of greys and beiges as well as pink and green slimes.

"I’m a fan of messy things," Gwatkin continues. "But I came up against my own boundaries shooting this: even the smallest shift towards the ‘wrong’ colour or texture, and the associations become more strongly disgusting than alluring. But disgust can be exciting too."

This is the second episode of Dazed Beauty's Pretty Ugly series, which is dedicated to the beautiful and the gross, and a celebration of what is sublime in the ordinary. You can watch more here.