FEELD ANNOUNCES MINDF*CK WITH HANNAH EINBINDER, DR. ORNA GURALNIK, MIRANDA JULY, MINDY SEU, KARLEY SCIORTINO

LOS ANGELES, CA, OCTOBER 21 – Today, Feeld, the dating app for the curious, announces Mindf*ck, an intimacy forum imagining new ways of understanding connection and desire, taking over Los Angeles’ Hammer Museum on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. While most of the dating industry is still trying to fix dating as we know it, Feeld asks a different question: “What happens when we stop looking for the right way to connect, and start imagining what else might be possible?”  

Headlining the day are actor and comedian Hannah Einbinder; psychoanalyst Dr. Orna Guralnik of Couples Therapy; and artist, filmmaker, and author Miranda July. They'll be joined by writer and performer Alok, artist and technologist Mindy Seu, writer and host Karley Sciortino, and more. Mindf*ck subverts the traditional conference panel, designed as a playground, where artists, academics and the Feeld community will come together through conversations, performances, and unexpected encounters to examine intimacy from different perspectives and imagine what else might be possible.

Across the programme, guests will explore the forces shaping how we connect now, from the changing dynamics of desire and availability online, and the impact of algorithms on attraction, to the limits of traditional relationship structures and the shifting meaning of masculinity. Discussions will challenge familiar assumptions around marriage, monogamy and courtship, while exploring what relationship anarchy, kink and non-conventional family structures might teach us about consent, pleasure, freedom and connection.

The programme also makes space for the messier, more human side of intimacy: breakups and renewal, shame and vulnerability, comedy and desire, and the unexpected ways intimacy finds its way into culture and everyday life. From writers and artists examining heartbreak and contemporary relationships, to researchers unpacking how people are connecting and what shapes their desires, Mindf*ck brings together different disciplines and perspectives rather than offering a single prescription for how we should live or love.

"So much of what we feel around intimacy, desire and even identity is shaped by shame we've picked up along the way, without ever asking whether we actually believe any of it," said Hannah Einbinder. "Carrying around someone else's discomfort is very generous, but at some point, enough is enough. We don't need everything figured out to have an honest conversation about desire. We can ask questions, challenge assumptions and laugh a little along the way."

“Intimacy means something different to different people. What makes one person feel close can make another feel exposed. Understanding what each person needs - and being able to communicate that - takes space and curiosity.” said Dr. Orna Guralnik. “In my work, meaningful breakthroughs happen when someone says the things they’ve been too scared to say out loud. It would be interesting to see what happens if such a space is created for a whole room of Feeld’s community.”

“By the standards I was raised with, I'm basically a cautionary tale: in my 40s, single, never been married, no kids,” said Karley Sciortino. “Nobody warned me that this version of life might be really great too. (I was only warned about crow's feet and dying alone.) I think it's so exciting that we're living in a time when more and more people are questioning the rules we've been handed about how we're supposed to date, have sex, and build a life.”

The old scripts are losing their power

The old rules around dating, relationships and intimacy are losing their power, but the new ones haven’t been written. Mindf*ck takes that conversation off the app, creating space to step outside the fray, let go of old thinking and consider connection differently.

Mindf*ck isn’t about definitive answers. Instead, guests will leave with fresh perspectives and possibilities. Through immersive workshops, talks and intimate salons, guests will have the space to examine those questions together and put new ideas into practice, because the future of intimacy has to be imagined together.

“It’s a strange time to be dating. We've never had more choice, more freedom or more ways to connect. Yet somehow, dating has become more formulaic, more prescriptive, and arguably less human,” said Lani Kuramoto, Feeld's Chief Marketing Officer. “Our members have never been particularly interested in following a script, and neither have we. Mindf*ck is about bringing people together who see things differently and aren’t afraid to question the rules we've inherited about intimacy and human connection. Not to arrive at one right answer, but to challenge what we've come to accept, make room for different possibilities, and rethink what connection can look like.”

Program Highlights

• Are we Over-Therapizing Love?

  As therapy and “therapy speak” have become part of everyday life, how has the way we talk about intimacy, desire and relationships changed? Dr. Orna Guralnik and Karley Sciortino explore what happens when the language and frameworks of therapy move beyond the consulting room and into contemporary common vernacular - questioning what they help us understand, what they might obscure, and what new possibilities they could open up for how we think about love and connection.

• The State of Dating

  Dr. Justin Lehmiller, Feeld’s Sy Dusk and The Cut’s Alyssa Shelasky together decode the data behind modern desire, exploring the gap between what people say they want in dating and what they actually choose. Offering a rare look at the desires, behaviors, and surprising contradictions shaping modern dating: what are people secretly searching for?

• The Art of Articulating Desire

  Haley Mlotek is joined by Miranda July to discuss words of affirmation, how writers and artists find language for desire, capturing the complexity of contemporary sex, sexuality, and intimacy in ways that feel both recognisable and new. Discover words on heartbreak, eroticism, fantasy, and liberation in this invitation to rewrite and reimagine the myriad possibilities of desire itself.

• Denier Salon

  Artist and technologist Mindy Seu, Alice Scope and Haley Albert invite guests into an intimate, participatory salon where confession, fantasy, poetry and personal revelation blur the line between performance and vulnerability.

Alongside the programme, guests will encounter a series of experiences designed to explore intimacy beyond conversation, engaging the senses, imagination and the wider culture around connection.

• Screening & Afters for Club Kid with A24

  Jordan Firstman’s triumphant feature directorial debut Club Kid comes to life at Mindf*ck, creating an embodied ending to a day of thinking. 

Celebrating the release of A24’s Club Kid and the ending of Mindf*ck, enter a scene worthy of Jordan Firstman’s triumphant feature directorial debut. Mindf*ck draws to a close with an invitation to dance your way to openness and connection at the Club Kid Afterparty, with a special DJ set soundscaped by Saturn Risin9, actress and recording artist featured in the film. Attendees will also be invited to a special screening of the film around the Forum.

• The Erotic Library, curated by The Kinsey Institute

  The Kinsey Institute – the world’s leading authority on sex research for 80 years – opens the Erotic Library at Mindf*ck. Its collection uncovers banned or controversial literature alongside the findings of Feeld’s State of Dating report.

• Aural Fixation with NTS

  Music platform NTS provides an ambient soundscape, inviting listeners to explore how music can open us up to intimacy. Founded in London and broadcasting worldwide, music platform NTS brings a selection of ambient soundscapes to Mindf*ck, offering space to slow down, tune in and connect.

• The Scent of Desire by DS & Durga

  DS & Durga built their cult-favorite Brooklyn perfume house by transforming stories into scents. At Mindf*ck, desires are turned into personal scent pairings, opening up ways to explore intimacy via our olfactory sense.

Mindf*ck takes place on November 11 at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles. The Forum is invite-only, with priority access given to Feeld members. The full program, including talks, salons and workshops, will be announced soon. For more information, visit Mindf*ck 2026 by Feeld | Exploring Intimacy and follow along at @feeldco.

About Feeld: Feeld is the dating app for the curious; those open to experiencing people and relationships in new ways. Founded in 2014 by Ana Kirova and Dimo Trifonov after questioning the status quo of their own relationship, they were inspired to challenge cultural scripts around gender, sexuality, and dating on a global scale. Feeld’s ever-evolving platform creates a safer space online and IRL for people to explore their curiosities outside of existing blueprints and find meaningful human connections of all kinds. Feeld has led with a progressive mindset since its inception, pioneering a remote-first work model with a globally distributed team. With over 20 sexuality and gender options in-app and growing, Feeld is a space for the experiences that make us feel alive and most intimately connected to ourselves and others. Learn more at feeld.co.