Sex for Sale~Prostitution, Pornography and the Sex Industry (18 page)

69. Thomas Waugh, “Men’s Pornography: Gay vs. Straight,” in Corey Creekmur and Alexander Doty, eds.,
Out in Culture: Gay, Lesbian, and
Queer Essays on Popular Culture
, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1995; Scott Tucker, “Radical Feminism and Gay Male Porn,” in Michael Kimmel, ed.,
Men Confront Pornography
, New York: Meridian, 1991.

70. Carl F. Stychin, “Exploring the Limits: Feminism and the Legal Regulation of Gay Male Pornography,”
Vermont Law Review
16 (1992): 859–900, at pp. 899–900.

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WOMEN-MADE PORNOGRAPHY

Jill A. Bakehorn

Much of the research on pornography has focused on only a few of its aspects: its effects on attitudes and behaviors toward women,1 other attitudinal changes linked to exposure,2 and analyses of content.3 In addition, some researchers have written ethnographies of pornographic stores4 and others have analyzed antipornography movements.5 Very little research has focused on other important aspects of pornography—such as the actors and creators, its meaning to consumers, and women’s use of it.6

My research adds to this body of literature by studying women who make pornography and particularly those who make porn for a female audience. I examine the production of this type of pornography, how the women become involved in it, and how they view their involvement. While Sharon Abbott’s study (Chapter 2 of this volume) examined actors’ explanations for participation in the mainstream porn industry,7 no research has examined women’s participation in alternative pornography. Abbott reports that women become involved in mainstream pornography for both money and fame. I find very different motivations for women who make alternative pornography.

The chapter begins with a description of the genre of alternative pornography and describes my research methods. I then outline (1) the avenues by which women become involved in alternative pornography and (2) the motives and justifications that underpin their work. Because most of these women are not involved in mainstream pornography and would not consider working in that sector, the reasons for their participation are very different than for women
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involved in the mainstream industry. For most of the former, a sense of purpose or activism is important in both their decision to make pornography and in the types of pornography they make. I identify five main avenues of entry into the world of alternative pornography and then discuss the objectives or motivations for women’s involvement in this sector of the industry.

TH E G E N R E O F W O M E N-M A D E P O R N

The world of women-made pornography is fragmented; it lacks a central location for production and is less established than the mainstream porn industry. This chapter does not provide an exhaustive analysis of women-made porn, but it does examine general patterns based on my research. The study focuses on visual pornography in two main formats: (1) film, including DVDs and streaming video on the Internet, and (2) pornographic websites, which include photo layouts, streaming video, message boards, blogs, and chat rooms. The imagery portrayed can be hardcore, softcore, or educational.

Hardcore is typically defined as showing sexual intercourse—penetration or oral sex. Softcore images depict nude bodies but do not show explicit images of sex. Educational materials can be hardcore or softcore.

Over three-quarters of the women in my study have made DVD films.

These range from hardcore features with a plot and characterization to all-sex

“gonzo porn” to educational films. Over one-third of the women have made videos that are available for streaming or for downloading over the Internet, although this number has probably increased recently with the popularity of this method. In some cases, these videos are being sold both as DVDs and as streaming Internet content.

Nearly half of the women are involved with pornographic websites. The content and administration of these sites varies widely. Some feature hardcore videos, while others focus on softcore and/or hardcore photographs. Websites like Suicide Girls feature a large number of models and focus on softcore, pinup style photos. Potential models submit photos of themselves to the website, and, if accepted, the woman will receive a one-time payment. In addition, models include a personal profile, maintain a blog, and chat with fans online.

About 15% of the women in my study have worked for a site like Suicide Girls, although some are involved with hardcore sites. More than one-tenth of the women in my study have their own websites. These can be soft or hardcore, feature photos only or include video, be strictly solo or include partners who are often other women. Some women create their own sites, called “single girl websites.” These sites feature one girl, who has total control over the content
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and makes money through membership subscriptions. Single girl sites are often very personal and will include a biography, blog or journal, chat rooms, live video feeds, and even essays on various social issues.

Over two-thirds of my interviewees make lesbian, bisexual, or transgender porn and over one-third have made heterosexual porn. These categories can overlap, with some people being involved in both lesbian and heterosexual genres. Nearly one-quarter of the women are involved in making BDSM

(bondage, discipline/domination, and sado-masochism)/fetish pornography. A handful of my informants have connections to the mainstream porn industry; a few actors work in both mainstream and alternative pornography; and a few directors have deals with mainstream companies to produce alternative content.

R E S E A R C H M E TH O D S

I worked on six different pornographic film production sites in San Francisco from May 2006 to April 2007, which totaled 21 production days. I was a production assistant on five of the sites, where my duties included helping the crew set up for the shoots, moving and setting up equipment, running errands, doing paperwork, collecting model identification documents/photographs required by law, and keeping track of the script. I also performed some technical work for which I had no prior experience: I was boom operator on a couple of sets; I assisted with lighting; and on one set, I shot behind-the-scenes footage for inclusion on the website and DVD. At the sixth production site, I was the first assistant director. My duties in this case included many of the same tasks I had performed as a production assistant with additional responsibilities: I ensured that all cast and crew arrived on set on time and received any important information; kept the production on schedule; and kept track of daily expenditures and managed the budget.8 In addition to working on sets, I also attended three film premieres and two cast-and-crew parties. And finally, I examined films, company websites, press releases, and media reports to get a sense of the thematic content.

I started soliciting interviewees by identifying women-run porn companies on the Internet and subsequently used snowball sampling to generate new contacts. Many of my interviewees are women who worked at my field sites. I conducted 72 in-depth interviews with individuals who work in this sector of the porn industry. Almost all of them were women (N = 66); there were two men and four transgenders (female-to-male) in the sample. I interviewed 33 directors and producers, 37 actors (in films) and models (in
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photo shoots), 15 crew members (camera, lighting, etc), four distributors, three documentary filmmakers, and three staff (PR, editors). Many women move between roles or hold multiple roles simultaneously, and many directors are also actors or models. Some had started out as models and became directors and some are directors who also appear in the films they make. Some have made mainstream film pornography. Most are located outside of the San Fernando mainstream industry and are located in San Francisco and New York City. The sample is primarily white (81%); one-tenth were African-American and the rest were Asian, Latina, or mixed race. These numbers reflect the lack of women of color in alternative pornography, a problem cited by a number of interviewees.

Interviews took place via telephone or in person at a location chosen by the respondent—usually a coffee shop, their place of business, or their home.

Interviews ranged from 45 minutes to more than 3 hours. I recorded and transcribed all interviews. Questions included: how they got into the pornography business, their prior work, why they are involved in pornography, the kinds of images they believe important to portray, why women-made porn is significant, whether they identify as feminist, and whether they view their work as activism. Each interview ended with a number of demographic questions. Some of the names used in this chapter are pseudonyms and others are either the person’s real name or their stage name. The decision regarding the use of pseudonyms was made by the participants themselves. Some requested that I use their real name; others wanted their stage names used. If someone did not have a strong preference, she is identified by a pseudonym.

E NTRY I NTO P O R N

The paths that led the women in my study to participate in pornography are varied and complex. Below I identify five main factors that are important in beginning a career in this type of pornography: (1) a background in sex education; (2) an activist stance; (3) an artistic background; (4) previous involvement in sex work; and (5) a connection to porn through a friend or lover. These are not discrete categories: people rarely enter porn through a single avenue but usually via a combination of two or more. Training in sex education coupled with feminist sensibilities and a background in filmmaking, for example, may all be important paths of entry.

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Background in Sex Education

Overall, nearly half of the women in my study have a background in sex education. A few received formal education in sexology, earning a master’s or doctorate, while others had gone through training programs but did not receive a degree. Some of these women used their expertise to make their own films and many of their films have an overt educational message. Dorrie, for example, put her sex education politics into practice by making sex educational videos:

At the time that I made my first video, it was a sex video on sex parties and safe sex issues for women, and the CDC didn’t even admit that women could transmit HIV to other women . . . and this was back in the early eighties, they had all these guidelines about how to define a lesbian and it just didn’t fit, it wasn’t reality. And so there was no information basically for women-to-women transmission. So, from there I became a real activist in [issues regarding]

predominantly lesbian but [also] bisexual women and the issues of safe sex and how STIs and STDs and HIV infect us. . . . There was no teaching and the only example of education was in porn. And it wasn’t very good, it wasn’t very helpful, it wasn’t woman-dominated. It just wasn’t the vision that I was looking for, so I created my own.

Many of those with a sex education background got their training, knowledge, and desire for education by working for a sex toy store. Such stores are typically run by women and provide training in sex education, including anatomy, sexual practices, safe sex, and the use of the products sold in the store.

These stores often have a mission statement citing sex education as a primary goal. Employees interact with and provide information to customers who have questions, and many also run workshops. Examples of sex toy shops include large companies with multiple locations like
Good Vibrations
in the San Francisco Bay Area and
Babeland
with locations on the east and west coasts, as well as single stores typically run by one or two women. Oriana, a queer woman of color, received her training in sex education from one of these sex toy shops. She then went on to write, direct, and star in a hardcore, educational film made by and for queer women of color. She brought together women from various sex educational backgrounds:

Everyone who signed on to be a part of this movie signed on not because there was some gigantic paycheck. . . . All of us were educators in our own way. Every single person who was a character in the film is someone who comes from a
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background of either advocacy or health or having been sex workers themselves or being performance poets that talk about these issues. Every single one of us in that film are coming from a place of looking for a platform to get out there what we think the world needs to know.

Not all the women who had a sex education background decided to make educational videos; some took the hardcore feature route instead, but still tied their decisions to their sex ed background. Many of the women discussed the lack of formal sex education in this country and believed that pornography, while not overtly advertised as sex education, nonetheless serves this function for the public in lieu of information anywhere else. They reason that if pornography is teaching people about sex, people should be taught accurate, responsible information.

Activism

Many of the women were or are actively involved in a wide variety of activist pursuits. These include issues of women’s health and reproduction, sex positivity, feminism, and identity politics (gender, sexuality, race), but also the environment and economic justice. For those with a sex education background, making pornography, especially porn that is overtly educational, is an extension of their activist work. It was sometimes difficult, however, to ascertain whether an activist stance was the primary factor leading to involvement in pornography, was a philosophy that women came to espouse after beginning the work, or was simply a narrative justifying the work. In any case, for most of the women, taking an activist stance on issues of gender, sexuality, and race are important aspects of the work they do outside of pornography. Within the world of alternative porn, women draw on activist or progressive ideologies to inform their work, set priorities, create mission statements, and devise marketing strategies. There are three main types of activism: