"There is so much bad porn out there. A lot of it is really, really bad — not just sexist but racist, too," organiser Chanelle Gallant told AFP by telephone from Toronto.

"We wanted to celebrate filmmakers who are making really great porn, the kind that makes us feel good about sex, makes us feel good about our bodies and treats sex as something fun and good," she said.

Some 300 guests from the United States and Canada attended the awards ceremony at a chic century-old hotel on Toronto's west side, including the so-called leading lady of female erotica, Candida Royalle, and producers Tristan Taormino — whom organizers described as the "gonzo butt queen" — Dana Dane, Abiola Adams and Jen Bowers.

Eleven awards were handed out in three categories: porn flicks that depict "genuine female pleasure" or "women having a good time", films that were produced or directed by women, and adult movies that "expand the range of pleasure for women", Gallant said.

There was also be a naughty poetry reading, sneak previews of upcoming porn titles, a roundtable discussion with directors and a burlesque show.

"It's only for North America right now, because I don't know the overseas industries well enough, but we hope to branch out in the future," Gallant said.

From the Toronto Eye Weekly ...

6/1/06 - Will history remember the moment when Chanelle Gallant created the first Feminist Porn Awards in the world? Let's hope.

Gallant, the manager of Toronto sex store Good For Her, admits the ceremony is long overdue: "When I first thought this up, I said to myself, 'Someone else must have thought of this.' So I Googled it. Nothing. Zero. Zip. Google 'feminist porn [awards],' you'll see it doesn't exist except for us."

Tristan Taormino, invited guest, author of The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women and former International Ms Leather, concurs. When asked what she's most excited about, Taormino responds giddily, "That they're even happening!"

"Good porn is a human right," Gallant says. "I think we deserve to have good sexual images that make us feel good about ourselves and about sex." Tonight's awards ceremony is meant to inspire those who are making porn and to act as a guide for viewers.

And what is the Pepsi difference with feminist porn? For Gallant, there are three criteria that determine whether porn is feminist. The first is that the film shows women getting their fair share of pleasure. "So, real female orgasms, and women are actually having a good time. That's first and foremost." Second is that the work be directed or produced by a woman. And third is that it expand the range of female sexual expression currently seen. These criteria still include male filmmakers, as long as they can come in with two out of three. "And we have to think it's hot," she laughs.

Taormino, who recently produced a reality-style video cheekily titled House of Ass, says that the definition of feminist pornography is different for everyone, but for her it is about the work environment, which she stresses must be ethical "with fair work standards just as for someone working anywhere else. I also want to empower the people, both the men and the women, to participate in the process and how their sexuality is represented rather than simply telling them what to do and have them act it out for me." But if you're thinking "feminist porn" means granola and moon goddesses, take in the House of Ass trailer on Taormino's website; the end result is still hard as rock candy.

Also appearing on a panel is Toronto director Angela Phong. She says she makes things that she would want to see. "And I'm not male," she laughs -- laughter is common among female smut peddlers. "Any change of the person behind the camera changes the product. And that doesn't mean it's not dirty. Of course it's going to be dirty. How can you make not-dirty porn?"

Hushed reverence from all involved is reserved for guest of honour director/producer Candida Royalle, a well-decorated star of 25 adult films, who launched the now well-known concept of "couples erotica" in 1984 when she founded Femme Productions, Inc. At that time, she met resistance to the idea that women could be visually stimulated.

"I'm really excited after doing this for 20 years that the new generation of women is starting to pick up on seizing control of the means of production, voicing their own ideas and visions and bringing their visions to light," Royalle enthuses. "I look forward to seeing what comes out of all of it."

Lips are sealed about the award categories and nominations, especially what the Emma Award -- named for feminist Emma Goldman -- will look like. "No one is allowed to know that, on pain of death," Gallant insists, though she does reveal that Josey Vogels of My Messy Bedroom fame is one of the presenters, as is Globe and Mail columnist Russell Smith. Russell Smith at the Feminist Porn Awards? "I have a little crush on him -- on his writing," Gallant admits. "A couple of years ago, he wrote an article for Toro on the future of porn where he said that women were the future."

Royalle is slightly wary and is not convinced that porn produced by men and porn produced by women differs much yet, but believes there's definitely room for imagination, new voice, new vision, new ideas: "I'm counting on the girls to do it."

Some Ads ...

On June 1, Good For Her is hosting a night celebrating feminist porn. Vixens+Visionaries: Female Erotic Directors Revolutionizing Porn will bring together 6 rockin’ female porn producers from NYC, California and Toronto for a discussion, Q+A, performances and the first ever feminist porn awards. You can get tix online at http://www.goodforher.com or in store or by calling 416-588-0900. Please buy in advance as we are expecting to sell out!

VIXENS & VISIONARIES: Female Erotic Directors Revolutionizing Porn
When: Thu, Jun 01, 2006
Time: Doors @ 7pm
Where: the gladstone ballroom
Type: special event
Cover: $15
Website: www.goodforher.com
Featuring:
The leading lady of female erotica Candida Royalle
+ the new generation of feminista porn producers:
Tristan Taormino (gonzo butt queen)
Dana Dane (malibu lesbian pornographer)
Abiola Adams (feminist hip hop indie director)
Jen Bowers
Premiere screening of clips from Tristan Taormino's House of Ass
Sneak previews of new work by Candida Royalle, Abiola Adams, FleshStar Productions, ErocktaVision
Roundtable and Q+A
The first ever Feminist Porn Awards
Burlesque! porn-poetry! DJ Winnie spinning the after-party!
Advance Tickets @ Good For Her, 175 Harbord Street 416.588.0900

Vixens + Visionaries X-rated celebration of legendary and emerging female porn directors, roundtable discussion and the Feminist Porn Awards. 7:30 pm. $15, after-party only $5. Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen W. 416-588-0900.

Thursday June 1 - Toronto’s first ever Feminist Porn Awards @ Gladstone Hotel Ballroom. Good For Her Book Store presents Vixens+Visionaries: an x-rated celebration of female porn directors and the first ever Feminist Porn Awards. Vixens+ Visionaries will feature the leading lady of female erotica, Candida Royalle. and the new generation of feminista porn producers: Tristan Taormino (Ultimate Gd to Anal Sex, House Of Ass) Dana Dane (ErocktaVision) Angela Phong (Pornograflics) Abiola Adams (Femme Productions) Jen Bowers (SMUT Magazine) § Highlights of new work by female erotic directors § Roundtable and Q+A § The first ever Feminist Porn Awards. § Porn-a-licious performances by CoCo La Crème & Sexy Mark Brown (Skin Tight Outta Sight Burlesque) and more. § Live video mixing by Roxxxy. Guest presenters Josey Vogels (My Messy Bedroom), Russell Smith (Globe and Mail), Rebecca Rosenblatt (Dr. Date) and more. Gladstone Hotel Ballroom. 1214 Queen st. west at Dufferin. 8 pm (doors at 7:30) $15 ($5 for afterparty only) Tickets: www.goodforher.com ~ Telephone: 416-588-0900 ~in-store at 175 Harbord St. | Queer West Village Toronto, Ontario.

From Tristan Taormino ...

Village Voice, 6/8/06 - Last week, when I boarded a plane at Toronto Pearson International Airport to return to New York, nestled in my carry-on bag was a prized possession. Wrapped securely in red tissue paper was a clear glass butt plug mounted on a small pedestal with an engraved brass plaque that read "2006 Feminist Porn Award." My trophy (for Hottest Anal Adventure) was one of 11 handed out at "Vixens + Visionaries: Female Erotic Directors Revolutionizing Porn," a symposium–awards show–party that drew more than 300 people to the century-old Gladstone Hotel on June 1. The event was produced by local feminist sex shop Good for Her (goodforher.com), which just celebrated its ninth year of bringing sex-positive products and workshops to Canada's largest city.

The evening began with a roundtable discussion among five feminist pornographers: Candida Royalle of Femme Productions (royalle.com) and her newest protégée, Abiola Abrams; Erocktavision director Dana Dane; S.M.U.T. Magazine editrix Jen Bowers (showmethesmut.com); Angela Phong, director of Pornograflics; and me. It was an honor to sit among such a diverse group of women at this particular moment in my life. I've directed three movies and written extensively about the adult industry, but only recently has making porn taken a more central role. I'm becoming practically a full-time pornographer, and it's inspiring to hear from other working women in a field that's not exactly overflowing with feminists.

After we responded to questions about everything from finding performers to shooting strap-on sex, moderator CoCo La Créme asked us to answer one more: "What turns you on?" Her query elicited laughs, but it got to the heart of the matter: We are all attempting to create images, stories, and works that female and male viewers can relate to, feel inspired by, and find sexy and arousing. It's no easy task, considering how diverse our sexual identities and fantasies are.

After the panel came the awards ceremony. "We came up with the idea for the Feminist Porn Awards because people don't know they have a choice when it comes to porn," said Chanelle Gallant, manager of Good for Her and the event's organizer. "Yes, there's a lot of bad porn out there. But there is also some great porn being made by and for women. We wanted to recognize and celebrate the good porn makers as well as direct people to their work." Selected by the Good for Her staff, winning films had to meet at least two of the following criteria: A woman was substantially involved in the creation of the film as producer, director, or cameraperson; the film portrays real orgasms, and women getting their fair share of genuine pleasure; and the film expands the range of sexual expressions for women. Unlike other porn awards, which focus on performers, the majority of the Emmas (named for early anarchist and feminist pioneer Emma Goldman) went to filmmakers. Candida Royalle received a lifetime achievement award. Her work has clearly paved the way for the rest of us. She began making what she called "erotic films from a woman's point of view" in the 1980s, when the mainstream industry balked at the idea that women, alone or with their partners, watched—let alone enjoyed—porn.

Lots of people commented that we were making history that night just as Candida did 20 years ago. I wondered if, a decade from now, we'd sit in a greenroom with a spread sponsored by Ms. magazine, sifting through our gift bags of limited-edition gold-plated vibrators, portable DVD players, and designer lube and think, "Remember 2006 at that funky hotel, when it was standing room only?" I hope the Feminist Porn Awards continue to happen, since their mere existence is significant; say the phrase to anyone and it sparks confusion, contemplation, debate, or the obvious question: What the hell is feminist porn?

Some say no porn could ever be feminist. Lots of us disagree. But that doesn't mean we agree on what it is: each filmmaker defines her or his work differently. For me, feminist porn is about character, choice, and consciousness. I like to collaborate with performers on how their sexuality is represented, rather than give them a script or formula to follow. I want to capture complex, three-dimensional beings rather than stereotypes, to create an open environment that's safe for everyone—especially women—to take charge of their pleasure and be able to express their desires freely. I want to represent sex as positive, fun, healthy, and adventurous. I consciously work to create images that contradict (and hopefully challenge) other porn that represents women only as objects and vehicles for male pleasure.

In my chosen porn genre, gonzo (the cinema vérité of porn, unscripted, where the camera is acknowledged), the trend is toward hardcore imagery that supports every anti-porn feminist's claim that porn is degrading and offensive. Its emphasis is on rough (often bordering on hostile) sex, circus-like stunts, and what I call impalement contests (how many things can we fit into how many orifices simultaneously?). I'm not saying all gonzo is bad or all rough sex exploitative by nature, but a lot of it has become very one-sided. The lack of female pleasure in porn just sucks. I mean, if you're going to go to the trouble of sticking a girl's head in the toilet, you damn well better give her an awesome orgasm.

Feminist porn both responds to dominant images with alternative ones and creates its own iconography. In one speech during the evening, the speaker shouted, "Take over the means of production!" The new porn may involve naked people fucking, but that doesn't mean there isn't an agenda or message behind it. Although some auteurs wouldn't call their smut political, I think making porn can be a political act, just as valid and valuable as other forms of activism within the women's movement. Although I am trying to make a different kind of porn, once I put it out in the world, I can't control how it's received. Some people may grasp what I'm trying to do; others may simply see a hot fuck film that turns them on. Ideally, people get it and get off on it.

This page contains copyrighted material and is made available to better understand pornography, e.g., its effect on society. It is distributed without profit to those who have an interest in receiving the information for research and educational purposes.