Porn 2.0
This week in my column, I’ve gotten everybody’s knickers in a bunch by writing about how the Web has changed the practice of making pornography forever. As evidence, I venture into the incredibly clean, professional offices of Kink, a major adult Web site production house and film studio in downtown San Francisco. With its college-educated staff, feminist-queer sensibility, and cheery shop floor full of Macs, the place feels more like a hip magazine than a place where porn is made. At Kink, I go on the set during a photoshoot for one of the most creative and geeky porn sites out there today, Fuckingmachines. A friendly, genderqueer director named Tomcat offers Satine, the model, some Luna bars and water while making sure she’s comfortable with the lube they’ve chosen. Eventually, Satine has a real orgasm (yes, you can tell the difference). This alone marks a profound shift in porn making, for female orgasms were hardly the goal (or the outcome) of most pre-Web, traditional pornography.
Sure, pornography isn’t for everybody — and certainly Fuckingmachines.com isn’t for everybody. In fact, I’ve preferred text-based porn my whole life because I don’t have to worry that real, live people were bored or upset by making it. But it’s hard to deny that the practice of making porn has become more professional, above-board, and woman-friendly in the age of the Web. Certainly the setting in San Francisco, rather than L.A.’s “porn valley,” contributes to the feminist, hipster feel of this environment. Nevertheless, I came away from the 4-hour shoot feeling that making porn, when done right, can be a fun job.
May 18th, 2006 at 3:26 pm
i like it when you watch.
May 18th, 2006 at 8:35 pm
May 20th, 2006 at 9:20 pm
Do they, or anyone, hire genderqueer models and not call us ‘shemales’?
May 21st, 2006 at 10:14 am
Yes, there are definitely sites that hire genderqueer models, both ftm and mtf. Kink.com’s sites are very queer-friendly, and Tomcat (the director of Fuckingmachines.com) is genderqueer.
May 22nd, 2006 at 3:03 pm
Personally, my knickers are always in a bunch. I like them that way.
May 22nd, 2006 at 3:05 pm
All the kids are wearing bunchy knickers these days. Everything 1890s is hip again!
May 24th, 2006 at 11:39 am
Wow, AlterNet readers are some grumpy-ass mofos. I think more than a few of them need a good rogering by a machine or three.
May 27th, 2006 at 2:34 pm
Porn and intentional community. What more could one ask for from a sexy nerd-babe author?
You go girl!
When’re you going do a piece (with pics!) about the hot, sexy ethical sluts in communities?
May 28th, 2006 at 12:39 pm
When are you going to supply me with the pics?
June 3rd, 2006 at 2:48 pm
They’re all posted at
http://www.ishotanakedcommunard.com
October 31st, 2006 at 10:50 am
[...] Annalee Newitz stirred up some controversy with her story about how the Web has changed the way porn is produced: I venture into the incredibly clean, professional offices of Kink, a major adult Web site production house and film studio in downtown San Francisco. With its college-educated staff, feminist-queer sensibility, and cheery shop floor full of Macs, the place feels more like a hip magazine than a place where porn is made. [...]
January 18th, 2007 at 7:10 pm
Fuckingmachines is a pretty cool place, and the girls do have real orgasms usually. The don’t hire genderqueers for on camera work though. I used to contact there and I now have a porn company that does hire people of all gender persuasion. We do masturbation … and all the orgasms are real.
February 7th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Boots is right — Red Handed Porn is by far one of the best places for a Gender Queer pornstar to go. Another place is Pink & White Productions; their website based on the Crash Pad (www.crashpadseries.com) is very friendly to ftm, mtf, and genderqueer performers.