photographs and films.
Her own site. furrygirl.com. is simply pictures of herself. shot in her own house. occasionally with partners. As her name suggests. Furry (iirl takes a ‘pro-body hair‘ position that Roche would approve of. She also runs specialist sites lirotic Red. which is devoted to menstruation. and Veg l’orn (no, not funny-looking carrots all the models are vegetarian). On her sites. yoti‘ll find links to a huge range of sites. the vast majority run by women. describing themselves as part of the ‘sex positive‘ movement.
‘lt‘s porn. but produced outside of the typical “Porn Valley“ stuff.‘ she explains. ‘You‘ll find a wider range of body shapes and si/es. models with tattoos and piercings and other body mods. and a broader spectrum of genders and sexual orientations represented.‘
‘I don‘t think any woman looks at a (‘hippendale and thinks. “(‘or! 'l‘hat‘s exactly what I wantl‘" observes Anna Span. a feminist porn director who has. over the past few years. become the figurehead for female-focused porn in the UK. If you‘ve ever picked tip a DVD on a covert visit to Ann Summers. chances are Span will have been behind it. She came to the adult film industry from a fine art and academic background. studying at St Martin‘s (‘ollege in London. She‘s been running her production company. liasy ()n The liye. since she graduated in 1998. and currently trains other women who want to direct.
‘lt‘s lots of little differences that make the big difference. We always try and get the best looking guys in otir films. and a third of my camera angles focus on the man. rather than just looking at the women the whole time. so it looks as it would if you were experiencing the sex yourself. I also try and establish short. soap opera-like storylines. so that by the time the sex scene starts. about four minutes in. the characters have really had a chance to develop. You can tell the porn stars in my films are genuinely having a good time.‘
She‘s very clear that pornography shot for female consumers does not have to be any softer than mainstream films marketed at men.
‘I still make hardcore tapes. My films contain all the acts you‘d lind anywhere else. I just don‘t do it in a misogynistic way.‘
limma Sayles. who runs upscale. glamourous. female-focused sex parties through her company Killing Kittens. is equally direct. ‘The problem with the sex industry is that it is still mainly run by men. and unlike other . financially-focused businesses. those men get into it very much for their own. ah. interests.‘
Sayles knows what she‘s talking about. At 25. as a freelance PR. she began working for The
I DON'T THINK ANY WOMAN LOOKS AT A CHIPPENDALE AND THINKS ‘COR!’
roster. including the porn star Ron Jeremy.
‘I got tired of the sleazy men in that world. I began working with a company who ran upmarket swingers‘ parties. They claimed that they were very female-focused. btit they were run by men. and it was really just a ploy to get more women in. I began to see that there was a demand for an area where these lovely. young professional women I was meeting could do their own thing.‘
Sayles claims she launched Killing Kittens ‘for a laugh‘. bill the company has been going for almost three years now. with over (i.()()() members registered on the website. and regular London-based parties pulling in 300 revellers at a time. What‘s unique about Killing Kittens. both the parties and the website. is that women call all of the shots. Men are only allowed to attend the parties as part of a couple. and when there. they‘re strictly regulated by rules that prohibit them from touching or even approaching women to initiate intimacy. ()n the website. where members who can‘t get to London organise their own parties. men are similarly restricted. in order to create the sort of experience her members want. Sayles. who is branching out in lidinburgh later this year. is completely unabashed about the membership criteria —— all potential Kittens are vetted by appearance. age. and charisma.
As the furore surrounding the publication of
Wetlands has shown. there‘s a very vocal segment of the population ready to accuse women who embrace pornography of some sort of treachery.
‘liver since the l‘)8()s. pornography has split
feminism.‘ says Span. a very vocal member of
the group Feminists Against Censorship. ‘l‘ve always considered myself a feminist. and I‘ve always liked sex. What I find strange about anti-pornography lobbies. like Scottish Women Against Pornography. is that they‘re happy to team up with right wing (‘hristian groups ~— historically. the people who‘ve oppressed women‘s rights — so they can all fight pornography together. I think that stinks. Why spend your time talking about and failing to thwart male sexuality. when. by exploring female sexuality you can set the foundations for a much more positive way of thinking."
Wetlands is published by 4th Estate on Thu 5 Feb. See www.annaspansdiary.com
Anna Span (left), with the crew and cast members on set; a Killing Kittens kidnap experience. Charlotte Roche‘s Wetlands
WHERE IS THE LOVE?
With Valentine's Day landing at the weekend this year, there is ample opportunity for those hoping for a love injection on the dance floor
Love will be in the air like a tropical smog on 14 February. and every club and bar you walk into will be playing up the love hearts and cheap shots (of Aftershock). So what about all the old romantics. where do they go? Here's where.
Swinging lovers on both sides of the country will find themselves at home at either Scotland's premier evening of burlesque naughtiness Old) Noir. whose Valentine's event comes with an Obsession theme (02 Academy, Glasgow), or the Vegas! Vderltine‘s Day Ball (Cabaret Voltaire. Edinburgh). where lounge lizards and lizardettes can head for the VEGAS! Chapel of Everlasting Love. Don't worry, it isn't legal. and s/he won't be getting — in the words of Eddie Murphy — hall yo' shit in the morning.
Meanwhile. the girls at Pretty My (Admiral. Glasgow) are laying down an unusual challenge for the night: to ‘dress like you want to be kissed‘. Then there's Carnival (Caves. Edinburgh one day early on 13 Feb). a new night of performance and burlesque based around the theme of a Venetian masquerade ball. While some nights are getting into the mood others are doing something a bit more esoterically special. W Specidtee (Soundhaus. Glasgow) will be laying on a collective of the best techno 0.13 from the venue's other nights. while Fish Fry (Jazz Bar. Edinburgh) presents jazz and soul party covers band Uber Juice. Tonight's the night that house and electro party Mira (Faith. Edinburgh) also relocates temporarily away from the Liquid Room.
Finally, even scenesters need love — and they can get it at either Wrong lslavd (Nice'n'Sleazy. Glasgow), 8 customarily grimy mash-up of electronics and rock ‘n' roll wrongness. or at Fate (Sneaky Pete's. Edinburgh), an evening of non-soppy bassline house and disco. Or if cheese is what you want, then look no further than the Garage Valentine‘s Special (Garage. Glasgow).
Erotica Show. and within six months had an l
and www.killingkittens.com for more almost exclusively adult entertainment client l
information on the women interviewed. 5-19 Feb 2009 THE LIST 15