Porn Perspectives

My undying adoration of Tristan Taormino is fanned once again at the news of her latest release, "Rough Sex."

The film itself is good, I'm sure, but what excites me about Tristan's various projects is they give her the opportunity to espouse common sense porn theory. Not only that, she puts her money where her mouth is, putting her ideas about porn into action with highly successful (often educational) movies. (Did you ever think you'd see the day Vivid signed on to produce Tristan's Expert Guide series?)

Here is Tristan on "Rough Sex":

"The problem [with porn] isn't with the depiction of hardcore sex itself," she said in her latest movie's press release. "It's about sex that is seen as one-sided, degrading and hostile. Many women love rough sex and these films will give us a chance to present their desires from their perspective."

Exactly! It's not about the content of the movie--it's about how sex is depicted that makes it fun or disturbing, helpful or degrading, etc. It is great to have a director in the porn world who understands that "feminist" porn does not equal roses and soft focus frolicking across a beach. Feminist porn can be softcore, hardcore, artful, dirty, fast, slow--whatever it wants to be--the defining characteristic is that it respects the female experience.

I could honestly make this blog an all-Tristan love-a-thon because she basically embodies my entire theory about business, porn, and women. But because we can't count on Tristan alone to save sex, I must give space to other endeavors. She certainly is casting the mold (building on pioneers like Nina Hartley, Sharon Mitchell, and Candida Royalle), and my hope is that she can inspire a new generation of women and men to follow in this vein.