March 13, 2015
At Good For Her we have always strived to find the best products for our customers and we go to great lengths to find unique offerings for our diverse clientele. Finding suitable erotic films have traditionally been a challenge. When we first opened in 1997, we had a small selection of DVDs that we felt comfortable offering our customers. Yet we were still unhappy with the diversity of desires, bodies, and sexualities represented on film. Despite our efforts to look everywhere for something different, the same stereotypes arose over and over again and most of our customers did not see themselves reflected in the films that we were able to source.
In the early 2000s, the porn industry began to change, thanks mostly to technology. It no longer cost $100,000 to purchase a video camera. It also was much more affordable to buy editing equipment that could be uses on a home computer. And the age of the internet had arrived: film-makers no longer had to woo a distributor who would hopefully go to bat for them in persuading retailers to carry their work. Film-makers finally could sell directly to independent stores like Good For Her and even could access their market directly through the internet.
In 2006, we noticed a huge change in the options we were able to offer our customers. People of all kinds were getting behind the camera to produce, direct and/or star in films that reflected the kinds of sex that they wanted to see on film. Finally there were people of colour, trans folks, queers and lesbians in particular directing films that featured their communities without being fetishized and with respect. Our customers were delighted and we were thrilled that a new age of porn with more options was finally available.
The concept of the Feminist Porn Awards was originated by former store manager Chanelle Gallant. She suggested creating an event that would recognize, endorse and celebrate those who were making these fabulous films. Thus a discussion at a staff meeting emerged and the Feminist Porn Awards were born! Chanelle coordinated the event with assistance from Lorraine Hewitt, our movie reviewer as well as other staff. We called it “Vixens+Visionaries: Female Erotic Directors Revolutionizing Porn” and invited feminist porn pioneers Candida Royalle and Tristan Taormino and other pornographers. We held a roundtable hosted by Lorraine Hewitt on what makes porn feminist, gave out awards, featured some sexy performances and showed some hot porn. We called the awards “The Emmas” in honour of the pro-sex rebel feminist Emma Goldman (1869-1940) who rejected any control over women’s bodies or sexuality. We chose the butt plug as the award, as it represents sexuality that everyone has, regardless of sex, gender or orientation.
The event was held at Toronto’s Gladstone Hotel and was a sold-out success. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive and everyone said that of course we had to run it again the following year- and show more porn! We knew we had created something that made a difference and spoke to what was missing in the mainstream world. Thus Feminist Porn Awards became an annual event.
Over the years we have moved the Awards gala to larger venues, we have added a separate screening night that showcases a diversity of the year’s sexy submissions, and hosted events that feature invited guests. The Feminist Porn Conference, coordinated by Tristan Taormino, was added in 2013 and 2014. And the events have led many international film-makers and performers to meet up in Toronto annually to create new work. A creative event on so many levels!