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Now in its second year, the Berlin Porn Film Festival screened 150 dirty movies over five days in late October. Think about that for a minute: that's a lot of porn. As something of a professional porn watcher myself, I saved up my energy and refrained from watching (much) porn before I crossed an ocean to sit in the dark and watch dirty movies with European strangers. Not satisfied with merely screening 25 films a day at three different movie theaters around Berlin, the Festival's organizers also organized a nightly afterparty at the L.U.X. Nachtbar with a variety of performers -- plus, there were workshops, panels, and art shows at venues all over the city. Suffice to say: this was not a wee event taking place in a remote, run-down porn theater with sticky floors.
Over a lunch of sausages smothered in mystery sauce, Joe and Mouse discovered their mutual enthusiasm for all things anal -- our table conversation was definitely one for the steely stomachs of seasoned professionals. Joe compared himself to John Stagliano, the
Though watching dozens of porn movies was definitely an awesome thing, the highlight of the whole experience was meeting people. People who direct, produce, star in and otherwise affiliate themselves with porno are, plainly put, a strange bunch. Talking about scat over lunch is nice and all, but sitting through a film program is much more fun when you're engaging in some running banter with the pornographer sitting next to you. I watched the Short Film Competition with the aforementioned Jimmy Picker, Jennifer Lyon Bell (whose short "Headshot" was in the festival last year), and Manon des Gryeux, a retired Paris showgirl and director of the short "Bijoux de Famille." Jimmy had expertly guided us to a kind of secret balcony to watch the screening. Before the lights dimmed, we asked him about his Oscar for animation, which he says he keeps in a sock on his mantel. This way, he can show it off when he feels like it, but it isn't overly noticeable so if there's a break-in it won't be the first thing to disappear. During the screening, I learned a lot more about the sexual predilections of my seat-mates, who commented under their breath about everything from pubic grooming to genital endowment to the timbre of the performer's moans. Manon, who looked fit for a hot older ladies porn site in her waist cincher and nipple-revealing black lace shirt, leaned over during the squirtastic finale of Catherine Corringer's "This is the Girl" and said, "I think that I do not know anything about love!" in her charming French accent.
Besides being in movie theaters a lot, I spent the vast majority of my time in Berlin in the dark, so I never made it to any of the art galleries to see the porn-related exhibits. This was a bit of a bummer, but the nighttime activities were appealing enough that I didn't really mind sleeping through days of fun in an interesting city. As a New Yorker, I of course compare everywhere I travel to my hometown, and Berlin definitely stacked up pretty well. This favorable conclusion might have something to do with the fact that my visit to the city was peppered with visions of nudity, but I found it easy to hail cabs and get a variety of delicious foods at all hours -- which warms me up to any city. The vast majority of my time out on the town was spent at L.U.X., the official party bar of the event, which in addition to Mouse's inaugural night performance, featured lots of DJs, porn-inspired and downright pornographic video art, and other live performances. Unlike porn events in the United States, which are coded as either straight or gay and attract a pretty targeted audience as a result, the Berlin Porn Film Festival seemed to have a pretty wide-ranging appeal. The crowd at the parties and at the theaters could have been a bunch of hipster art show attendees - though the nudity here and there kind of gave the event away as porn-related. Everyone seemed to appreciate the range of sexual beings on display, from petite anal fisters like Mouse to big gay bears, and everything in between.
Erika Lust, a recent mom, announced that as a woman she loves cocksucking, which is why it's so prevalent in her films. The audience seemed unconvinced, while the directors were pretty unapologetic about their enthusiasm for the blowjob. Facial cumshots, however, had more mixed responses on the panel, and the audience was even more rankled by the idea that some women don't mind or are even happy about getting cum deposited on their faces. The panel about women was really the only time I saw people at the festival getting upset about sex acts and what they mean. At the end of the panel, all the directors said a few words about upcoming projects and when their films would be screening, and Ovidie made sure to warn (with a mischievous glee, I might add) that her films have lots of cocksucking.
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