Comments Off on >Mumbleporn? Swanberg revolutionizes full frontal!
Oct022009
>Recalling his shocked dismay upon learning of all the governmental regulations around filmic depictions of sex, we’d like to think that director Joe Swanberg‘s participation in our SXSW panel, The Porn Police: Know The Rules, may have finally inspired him to cover his, um, ass.
In any case, we’re very intrigued by the revolutionary technology he’s utilizing on his new movie, Birthday Suit, an amazing advance that allows him to create the illusion of graphic sexual content. “If anybody, for even a split second, realizes that it’s a digital erection, then we have failed,” says Joe.
Comments Off on >Delayed gratification: Sex & SxSWing!
Mar262008
>Going from CineKink to SXSW to Dark Odyssey has been a bit of a gauntlet – a gauntlet of pleasure, to be sure, but now that we’re at the end of it, our body, sensing a respite, seems to be flirting heavily with what is generally known as the common cold. But, dammit, not before we get out this too-long-delayed SXSW recap, even through a Nyquil haze…
You can take a listen to the podcast here, but our panel, The Porn Police: Know The Rules, went off well and we managed to cram a ridiculous amount of somewhat tedious 2257 detail into our alloted hour. In addition toyours truly, the speakers included Violet Blue, deftly illustrating how the regulations play out in the real world and the problems they present for artists on both sides of the camera, attorney Alan Levy, keeping us on track with which part of the law stipulates what – and what that might actually mean in the day-to-day – and director Joe Swanberg seeming to grow increasingly consternated with the realization of how the rules could well apply to his own, er, body of work. (Lascivious display of nudity, anyone?!)
Bottom line – for all media makers working with depictions of sexual conduct, both actual and simulated (what’s that?), it represents another area of calculated risk – one that will warrant further discussion in the months ahead. While the danger is probably slim for most, it’s still critical to know the rules rather than blithely plowing ahead and hoping for the best.
Film offerings we managed to catch included Bi The Way, a look at the sexual inclinations of the so-called “whatever generation,” Obscene, a documentary profile of the colorful Grove Press publisher, Barney Rosset, and the superb Sex Positive, exploring the life of activist Richard Berkowitz and his critical role in the now taken-for-granted concept of safe sex.
And, not quite sex, but about as close as you can get armed only with a Handywipe, we enjoyed reprised BBQ revelations at Iron Works and – well worth the trek out to Driftwood – Salt Lick!
While much of our panel discussion centered around the dry – and vague – legal particulars of what might be deemed lascivious or even explicit, the film is a beautiful example of sexuality utlized in the service of story and artistic expression – and why such arguments are so vital in the first place.
