What happens in Vegas…

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May 302010
 

Yeah, you’ve heard that one. What happens in Vegas gets plastered all over the Internet! And so it was with all (well, many) of the exploits that went down at CineKink: Las Vegas.

First off, we were graced with a truly gratififying amount of insightful and generally positive press attention for the kick-off to our national tour:

Examiner/Sex & Relationships: Sexy Films: CineKink Film Festival comes to Sin City
Examiner/Modern Love: Interview with founder of CineKink: Exploring the world of sexual diversity
Las Vegas Weekly: Get cinekinky
Las Vegas Sun: CineKink film festival brings smart sexuality to Las Vegas
Las Vegas Review-Journal: What’s Hot This Weekend
Las Vegas Weekly: Getting tied up with CineKink
Las Vegas Weekly: Kink n’ Grind

While the tour circuit can get a little lonely, this trip we had some delightful company along, Diva and Tess from Tied Up Events, to help get the trouble started: Day One – Pillow Fight with Nina Hartley and Day Two – Let the Films Begin!

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And, of the CineKink filmmakers, panelists and performers who graced us with their presence in Sin City, including Alicyn Packard (The Pinky Song), Wes Hurley and Marc Kennison/aka Waxie (Waxie Moon), sexologist Carol Queen and UNLV Professor Lynn Comella, Julie King and Jessica Keck (Libidoland) kept themselves busy documenting what seemed like every waking moment of their time there. Here are their engaging accounts of Day #1, Day #2, Day #3 and, phew! Day #4.

And they were also busy with the video camera!

CineKink: Las Vegas / 2010

(More pics here!)

Sniff, we’ll miss you, ladies … and all who came out for the festivities! Many thanks to you all, and also to Onyx Theatre, Erotic Heritage Museum and to our CineKink 2010 tour sponsors B-Side Entertainment, Make Love Not Porn, National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, njoy and Tied Up Events for their help in making our visit possible!

Cinekink Las Vegas Day Two – Let the Films Begin

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May 152010
 

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Waxie Moon

After a day spent at the rooftop topless pool, yes, life out here in the desert is that rough, we excitedly piled into a cab and made out way to the Onyx Theatre, located in the Commercial Center, for the first day of screenings.

Lisa Vandever & Dr. Carol Queen arrive at Cinekink Las Vegas

Yesterday’s schedule was Waxie Moon, Bring It, and My Sexuality: A Sensory Experience. The best thing about an alternative film festival, besides the rather obvious – seeing amazingly fresh films that explore viewpoints outside the “norm” – is the ability to interact with the artists directly involved in making these works. Seeing a film and then hearing the back story -what ran through the actor’s mind, why the director filmed a scene in that manner, what led producers with no formal training to start making films – really helps you to look at what you’ve just seen greater understanding, bringing a new depth to the experience. If you have an insatiable intellectual curiosity, alternative film festivals are for you. So come on, Las Vegas, get your butts and brains down to the Onyx today because we have another day of amazing programming for you.

That said, I now have to gush about Waxie Moon. We first met Marc Kenison, in glorious Waxie regalia, glitter, lashes and a vintage suite everyone coveted, at the Erotic Heritage Museum for the wine & chocolate gala. But hearing him and director Wes Hurley talk about the film was truly one of the highlights of the day. Instead of talking about it, I’ll leave you with a Youtube clip of one of the many outstanding performances in the film.

After the film, Marc told us how he was uncomfortable that day, the stones made walking in high heels a challenge, the water was frigid and a random dog was tagging along making him nuts. And yet, once he saw the completed piece, how much he felt indebted to Wes for understanding the character even more than he himself did. Watch. And then search out Waxie’s other videos on Youtube and should you have the opportunity to see Waxie Moon, seize it.

Cinekink panel discussion at Onyx Theatre

A panel discussion, with Lisa Vandever, Jessica King, Julie Keck and Dr. Carol Queen, moderated by UNLV’s Dr. Lynn Comella, followed My Sexuality: A Sensory Experience, where we learned that this wonderful film which explored the sexual side of five very diverse women was a student project. Astonishing. Carol, by pointing out that the self esteem building experiences these women went through all focused on very traditional images of femininity, got me wondering what it would look like and what the women’s reactions would have been if in addition to learning pole dance and getting fitted for corsets, they’d been asked to butch it up.

And so begins another day. Albeit one that started two hours earlier then I would have liked. My Mac apparently prefers East Coast time and I jolted awake thinking it was 9:30 AM not the 6:30 it actually was. When she came back carrying our Starbucks venti bolds to discover my little timing error, Diva was not at all amused.

Today’s programming begins at 1PM and includes Yes, Mistress, a film shorts program that asks (and sometimes answers!) the question: “How may I be of service?” Swingers, S&M Judge and Best of Cinekink, a special screening of shorts deemed the year’s best. The jury-selected awards were determined during the latest run of CineKink NYC.

(Cross-posted on Tied Up Events)

Cinekink Las Vegas Day One – Pillow Fight with Nina Hartley

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May 152010
 

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I said it on Twitter but I’ll say it again, life doesn’t suck when your first day in Las Vegas includes a photo shoot at the elucidating and supremely sexy Erotic Heritage Museum that degenerates into an all girl pillow fight with me, Diva, Dr. Laura Henkel and the one and only, Nina Hartley on an island sized bed covered in scarlet velvet.

Right now, we have Cinekink’s Lisa in bed with us as we finalizing details for tonight’s Wine & Chocolate Benefit Gala. If you’re in Las Vegas it’s the place to be tonight. Aside from the wine, chocolate, Original Sin Cider, performances by Alicyn Packard, Carol Queen, rope demos by Reverse Tensionz and films shown in Erotic Heritage’s theatre, we’re delighted to also bring you very sensual gyrations of gothic belly dance troupe Fuego Fusion. And other surprises are always possible.

In the meantime, here’s a little photographic preview of some of the things you’ll see at the museum tonight.

Too bad Nina had to fly out last night, we’d love if she’d been able to stay longer

Cross-posted from Tied-Up Events

CineKink Kicks off in Vegas!

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May 032010
 

>CineKink kicks off our annual national tour in Las Vegas, May 13-15, 2010!

Starting with a gala benefit and including several days of screenings, Cinekink: Las Vegas will offer a specially-curated program of films and videos that celebrate and explore a wide and exciting world of sexual diversity, with works ranging from documentary to drama, comedy to experimental, mildly spicy to quite explicit – and everything in between.

THURSDAY
The festivities begin Thursday, May 13th, at 8:30 PM, with a wine and chocolate gala benefit at the Erotic Heritage Museum, to include an erotic rope bondage demonstration by Reverse Tensionz, a performance by the renowned Dr. Carol Queen from her work “Peep Show,” and a live rendition of the CineKink award-winning music video, “ The Pinky Song,” by singer/comedian Alicyn Packard. The event will also feature film shorts and clips highlighting the festival, and by noted photographer JM Darling, along with other fun surprises and a kinky raffle!

All proceeds from the gala will benefit the Erotic Heritage Museum and CineKink … with special thanks to MakeLoveNotPorn and Tied Up Events for making this spectacular evening possible!

FRIDAY
The festival then moves to the Onyx Theatre for Friday, May 14 through Saturday, May 15, with several different film and video programs scheduled for each day.

Among the headliners, first up on Friday, May 14 at 3:00 PM, features “boylesque” sensation Waxie Moon taking the world of neo-burlesque by storm in a hilarious and thought-provoking portrait of one artist’s unlikely journey.

At 5:00 PM, a special industry showcase, BRING IT!, features a dazzling array of talent from today’s adult cinema, each representing a wide range of genres and visual styles, all stepping up with a hot sampling of their recent creative endeavors.

And at 6:45 PM, the documentary MY SEXUALITY: A SENSORY EXPERIENCE, shines light on five ordinary women from different backgrounds, sexual preferences and past experiences as they experiment with five deliciously different activities intended to boost both sense of self and sexuality. This screening is immediately followed by a panel discussion featuring the film’s director, Felicia Giouzelis, UNLV’s Dr. Lynn Comella, Sexologist Dr. Carol Queen and others.

SATURDAY
Beginning at 1:00 PM it’s YES, MISTRESS, the film shorts program that asks (and sometimes answers!) the question: “How may I be of service?”

At 3:00 PM, SWINGERS has first-timers Diana and Julian inviting a couple they’ve met online to join them for an adventurous weekend in the country.

At 5:00 PM, S&M JUDGE ia a compelling drama in which a respected judge finds his job, reputation and family life in jeopardy after he and his wife begin to explore sadomasochism.

And, closing out the festival’s regular screening schedule at 7:00 PM, BEST OF CINEKINK features select, award-winning shorts deemed the year’s best during the festival’s latest run at CINEKINK NYC.

Following the final screening, the action heads back to the Erotic Heritage Museum for a closing party that will go until the clock strikes midnight. With a DJ, cash bar and other entertainment still to be announced, end CineKink: Las Vegas surrounded by your fellow revelers while benefiting the EHM!

TICKETS AND PASSES:
Ticket prices for each regular screening are $10; single day passes for either day are $20 ($15 for seniors and students); an all screenings pass is available for $30 ($20 for seniors and students). Admission to the Wine & Chocolate Gala is $25. Admission to the Closing Party is $10; free to Gala attendees.

And our best value, for a weekend of non-stop kinky entertainment, is an all-access pass, which includes all screenings, the wine & chocolate gala AND the closing party for $50 ($40 for seniors and students, $35 for CineKinksters).

For tickets to the Wine & Chocolate Kick-Off Gala at EHM:
http://cinekinklasvegaskickoff.eventbrite.com

For all passes and screening tickets:
http://www.onyxtheatre.com/nowplaying/cinekink-the-kinky-film-festival.htm

SPONSORS:
Sponsors of CineKink: Las Vegas include the Erotic Heritage Museum and Onyx Theatre; national tour sponsors are B-Side Entertainment, MakeLoveNotPorn, National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, njoy and Tied Up Events.

MORE INFO:
http://dev.cinekink.com/tour/vegas

>So… about Vegas.

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Dec 072007
 

>In the midst of frenzied holiday preparations, who doesn’t love an excuse to spend a few days holed away in Las Vegas-adjacent luxury? But even better, for the finite (albeit quickly growing) subset of the species dedicated to furthering humanity by producing film festivals, is the opportunity to hob-nob with one’s like-minded (well..) industry peers. And, even more better, for those of us toiling away at what might be known as a niche film festival, is discovering others who are enjoying very much the same pains and pleasures along the way.

So we were delighted to find ourselves once again at the International Film Festival Summit and even more delighted to be included on the panel “Know Your Niche: The Key to Genre Film Festivals.” Also doing the honors on the dias were moderator Jennifer Morris of Frameline, along with Andrew Migliore of the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and Zompire: the Undead Film Festival and Rachel Belofsky of the Screamfest Horror Film Festival.

Sex or horror, besides demonstrating that the perceived extremes are represented by some of the nicest people in existence – ridiculously nice, polite even, ourselves included – we had the chance to touch upon the peculiar challenges that come up in producing a niche festival; securing sponsors in a timid corporate environment, explaining ourselves to largely uncomprehending media and getting the word out to often elusive targets. And also the pay-offs; being immersed in our passions, bringing together a community, connecting filmmakers to audience and watching both thrive.

And here you thought it was the money…