Lesbian Sex and Sexuality

In this episode, we explore the world of lesbian porn, which has come a long way. Far from the days when women shot on consumer video cameras with friends and lovers in their own living rooms, today's lesbian pornographers come equipped with film degrees, storyboards, and the latest in digital technology. While the tools have changed, their goal remains essentially the same--to make authentic lesbian porn with real queer women who are having real orgasms. Shine Houston is the up-and-coming porn director of the breakout hit "The Crash Pad". Her second feature "Superfreak" is being released this fall and we go behind the scenes on set to see firsthand the making of porn for 'genderqueers'. We also visit behind the scenes with Dana Dane, founder of Erocktavision, whose "L-Word" style aesthetic of beautiful women and beautiful cinematography is hitting a chord not just with lesbians but with the straight world as well. Diana Cage, lesbian sexpert, is also on hand to provide an entertaining critique of the various lesbian porn genres.

Not long ago, if you walked into a lesbian bar or club, you would not expect to find a scantily clad woman collecting dollars for a dance. Go-go girls were seen as politically incorrect and relegated to the domain of men. Not so today. Almost every lesbian bar and club has a sexy dancer on the bar, a stand or onstage. There is an underground cult of celebrity among the girls based on talent and creativity. And for any woman who has ever felt vulnerable or protective of the girl dancing on the bar for men, in an all women's setting the dancer's power over the patrons' gaze is undeniable. In this episode, our cameras will capture this rarely revealed trend in erotic entertainment through the eyes and lives of three dynamic and utterly compelling but very different women: Maine, Sarah, and Cinnamon.

This episode traces the beginnings of lesbian porn made by lesbians for lesbians. Reacting against the widespread anti-porn bias in mainstream feminism, and fed up with the showy girl-on-girl action typically found in porn manufactured for straight men, these sex-positive pioneers decided to put the cameras and control in their own hands. They created an emerging genre of lesbian pornography and erotica dedicated to representing lesbian desires from a lesbian perspective that has turned into a mega-business. We talk to Nan Kinney about creating On Our Backs, the seminal lesbian erotic magazine. Nan explains how On Our Backs went on to spawn Fatale Media, which was the first porn video company that produced lesbian porn for lesbians. Shar Rednour, who first started working as an editor at On Our Backs, brings us behind the scenes of the magazine and reveals lesbians readers reactions. She also talks about starting S.I.R. video, and what it was like to gain mainstream recognition when "How to Fuck in High Heels" won an AVN award. Also, world-famous feminist porn star Nina Hartley talks about straddling both sides of the fence as a mainstream porn star as well as an actor for Fatale Media, and lesbian porn expert Diana Cage brings context and perspective regarding these pioneering women of lesbian porn.

Perhaps no stereotype rings more loudly and painfully in the ears of lesbians than "lesbian bed death." But today, lesbians are not only discussing their sexual fantasies openly--but also actively finding ways to fulfill them. In this episode, comedian Julie Goldman walks us through a few possibilities dykes are exploring including creating pin-up calendars for femme fetishists and setting up sexual encounters on the Internet. We also take a look back at the work of erotic photography vanguard Phyllis Christopher.

While "what do they do" may be the oldest question, the oldest stereotype about lesbians is what they bring on a second date--a U-Haul. Lesbians, at least within the gay community, are noted as being much more committed to long-term monogamous relationships. While statistics do bear this out, many in the community are diehard subscribers to alternative lifestyles such as polyamory, open relationships and swinging. In this episode, we talk to Karen Everett, a filmmaker whose commitment to a polyamorous life includes making an obsessive autobiographical film about her life and her two loves. We also talk to Red and her partner Greta. Red and Greta are in a committed but open relationship and participate in BDSM play with numerous other partners. Finally we pay a visit to partners Ignacio Rivera and Khane Morris, two people who were born female but who have both transitioned to a male identity. They identify as polyamorous but are in a committed relationship with each other.

Madison Avenue has long realized that for the straight world, the idea of two women together is a titillation that can translate into huge profits. This episode explores this phenomenon by talking to queer women who have realized that lesbian sex sells. At the other end of the spectrum are lesbian-identified women who do sex work catering specifically to straight men. Mistress Leda organizes the largest "BDSM Ball" in the country and runs an all woman BDSM studio in New York. Skye Blue was a major mainstream porn star for over a decade, yet only performed girl on girl scenes with her real life girlfriend Summer Cummings, and is now behind the lens directing her own porn films. Renowned lesbian sexpert Tristian Taormino wrote about and lectured on lesbian desire for over a decade and is also now behind the lens directing straight porn. As she says, "it's the lesbians who have been teaching how to fuck for years!" Our cameras weave through these women's complicated world of selling sex to the mainstream.