Erotic Film Festivals
There are a growing number of film festivals that deal with sexuality and erotica. Some are more explicit than others, but all seek to explore aspects of sex, love, relationships, gender and identity in some way.
Cinekink (New York and San Francisco). . This festival recognizes and encourages the positive depiction of sexuality and kink in film and television. The festival offers a diverse program, presenting “documentary to drama, camp comedy to hot porn, mildly spicy to quite explicit – and everything in between.” The festival was founded in 2003 and runs in February each year.
The Berlin Porn Film Festival was founded in 2006 with the aim of exploring the various meanings of pornography and also hoping to get rid of porn’s bad image. Their insistence on the use of the “P” word has caused trouble with gaining sponsorship but it remains a vital part of their philosophy. The festival shows that porn is not necessarily a monolithic media presence. The films on show are extremely diverse and range from typical US hardcore to animated shorts to experimental documentaries and beyond. The festival usually occurs in late October. It now has an offshoot running in Athens.
The Paris Porn Film Festival was inspired by the Berlin festival and was launched in 2008 with a female-focused program. This year the festival is on the 17-20th June 2010
Sexy International Film Festival – Originally launched in Melbourne in 2008, this festival now has outposts in Perth, Paris, Los Angeles and New York. The festival “showcases short films and features from across the globe which explore love, relationships and sexuality.”
Festival Independiente De Cine Para Adultos Madrid, 17-20th June 2010. Also launched in 2008, the Madrid festival “works towards promoting the glory of sex as a form of adult entertainment and shaping the acceptance of explicit pornography as a means of exploration to be enjoyed without succumbing to social stigma.” Prior to 2008 it was actually the Barcelona Erotic Film festival but financial and philosophical issues caused the event to move cities.
Rated X Amsterdam Alternative Erotica Film Festival is the first Dutch film festival entirely dedicated to alternative, artistic and radical erotica. Founded in 2007, the festival offers “big-screen sexuality coming from a myriad of different angles and artistic perspectives.” Dates for 2010 are yet to be advised.
Pornotopia is a small adult film festival run by Self Serve Toys in Albuquerque.
Good Vibrations Indie Erotic Film Festival (GVIFF). Starting out as an amateur erotic film festival in 2006, GVIFF became a fully fledged event in 2008. “What is erotic anyway? You tell us!” says the festival website.
Note: I was going to include LGBT festivals on this page but decided against it because there’s an awful lot of them.
