The Feminist Porn Awards (FPAs)
is an annual
adult film
Pornographic films (pornos), erotic films, sex films, and 18+ films are films that present sexually explicit subject matter in order to arouse and satisfy the viewer. Pornographic films present sexual fantasies and usually include erotic ...
award
An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration.
An awar ...
s ceremony that began in 2006, and was initially organized by the Good for Her
adult store in
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada.
[ Until 2014, the ceremony was officially known as the Good for Her Feminist Porn Awards.]
History
Critiquing portrayals of women's sexuality and masculinity
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors ...
in adult films was not enough, so Good For Her founded the Feminist Porn Awards to celebrate work that complicates dominant representations of desire, desirability, sexuality and gender.[Osworth, Ali. “You Need Help: The Quest For Awesome Queer Feminist Porn.” Autostraddle, February 22, 2013. https://www.autostraddle.com/you-need-help-the-quest-for-awesome-porn-155575/ .] The ceremony was originally conceived of and coordinated by former store manager Chanelle Gallant, and it has been organized by current store manager Alison Lee since 2008.[Nikko Snyder]
Strange bedfellows
. ''Briarpatch
''Briarpatch'' is an independent alternative news magazine based in Saskatchewan, Canada and distributed across Canada and internationally.
''Briarpatch'' is published six times a year by Briarpatch Incorporated, an independent non-profit organi ...
''. March 1, 2008. Retrieved February 11, 2012.[Adam Polaski]
'Porn with a heart' for a male audience
. The Good Men Project
The Good Men Project is an American weblog founded by Tom Matlack in 2009.
Background
The online platform was founded in 2009 by American entrepreneur Tom Matlack.
The Good Men Project launched as an online publishing site and social platform ...
. April 28, 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2011.[Chandra Menard]
Girls on Film: The 2009 Feminist Porn Awards
. April 21, 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2011. Both the store and the ceremony are based in Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, and the ceremony commonly takes place at Berkeley Church.[Desirée O]
Alison Lee: Feminist Porn Awards Pioneer
'' Shameless Magazine. March 5, 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2011. Despite the name of the ceremony, Lee states that the films featured at the awards (as well as the ceremony itself) are meant to appeal to men as well as women.[
Winners at the FPAs are awarded trophies in the shape of ]butt plug
A butt plug is a sex toy that is designed to be inserted into the rectum for sexual pleasure. They are similar to a dildo in some ways but tend to be shorter and have a flanged end to prevent the device from being lost inside the rectum.
Histor ...
s.
Criteria
According to the official website,[ ]nomination
Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list.
Political office
In the ...
s for an FPA are dependent upon three criteria:
#Women and/or traditionally marginalized people were involved in the direction, production and/or conception of the work.
#The work depicts genuine pleasure, agency and desire for all performers, especially women and traditionally marginalized people.
#The work expands the boundaries of sexual representation on film, challenges stereotypes and presents a vision that sets the content apart from most mainstream pornography. This may include depicting a diversity of desires, types of people, bodies, sexual practices, and/or an anti-racist or anti-oppression framework throughout the production.[
]
See also
* Gender equality
Gender equality, also known as sexual equality or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making; and the state of valuing d ...
* Feminist art movement
The feminist art movement refers to the efforts and accomplishments of feminists internationally to produce feminist art, art that reflects women's lives and experiences, as well as to change the foundation for the production and perception of co ...
* Feminist pornography
Feminist pornography is a genre of film developed by or for those within the sex-positive feminist movement. It was created for the purpose of promoting gender equality by portraying more bodily movements and sexual fantasies of women and member ...
* Feminist views of pornography
Feminist views on pornography range from total condemnation of the medium as an inherent form of violence against women to an embracing of some forms as a medium of feminist expression. This debate reflects larger concerns surrounding feminist vi ...
* Sex-positive feminism
Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism, is a feminist movement centering on the idea that sexual freedom is an essential component of women's freedom.
Sex-positive feminism cen ...
* Sex-positive movement
The sex-positive movement is a social movement, social and philosophical movement that seeks to change cultural attitudes and norms around sexuality, promoting the recognition of sexuality (in the countless forms of expression) as a natural and he ...
* Women's erotica
Women's erotica is any erotic material that caters specifically to women target- demographic of various sexual preferences. When erotica is specifically directed at lesbians, it is referred to as lesbian erotica. Women's erotica is available fr ...
* Women's pornography
Porn for women, women's porn or women's pornography, is pornography aimed specifically at the female market, and often produced by women. It rejects the view that pornography is only for men, and seeks to make porn that women enjoy watching instea ...
References
External links
*
{{adult entertainment awards
Feminist pornography
Pornographic film awards
Sex-positive feminism
Feminist art organizations
Canadian film awards
Feminist organizations in Canada