BrenRyder wrote:

QUOTE:

As a woman with an ambiguous gender, I tend to wonder why do you need to know one way or the other?

Hi Bren If you're asking why do I need to know if someone I'm watching in porn is bi, gay or straight - I don't. I just want to know that they are enjoying whatever it is they are doing.

However I also detest being told obvious lies about the people I'm watching.

E.G.
This is from Sophee Dee's "Intimate, honest, real" interview on the LesbianFactor website:

quote
Q Do you ever have sex with a man?

A. No dick allowed here! Haha! I have girls and toys to satisfy myself and they are better than men! Ok I don't know much about sex with guys because I never tried but I'm 100% sure that lesbian sex is way better!

Q. Do you hide the fact that you're a lesbian?

A. Oh this question... I hate to know that some girls are hiding it. It's sad and frustrating. We're in an open society, lesbians in the past fought hard to be respected. I'm not someone like that, I really assume my gay-titude!

Well from what I've seen Sophee does seem to enjoy sex with women - and she also seems to enjoy sex with men. http://www.clubsophiedee.com

I'd rather lesbianfactor offered a real interview with her telling me something that actually is intimate, honest and real about her sexuality - or no interview at all.

Many people would excuse tripe like this as "Entertainment" which shouldn't be taken seriously and say I'm just humourless. But the tripe actually gets disturbing for me when you see Sierra Sinn's (real name is Julie) fake interview:

quote
Q. Do you ever have sex with a man?

A. I've never been with a man sexualy. I can't say that I'm not curious, but by watching porn I'm pretty sure that I won't really care for the experience. But hey, you never know, right?

Q. Do you hide the fact that you're a lesbian?

A. I actually love telling people that I'm gay. Sometimes, when I tell a girl, she looks at me with a fascination in her eyes that I just can't get enough of!

and you know that she has recently retired from porn, is very critical of it, and quite clearly did not enjoy a lot of the straight hardcore she got into making. I doubt she is gay, but I can't help feeling she'd have been a lot happier if she just stuck to doing girl-girl porn.

Geri, I agree totally. If the site advertises honesty, I want honesty. It's important to me for some silly reason. Maybe I'm just humourless too, but I fail to see the humour value in outright lies.

I feel like I'm coming a little late to the conversation, but here's my two cents thrown in:

* A lot of this seems to be caused by the confusion over the term 'dyke'. Is it a synonym for 'lesbian'? Or does it have some broader meaning about general queerness? Indeed, in our world of today's blurred gender lines, even the word 'lesbian' is hotly contested- is the woman who occasionally sleeps with men but has always identified as a lesbian a liar? Or confused/in denial? It seems to be a debate characterized by semantics.

* "The notion that lesbian porn made for men just features str8 women pretending to be lesbian is very simplistic and naive." I agree wholeheartedly with this sentiment. I'd even go further and say that there's a lot of lesbian porn made for WOMEN that features authentic bisexual or lesbian stars . . . and it still manages to come off as "fake" and disingenuous. It has less to do with the stars, and more to do with the directors and the intended audience (men, or straight women who get a thrill from fantasizing about lesbian sex) who are buying into these fantasies. It's like Lorelei Lee said in the documentary on Pink & White Productions . . . she's done "that type" of porn as well as the authentic stuff. Girls who, under the have-sex-the-way-you-want-to mantras of Bren and Shine, would come across instantly as lesbian or bisexual can still look incredibly inept and fake if it's directed to create a specific mood and look.

* I love interviews as well. I like lots and lots of personality to come through my models, and interviews help to create that and make me feel closer to the model. I care about her pleasure and enjoyment when I know a bit about her.

* I don't presume to know whether or not a model is lying or the website is lying to make her seem more attractive to those who would fetishize her lesbianism. I do doubt most of what I read, but I'm not about to declare it all to be untrue. For all I know, some women do only do B/G for pay. Most porn, after all, is acting.

* As irksome as it is, I understand the creation of fake identities. It's for a fantasy. My enjoyment of Sean Cody, for example, would probably go right down the drain if they're profiles and interviews went along the lines of "Yeah, I'm really gay." or, conversely "Yeah, I'm straight, and this whole experience disgusted me, but I needed the money." I still know it's all bunk, but it does help me to suspend my disbelief a bit. Advertising it as real and honest is a lie, but I guess I've been trained to expect it in porn. Which is why the real, authentic stuff DOES stand out so much and catch my interest.

* I do still think it's possible for a site representing bisexual and lesbian women to only show lesbian sex. I'm glad that GDP shows that and more, though. And I'm totally looking forward to more boys on the site!

Welcome back to the party, Cand!

Authenticity is hot, pure and simple. Jenna Jameson ain't got nothing on Bren Ryder.

This is a really fascinating question! Just read the entire thread, and there are some very cool thoughts going on here.

When I think about what does or does not belong in dyke porn, it's definitely about an aesthetic. If all the individuals involved in the scene are setting out to create dyke porn, and have their own concept of what that means for them, then they'll probably succeed, even if some of the individuals happen to have male bodies.

It's also about how the man self-identifies - if a man wants to be in dyke porn (as opposed to fake 'lesbian' porn that caters to straight male fantasies), then he probably belongs there.

To me, dyke porn is something created by dykes, for the enjoyment of other dykes, not necessarily something where every single model in every scene self-identifies as a dyke. I totally agree with what arianna and others brought up about 'shoppping' - even if I'm not personally into guys dressing in lingerie and getting buggered up the arse by women in strap ons (which I am, by the way - omg hot!), someone else surely will be. The more different things there are, the more likely someone will find something they like.

I am totally in love with this site and it is uncountably many kinds of awesome. Um yeah I just had to say that! *g* Never have I found such a delightful array of queer sexuality all in one place.

Welcome to the board, la_dissonance.

I'm totally with you on your perspective on what "belongs" and what makes something dyke porn.

You are definitely one of the people that "get it".

I'm delighted that you say you love this site. That's important to me.

love,
Bren