The Bedroom to open Berlin Porn Film Festival!

Zahra Stardust in The Bedroom

I'm very excited to announce that The Bedroom will be the opening night film at the Berlin Porn Film Festival on October 26th 2016.

This date will also correspond with the release of The Bedroom online and in a very limited edition DVD.   I will be attending the festival and you can live tweet along with me #bedroomparty

Big thanks to all the awesome people who contributed to our crowd funding and helped us make The Bedroom.

More details soon.

New Erotic Film - The Bedroom! CAN YOU HELP????

Lots has been happening since I last posted.  I really am the worst blogger on the planet!

Firstly, I have just launched the crowd funding for my new film The Bedroom!

Its an erotic film that is set in one bedroom over six decades and looks at the development and changes in sex and sexuality in Australia!

I've got a great cast on board including Zahra Stardust, Angela White, Chloe B, Lily Rei and many more.

So please come and give us a hand making the bed!

In other news THREE films I have worked on over the past 12 months will be screening at this years Berlin Porn Film Festival!  They are" MusicBox" and"A Call for Help" by Morgana Muses and Zahra Stardust's film, "Fuck Dolls".  I wish I could be there this year!  Michelle Flynn and Ms Naughty are two of the filmmakers in focus!  Australians are rocking the festival!! 

Tristan Taormino talks and other adventures.

Last month, I spent a highly entertaining night listening to sex positive feminist, Tristan Taormino talk about her very interesting life and journey to making porn films.  It was a captivating and fascinating two hours.  Tristan is a great public speaker and if you ever get the chance to hear her talk I highly recommend it.

She spoke about her ethical approach to her actors: good pay, reasonable hours, providing safe environments, and giving actors the freedom to do what they wished rather than dictating to them.  It was strange to hear this referred to as ethical treatment of actors in explicit films as I thought it was the ONLY way to treat actors, but then again I have chosen to forge my own path and not be dictated by the mainstream industry, and I guess that what makes the difference. 

I decided to get up and ask a question about safe sex and the use of condoms in her films, as it is one of the things I feel very strongly about and think as erotic filmmakers it is very important to promote, especially as there is a rise in sexually transmitted diseases (which I find shocking, as choosing to have sex with someone is also about making a respectful choice to use condoms).  Her take was quite different and I do wonder how much of it is dictated by the studio she worked for or if it is as she said, a choice she let the actors make.  She was actually quite surpised how many of them would rather have sex without condoms!

The evening also gave me a chance to catch up again with Louise Lush, who I haven't seen in the flesh since "The Band" screened at the Berlin Porn Film Festival in 2009.  Wow how time flies!  Finally, I got to meet two actors/makers I have been wanting to meet, Angela White and Liandra Dahl.  We where all standing around being total video/film nerds getting excited talking about RED and Lexus cameras, steady cams and jib arms!  Pretty funny!

I actually stood next to Angela White for quite sometime until I realised it was her!  In the photos she has sent me she looks like an amazing amazon, yet in person she is still amazing but petite.  She had just returned from a month in the US filming scenes for her website and was looking forward to going home to several terabytes of video footage and begin editing!

Afterwards, I was hoping to talk with Liandra further about her films, but unfortunately she had to leave early, but we did catch up later that week.  She came by my office and we talked non stop for 2 hours.  I could have spent the rest of the afternoon talking with her, but unfortunately prior commitments prevented us from doing so.  However, I'm sure we will have many more discussions in the future.

It was great to be surround by such a wonderful group of sex positive women and so nice to talk openly about sex without anyone looking shocked, disgusted or horrified, but that it is just a natural part of life.  This is what I love about Pleasure Salon gatherings!

Hats off to amazing sex therapist, Cyndi Darnell from Pleasure Salon for organising yet again another sex positive evening.  Pleasure Salon holds monthly nights in Melbourne and I highly recommend you go and have a look, they are always informative and interesting.

In other news:

I'm giving a talk at Melbourne University this Friday 4th May at 12:30pm about Feminist and Queer Porn, for their "Rad sex and Consent week", which is free!  I'm looking forward to it but I'm also slightly nervous that Shelia Jefferys and her anti sex minions will be on hand!  However, the organisers look like they are providing a very safe space for people to discuss and explore sex and its many variations through workshops and talks.  If you want more information, check it out here.

Must go and finish practicing my talk.  Hope to see you there.

Restless.

One thing I'm finding hard at the moment is trying to work out where to next, in regards to filmmaking. I've got several projects I'm interested in but can't work out which one to put my energy into.

This morning, I watch the soft trailer for Petra Joy's new film "The Female Voyeur" and got all sentimental about being at the Berlin Porn Film Festival and meeting her.  Petra is one of the many wonderful women I meet and she has a highly unique erotic style. We both share similar passions for promoting a variety of bodies and sexual acts that your normally don't see. I highly recommend you check out her work if you are interested in an alternative to mainstream depictions of sex!

It filled me with the desire to make my next erotic film "Screwed in Suburbia: Perfect on the outside, Perverted on the inside".  Its about a young woman trying to escape suburbia and move into the inner city.

The other project I have been toying with is an adaptation of a book by Australian author Emily Maguire, "The Gospel According to Luke". I first was introduced to her work through a book called "Taming the Beast", which I would love to make into a film, but the subject matter is so taboo I think it would be extremely hard to find finance to make it! She also interviewed me for her book "Princesses and Pornstars:Sex and Power and Identity". I still remember the day she contacted me and I put two and two together and realised she was the author of such a twisted and confronting book as "Taming the Beast"! You can guess I was absolutely ecstatic about being interviewed by her!

"Man Made" is a documentary I would like to make as a follow up to "Making it handmade" which is going to be about men, craft and what it is to be a man today! I'm slowly finding subjects and researching but I'm guessing, its going to be at least a two to three year project like "Making it Handmade" was.

So you can see there a lots of ideas but I'm finding juggling motherhood, working and making films to be overwhelming at the moment. I desperately need to update my website so have decided to focus on that and then try to work out where to go next!

Happy New Year.

I hope you all had a good, relaxed silly season!

Yet again its been way to long toooooo long since my last blog. Its amazing how life gets in the way, especially when a child is involved, who needs your love, care and attention!

Just to update you all...the screening at Bendigo's (or should I say Eaglehawk's) Star Community Theatre went well. There was a good turn out considering that it was a week or two before Christmas. If you are every in the area go and see a movie there. The theatre is in the old town hall and has its original projection room. Apparently, it screened movies for the 1920's til 1950s when TV took over. The projectionist told great stories about how they used to stager the film times between Bendigo and Eaglehawk so that once it finished in one cinema it could be sent on the tram to Eaglehawk. If for some reasons there were delays they used to pay a kid to take it over on their bike!

The q and a afterwards was very interesting. Belinda Moon who is a local Bendigo crafter and runs "The Square" craft market told a great story of the smaller crafter triumphing over the large multinational chain store (whom shall remain nameless for legal purposes!). One day when Belinda was in said nameless chain store, her son with toy in hand, said "Look Mummy, there are your cards!". To her surprise, they indeed looked exactly like her cards, in style and design, but only the colors had changed slightly. Turning it over she discovered the cards where produced by a Melbourne based company, who had then manufactured in China. To cut a long story short she engaged a lawyer and even though the large said unnamed chain store did not admit their guilt, they did pay her out! Yah! One for the little crafter! After having heard so many stories of independent makers being ripped off, it was lovely to hear a triumphant one!

In other filmmaking news, I have been very quite, but the new year has spurred me on and I have begun transcribing the interviews I did with female erotic filmmakers while I was at the Berlin Porn Film Festival in 2009( has it already been nearly 2 years!). I'm hoping to turn it into a 30 min documentary about women who are redefining the adult genre. I'm not sure what it will be called yet. Any suggestions? One I've been floating around is "Doing it their way: Female erotic filmmakers reinvent the adult genre", but I think its too long. I had such a inspiring time in Berlin and got to meet so many amazing women who were doing similar things to myself with the adult genre. It made me feel as though I wasn't alone in the fight to break free of the cliches of adult films and to create unique films, that were still erotic and sexy. Listening again to the interviews, has make me want to attempt another erotic film, so I have started on a script set in the suburbs, as we all know despite the outward appearances, they are full of sexual creatures who hide behind closed doors!!

The creative juices are following and I am feeling inspired again after feeling like I was lost in mummy world. While mummy world has been great, I realise more and more how important it is to be creative. I remember saying quite dramatically, if I couldn't make films I would die! Now, having experienced a period where I have been unable to put any energy into making films, I don't think I was being dramatic at all! It has brought home to me how important it is to my happiness to be creative. Do you feel that passionate about something you do?

Rough Cutting "Making it Handmade!"

Knickers Making Day from a Kaotic Kraft Kuties Gathering.

Last week, after an extremely unproductive and frustrating week, I have decided to take a rest from writing "Talk to Me". It was driving me nuts and I kept trying to do everything else to avoid writing. As one of my music teachers said when I was a child "procrastination is the robber of time and thief of opportunity!" So rather than continue the torture I have put the script aside until I'm once again ready to face it and make a more concerted and positive go of it!

In the meantime, my hands have not been still and I have begun rough cutting "Making it Handmade!" This is bringing me considerable joy and after three days I'm nearly half way through it! Why is making films so much more fun than writing them!!!??

"Making it Handmade!" is the first real documentary I have attempted. I've been shooting it for about a year now and the editing skills I learnt while working as an editing assistant under the brilliant Tony Stevens last year has been invaluable. Thanks Tony you rock!

I'm hoping to have a rough cut finished by the end of Feburary, so I must return to FCP and continue.

No doubt I will write again before the end of march....but if not keep an out for an article I wrote on the Berlin Porn Film Festival in Metro Magazine.

Script writing and other computer bound tasks!

Happy New Year. I hope you all had a good break. Mine was spent painting the lounge room, which is now a lovely shade of yolk yellow and white!

After a recent heat wave here in Melbourne I am once again back in my office typing away. First port of call for the new year was two articles on The Berlin Porn Film Festival and some of the brilliant women I meet there, Candida Royalle, Petra Joy, Ovidie and Shine Louise Huston. This also meant I finally got to view the armfuls of film I brought back with me from The Berlin Porn Film Festival. A few stand outs were "Champion: love hurts" by Shine Louise Huston, a seriously hot and queer film for women that was beautifully shot, moody and brutal at times. It was great to see some real porn for lesbian rather than the high heeled hetero male fantasy we are served up in mainstream pornography. Petra Joy's "art-core" Female Fantasies, great art direction and excellent sexual chemistry between the actors. Jennifer Lyon Bell's serious sexy short film called Matinee and I revisited Ovidie's Stories of Sex(es) which is still hilariously funny and sexy at the same time.

"The Band" is showing at the Athens Porn Film Festival this weekend, so if you happen to be in Greece please go out and check it out!

I'm still wading through the rewrite of "Talk to me". I was hoping to have it done by the silly season but it didn't happen so I have until the end of the month to make it work! Then I will sink my teeth into creating a trailer for "making it handmade" which should be up on Youtube sometime in Febuary, but I'll let you know.

I must return to my re-writing and I promise to post more regularly this year than I did last!

Being tied to my computer...oh if only it was sexual too!

Yes, as you can guess from this posts title I am busy trying to knock out another draft of my telemarketing musical that is a lesbian love story called "Talk to me" before the silly season takes over and I spend too much time consuming excessive amounts of food.

I originally wrote the first draft of this film back in March 2003!! Its been sitting in my draw for quite a while but I have continued to make notes on how I would like to change it for the past 6 years. This draft is taking a very different path, but I'm enjoying taking it in a new direction, its refreshing and makes it easier to write in some ways.

I actually find writing quiet stressful and taxing. I have such a vivid imagination and can see my whole film in my head; what the characters look like, who they are, what shots I would use, how it will look, but transferring that to paper for me is painful. People have often said that if they read my scripts and then watch my films they are surprised how different they are! Sanne who was the DOP said the script for 'The Band" was cheesy and she said the main character was very bland and dull, but that the actress I cast brought another layer to it that wasn't in the script...I guess I am an actor's director. I love rehearsing my scripts with actors and seeing what works, giving them the freedom to change and shape, maybe I need to write all my scripts by just video graphing the actors work shopping it and go from there???

However, I often write my whole script or ideas in longhand...yes I'm talking about using a pen and paper. I know its old school but I find it can sometimes open up my mind and provide solutions particularly when I have writers block, or am frustrated. The other useful tool, is going off to write somewhere else. A new environment and space you can gaze out into can make all the difference.

On another note, check out this short doco Louise Lush shot of the Berlin Porn Film Festival. Also if you look back at the old posts from Berlin Porn Film Festival here you will notice I have now added some photos. Above is my hero Candida Royalle and myself at Opening night of the festival.

Enjoy and have a good silly season.

Berlin Porn Film Festival wrap up and other news!

Its hard to believe that it has been a month since the opening night of the Berlin Porn Film Festival. After my last post, my days just became a blur of interviewing some of the amazing female film makers at the festival and being interviewed myself.

Some of the highlights were meeting Ovidie for France who made a hilariously funny film called "Histories de Sexe(s)", great realistic sex scenes, excellent acting and dialogue that had me splitting my sides with laughter! She also interviewed me for a tv channel she works for in France and I interviewed her! Talk about mutual appreciation society and love!

Got to see a documentary about Petra Joy (the Joy of Porn) and her path to making erotic films, which made me realise what a unique group of women film makers where represented at the festival and how different our visions are compared to the mainstream industry! Petra also interviewed me for "Her Porn 2" which is the second in her series on women erotic film makers. She also held the Joy Award to support and encourage more women to make erotica. A film by Australian, Lousie Lush. Her film was a refreshing take on erotica and I hope this is the first of many films to come from her.

Another highlight was being interviewed for German cinephile magazine "Cinearte". Sabine, who interviewed me was well researched and a joy to talk with. So if you are in Germany I think it will be coming out in jan 2010!

While, Berlin was a crazy 6 days I got to meet so many amazing people and I can't recommend enough, despite the expense of going to an overseas festival the contacts you make face to face are priceless!

Since returning home, I have done an interview for Playboy in the Philippines! And if you speak or read french check out this article written by a lovely woman called Stephaine!

Also The Band was released on 17th November in the US! Its available through amazon and is uncut, much to my delight! While in Berlin I learnt that the R rated version of the film has been cut by 2mins!! Still haven't seen the dubbed German version yet but looking forward to having on hopefully in my hot little hand soon! Still no word on an Australia distributor, dingers, I mean fingers crossed there will be one soon!

Much to my disappointment I have also discovered someone has ripped and illegally posted an edited version of The Band online. This saddened my greatly as being a small independent filmmaker who has spent the last three year of her life working unpaid on the film, my only way of recouping is through distribution deals and actions like that stop that opportunity. So whoever you are I am disgusted by your disrespect and people like you will kill independent film makers who offer an alternative to the mainstream cinema. Basically, I think you are an arsehole and if I ever meet you would like to make you a few new ones...and that's being nice!

Opening Night of the Berlin Porn Film Festival

Oh wow! I was a little nervous before it all started, but with a glass of champagne in hand, I was whisked off to be interviewed by a queer german TV show. They put me in front of a great piece of art which was lots of different photos of colored vaginas! I have to admit though I was quite distracted as there was also a squirting video/ performance art piece playing on the wall and I kept on catching glimpses of it as they interviewed me.

It was a great night, all three cinemas were packed to the rafters and they also added in more seats! Madness. I had so much positive feedback at the end and people kept coming up to me all night, it was such a high! Yet, again I didn't sit in the theatre and watch it with an audience, but my spies told me that everyone was having a good laugh, which is what I was hoping...that people thought it was funny and sexy!

I meet some amazing women film makers, Petra Joy, Shine Lousie Huston and Candida Royalle, who I had interviewed earlier that day. Meeting Candida was thrilling. I have admired her for a very long time. I remember being about 15 or so and reading an article about her films and thought, "Wow, this woman is amazing'! And she is. I could have stayed there for hours but I had to get back and get ready for the night. Such an intelligent and sexy woman! She is so open and so willing to help other women who want to make erotic films.

This afternoon I went to get some tickets for other screenings and I meet Oli and Tat from Madrid, Spain who run an independent adult film festival in Madrid. They were so much fun and it was great to practice my spanish, I haven't laughed like that for a long time. To make it even better they have invited The Band to screen at the festival in Madrid next year!! I love Madrid and everytime I have been there it feels like home, so this blew my mind! They also asked me to recommend other Australian film makers who are making erotica or film about sex, so any of you out there reading this check out the link and send them your work! They Rock!

I'm on the jury for the short film competition here so I have to head back and sit in the dark womb of the cinema, will keep you posted with what else is happening here!

I've been trying to upload pictures but for some reason my internet connection keeps crashing!

The road to Berlin!

Only 3 days to go and I will be heading off the Berlin Porn Film Festival!  I'm very excited and can't wait to see The Band on the big screen.  I was just musing the other day how conservative Australia is and the fact that if The Band was screened in public here we would be committing a crime, yet in Berlin its all fine!  Mmmmm maybe I should move to Germany.....

Also, Sanne Kurz who is a wonderful and talented DOP (director of photography) who shot The Band wasn't going to be able to make the screening as she will be off shooting in Prague. Boo hoo!  However, she contacted me yesterday to say she will be there!  YAH!  I've also got some close friend's coming from London too, so I'm guessing we will be in for some good times.

However, I will have to limit my late nights as I'm a mad woman who can't sit still, and have decided to shoot a documentary while I'm there!!  Well I figured all these amazing female film makers who are breaking boundaries and reinventing the adult genre, its too good an opportunity to miss.  I'll be interview pioneering erotic film maker Candida Royalle, Art-Core creator and award winning film maker Petra Joy, photographer and artist Emilie Jouvet from France, Fetish film maker Julie Simone; and erotic star/ cross over mainstream actress and film maker Ovidie.  Its going to be a kick arse group of women!

Can't wait.  Keep you eyes peeled here for the daily updates I'll be posting while in Berlin!

THE Band being dubbed in German!

It has been an eventful week.  I learnt that the German release of THE BAND isn't going to be subtitled but is being dubbed!  I look forward to seeing how they translate some of the Australianisms!  Lucky no one says "cracking the shits" in the film!  I always thought that was a very funny Australian turn of phrase.

Unfortunately, for the wonderful sound designer of The Band, Lachlan Mooney, had to recreate all the sounds made but the actors on set through the time consuming art of Foley.  To make matters worse they emailed me on Friday, but as I like to get away from my computer on the weekends I didn't get the email til monday and went into a state of panic because they needed it by Tuesday!  I managed to get some extra time and Lachlan did a sterling job putting it all together in such a short period ( this man is brilliant, please employ him!) ...we both have learnt lots.  At the same time being such a low budget production there was no chance in hell that we were going to be able to afford to ADR the whole film, hence I found it strange that they choose to dub the film for its German release.  I'm meeting with the German distributor, Wolfgang from Cult Movies, while I'm in Berlin, so I will ask him.

The film is the film that keeps on demanding my time.  Just when I think there is nothing else I need to do for it, something else pops up! 

I'm counting down the days to Berlin and trying to work out when I'll get time to do washing before I go,  wondering if I should get sleeping pills for the long flight, realizing its going to be stupidly cold and I need a coat I can close ( thanks Sprinkle for sorting out that one, go check out her clothes, beautiful, well made here in Australia and no sweat shop labour) and learning how to burn Blu ray DVDs for the screening at the Berlin Porn Film Festival!  Never a dull moment.

Exciting News for THE BAND!

The US DVD cover
The German DVD cover 

Sorry its been so long between entries, but I have been off gallivanting around the world; celebrating a friend's wedding in Spain, meeting my partner's family in Italy and battling through Ramadan in Morocco - but many exciting things have been happening while I've been away!

Firstly, THE BAND will be the opening night film at the Berlin Porn Film Festival. a great honour and I still can't believe it.  It makes the slaving my guts out to get the money together to go there extremely worthwhile!  So I'll be heading to Berlin at the end of October...so if you are in Berlin on the 22nd October please come and be in the audience.  I promise I will be blogging each day that I'm there to keep up to date with all the naughtiness and great erotic delights I will be experiencing!

Until then I am keeping busy subtitling the film in ....english! Yes I know that's strange but I'm guessing that due to the German's being inundated with american accents that the Australian one is quite hard to understand!

Its a rather time consuming and boring task, but I'm extremely grateful that I spent over a week creating a continuity script because all I have to do is cut and paste.  However, it is one of those tasks that you wished there was money left in the budget to pay someone else to do!  ah the joys of independent film making  you need to be multi-skilled and wear all sorts of hats!

Other exciting news is that its official Cult Movies in Germany are distributing "The Band."  From what I can gather, it looks like it is being released on 22nd October 2009, but I need to confirm this.

Also, a new company in the US called Breaking Pictures has picked up the US and Canadian rights and will be releasing it on 17th November 2009 - so keep an eye out for it!  They are backed by an Aussie, so finger's crossed they might pick up the Australia rights too!  It would be a shame never to see the film distributed here - but as I have said before we live in conservative times!

Making it HANDMADE part 4 and "The Band"

Monday was a marathon day. I returned to teaching, then after a 3 hour class headed off to see Pip Lincolne from "Meet me at Mikes". I asked her kindly if I could re-shoot her interview as she was very sick when I originally did so. She actually admitted she couldn't really remember anything about the interview, and while her answers were good, she looked unwell.

Afterwards we drank cups of tea and extensively chatted before heading off to a Brown Owls gathering. I have to admit it is a truly strange sensation pointing a camera at people you don't know and shooting footage. I always feel like I should do an official "Hi I'm Anna and I'm making a film about..." I did introduce myself but then moved around the room shooting. About half way through people started asking me questions and then the flood gates opened!

There was lots on interesting discussion about craft and female inheritance, why people sell their craft and can you actually make a living from doing so. Home baked treats filled the kitchen as people skill shared, talk about their their days and the inspirations. I wanted to put down my camera and whip out my knitting and join them. The funniest question I got asked was "Do I make craft?". I find this very strange but I guess people look at me and don't think I fit the idea of one who crafts, this was something Pip and I had discussed that afternoon, the perception of who crafts. A very interesting night, but a long one....I didn't make it home til 11pm and considering I left home at 7am, it was a very long day/night!

Today, I will finish shooting the various websites people talk about and use. Thrilling I know!!

However, I am looking forward to Thursday night as I'm off to shoot an evening of mischief with the Melbourne Revolutionary Craft Circle.

Now, I have over 13 hrs worth of footage and my hard drive is looking very full, so after this weekend I will commence post production. Firstly, I'm going to edit a teaser together, so I'll post it on youtube for all to see and I would love feedback.

On another note, its official I am off to the Berlin Porn Film Festival in October! I've raised the airfare by writing articles for various magazines men's magazines! Very exciting and it looks like quite a few ex-pat Australians will be slipping across from London to be at the screening! I've never been to Berlin so it will be great to have a few days to explore the city, unfortunately I will only be there for about 6 days and I'm hoping I can do some publicity for "The Band" and its upcoming DVD release.......more on this later!