Schamlos! when pornography breaks with stereotypes

Hors catégorie - Amélie Wauthier

I've been looking for a while for an excuse to write an article about feminism, gender, rape culture and all that. Something subtle, so as not to put off any readers who might have preconceived ideas on the subject - for those who categorically reject anything out of the box, sorry, this won't do! So when I was told about Schamlos! a festival of feminist queer pornography, I shouted «Banko!.

From February 26 to 29, the second edition of the Schamlos! festival was held in Berne. - which translates as «shameless», «obscene» or «shameless» (I'm particularly fond of the latter). On the home page of the website, there's a quick - but no less enlightening - description of the festival's vision. «With this festival, we want to create a protected space where norms can be shattered, discoveries made and inspirations collected.» Shattering norms is a practice that speaks to me and inspires me. It's a direct reference to the term «queer», which refers to anything that isn't heteronormative and/or binary, and it's not just limited to homosexuality! Yes, there are more than two sexual orientations, and this is not necessarily linked to gender expression.

Let's take a little definition break?

Gender identity is the gender to which we feel we belong. to belong, and this does not systematically correspond to the sex assigned at birth. assigned at birth. Gender expression is the way in which we express our gender, both express this gender, both materially (clothing, make-up, accessories, etc.) and attitude. And there's a third point, that of sexual and emotional attraction, sometimes independent of each other. and emotional attraction, which are sometimes independent of each other. For make it even simpler or more complicated, depending on your point of view, gender identity gender identity, gender expression and sexual and/or emotional attraction can have as many possible combinations as there are human beings. We continue?

A privileged, caring environment

At Schamlos! there's an Awareness Charter - which can be read on the website, as well as plastered on various walls once on site - which ensures that everyone feels not only safe, but also comfortable and aware of themselves and others. Meeting times and points are set so that everyone can be accompanied on the journey from the station to the Reitschule. As a frequent victim of street harassment, I can only applaud this initiative! What's more, it's an opportunity to meet new people.

Have you ever been to the Reitschule? Frankly, this «left-wing cultural and political center» (thanks, google!) is well worth a visit. worth a visit. You don't even have to go inside to appreciate the colorful the building's colorful appearance. An explosion of color between gray buildings of our capital, it's so refreshing! So it's hardly surprising that this rainbow rubs off on the people who frequent this place. place.

Photos, perfos, porn

After paying the entrance fee according to our means - 15/25/35chfs - we enter the main hall - Grosse Halle - where we find a bar and the festival restaurant. We then discover a number of installations, projections, exhibitions and more. objects with a wide variety of textures await the touch of wet fingers to project an animated image onto a large cushion of air. cushion. To the left, computers are available to spectators for an equally playful experience. experience. To the right of the hall is the «Porn me baby one more time» trailer. «where Juicy Eva awaits us for a 15-minute chat. minute chat. A sign warns us: »Warning, confronting and intimate confrontational and intimate«. Unfortunately for me, it's in German and my skills are limited to my skills are limited to »Ich bin ein Berliner".

I head for the «Kino». It's nearly 6:30 p.m., and this Friday's first film is about to start. It's Swedish and called «Vem ska knulla pappa? - Who Should Fuck Daddy?» Okay. The image is black, the text white, before switching to landscapes of nature and forest. The decor is plastic, very kitsch and colorful. There are strings of lights, glitter, shine and sparkle. I soon realize that this film is less pornographic than queer.

Suddenly, a very hairy, very bearded man in a black lycra leotard appears on his super bike. He's the perfect straight male, a strong, virile leader. The contrast between the two worlds triggers laughter from the audience. For 65 minutes, these two universes evolve in parallel until they meet. The model of the «toxic» man finds himself in a situation of failure before finding his salvation - I won't tell you how! Generic, everyone applauds. It was beautiful and enveloping, and I wish it would never end. Or at least not right away.

Patriarchy and toxic masculinity

This film to question the roles predefined by our society, the norms and beliefs and beliefs that lock us into boxes that don't necessarily fit us. us. Don't we also have the right to be a woman and not want children? children, to be a man and cry, not to be strong all the time and not sport three times a week? Just be yourself, and seek happiness rather than performance...

I have just over an hour before the next screening. I take the opportunity to make a detour to the toilets, where I'm pleasant surprise to discover that various intimate products such as tampons and condoms tampons and condoms are available free of charge - so cool! We chat, take a tour of the exhibition, have a smoke and it's time again time to find a seat at the Kino to watch «Venus - Nackte Wahrheiten». It's Danish - I've heard that people from the north are more «liberated» - and it's subtitled in German. That's all. Ouch. It has to be, with my «Berliner, Berliner», I don't get much except that I'm going to have to bother I'm going to have to disturb everyone in my row if I want to escape. escape. Which I do, sorry.

As my girlfriends and I were hesitating between the film and the performances, we hurried off to the «Tojo», just to make sure we didn't miss out. and try to make up for what we missed. On stage, two young women women in white shirts and faded jeans make their entrance. One is noisily while the other performs acrobatics on the back of a massive armchair, before the back of a massive armchair, before launching into a rather well-orchestrated orchestrated choreography. Dancing, circling, seducing, repelling... it's fun. But as is often the case when it comes to performance, I can't find much I can't find much to say about it, and more importantly, I've got a train I don't want to miss. miss.

Leather, queer queer and lots of love

The next day, I do it again. It's Saturday. I go from one short films, performances and passive observation of my fellow human beings from comfortable sofas (basically, I've been gleaning). In the evening, one of the unfortunately, one of the two films on the program cannot be screened, for lack of permission from the director. The screening of «We are the (fucking) world» was thus brought forward and for the first time at the festival, I'm watching pornography, real pornography. pornography. Yes, but the good kind!

This means: no relationship of domination between man and woman. The latter is never reduced to an object, taken with violence or force, humiliated and mistreated, as is often the case in traditional porn - but of course, you wouldn't know anything about that because you never watch such films, would you? An industry that contributes greatly to rape culture and its trivialization. Of all this, then, there is nothing in the films and works presented at the festival. In fact, it's hard to be sure what genre each is, so blurred are the boundaries, sometimes to the point of disappearing. Whatever the practices, there is always a climate of benevolence, devoid of any unhealthy power to impose one's needs and desires on the other, to actually use the other. On the contrary, it's all about sharing, where everyone is respected and loved.

Anyway, last weekend, while the Académie des César was rewarding Polanski, I was attending my first Schamlos! festival of feminist queer pornography. It was beautiful, it was sweet, it was love, it was queer. Kisses.

Photo credit: © Amélie Wauthier

Write to the author: amelie.wauthier@leregardlibre.com