CineKink, the annual kinky film festival based in New York City, aired virtually earlier this month, showcasing an array of kinky, sexy films. Here are our favorite shorts from the festival in alphabetical order. A few of them are even available to watch for free online.
1. Blind Spots
This extremely thought-provoking short takes place on the set of a movie shoot, where a director is trying to film a sex scene between two characters. When the lead actor touches his co-star in an unexpected way, the director and the intimacy coordinator get into a heated argument about consent. As they butt heads, the actor who was touched without clear consent barely says anything. But when they start a new take, the scene takes a surprising turn.
German director Luis Schubert noted that “After the Harvey Weinstein case, I asked myself two questions. The first is societal: how can abuse of power and sexual harassment in the film industry be curbed? The second is more personal: How do I behave in my position as a male director when shooting a sex scene?” When he learned of intimacy coordinators, he thought they might present a solution. “They take care of the actors’ safety during intimate scenes and work out a detailed choreography together with the director. Is that a restriction on my artistic freedom, I asked myself? It’s not, as the work on [Blind Spots] proved to me.”
2. Butch Please
In this kinky documentary film, Peter Fitzgerald travels to the 2019 International Mr. Leather conference in Chicago to explore masculine self-expression within the gay male leather scene. He sets out to answer a few key questions: Where do gay leathermen fit on the butch spectrum? Is being gay and masculine about passing for straight? What is masculinity exactly? He interviews a diverse array of attendees, including trans men and men of color, to get some answers. Along the way, he educates viewers about various kinks and facets of the leather community and examines the ins and outs of the International Mr. Leather competition at the conference. Although some of this content covers familiar territory, the interviews with attendees are quite engaging.
3. Red
This kinky short film by Katia Koziara is nothing less than a master class on how to make negotiation sexy and fun. It focuses on a straight couple’s first date at a coffee shop. The guy explains that if you don’t ask for what you want in life, you’ll never get it, which gives his date the perfect opening to announce that she wants him to not be “nice” in bed. She says she likes to establish that early on with people she wants to fuck and that she’s looking for a partner who loves to play. He’s surprised by her candor but curious. She explains while caressing his hand and leg that they’ll set the terms of a scene and play it out within established limits. He questions whether planning things in advance will dampen spontaneity and sexiness, but soon learns this is not the case when his date describes in detail what she wants him to do to her. He admits that he’s had some D/s fantasies of his own but has been too afraid to mention them to anyone for fear of being rejected. The woman asks if he’d like to try acting on them. He’s hesitant at first but then takes her suggestion. These two clearly have great chemistry despite his relative inexperience. We wish the entire film was freely available online, as it would be an amazing communication aid for people looking to introduce their partners to D/s and kink.
4. Sexual Distancing
This Greek short by Dimitris Asproloupos deftly explores two friends’ pandemic-induced loneliness and sexual frustration via video chats largely from the confines of their Athens apartments. One of them uses his time in isolation to pursue creative endeavors (exercising and cooking in eccentric outfits, learning a language, etc.), while the other waffles between wanting to meet men on apps for hook-ups and being too afraid of catching COVID. He asks his friend whether he should take the risk, and the friend essentially says he should do what he wants. Although this is ostensibly what the sexually frustrated dude wants to hear, he ends the call clearly disappointed and ultimately fails to meet up with anyone. He finally admits to himself that he has romantic feelings for his friend and decides to take the emotional risk of telling him. This short does a great job of capturing the physical and emotional isolation of the pandemic, while making the case that love and connection are still possible even in trying times.
5. Sweat of His Cow
This faux porn spoof by John Stuart Wildman was the best comedy short this year. Reminiscent of James Gunn’s 2008 short series “PG Porn,” Sweat of His Cow shows us the best parts of 70s porn complete with nonsensical dialogue and VHS scanlines. A hot professional woman (she’s a doctor and a lawyer) stops in a dairy barn hoping to find gas, but instead meets a sweaty and monosyllabic hunk of a farmer. Sparks fly among the hay bales as the two discuss their innermost romantic thoughts such as, “I’m sweaty.” The scene becomes even more absurd as an awkward saxophonist stumbles out of the 4th wall into the set.
6. Virtual Love
This kinky short film by Aria Li explores the dark side of camming, porn culture, and consent. Two women, Liv and Ev, engage in a spanking scene for their followers with the promise of a caning if their tips reach $1500. One eager viewer donates enough to reach that threshold in one go, which catches the women off guard. Liv hesitates to move forward with the caning and tries to stall by spanking Ev more. But the big tipper threatens to leave if the caning doesn’t commence. When Liv tells Ev to get in position, it’s clear that Ev is having doubts about whether she wants to proceed. Liv positions the camera so viewers get a close-up look at Ev’s face as Liv canes her, gently at first and then harder as viewers demand more. Ev is clearly in agony and screams “red.” After Liv stops, the two lovers get into a full-blown argument about consent, their motivations for camming, and the problems in their relationship. All the while, we hear the tips racking up in the background as viewers clamor for more drama. Liv is thrilled by the attention, but her excitement is short-lived as she realizes the emotional cost. In only five minutes, this short raises important questions about fantasy vs. reality and consumerism’s influence on consent.
Interested in more kinky movies? Check out these posts: