Pornography in Europe
Pornography in Europe is dominated by a few pan-European producers and distributors, the most notable of which is the Private Media Group that had successfully claimed the throne of Danish Color Climax in early 1990s. Most European countries also have local pornography producers, from Portugal (e.g. Naturalvideo) to Romania (e.g. Floyd-Agency), with varying potentials of competition with international producers.
Hungary is a haven for European pornography producers with an ample supply of beautiful and young female performers and liberal pornography laws. Czech Republic, with its specialised companies such as the spanking label Rigid East and for having become the regular European destination of the US (primarily for "interracial" titles) and Japanese producers, is a likely rival.
Women in European pornography typically have a so-called "more natural" look than in American pornography, with less emphasis on breast implants. The once popular style of Euro-chic pornography represented by directors Lasse Braun, Joe d'Amato, and Michel Gentil has lost ground and the Pierre Woodman style of video porn now attracts a larger audience. A few directors like Luca Damiano, Mario Salieri, and Alain Payet continue with the "older" cinematographic and dramatic styles that often distinguish European pornography from those of other cultures.
France
In early 1970s, French viewers had become familiar with stag films shot in the Netherlands, featuring French actresses such as Claudine Beccarie and Sylvia Bourdon. The first genuine French pornographic film Le Sexe qui parle by Claude Mulot was released in 1975 (followed by a sequel two years later). This film was so successful that it was exported to the US, with the name Pussy Talk. Since then, pornography has been a growing economy in France, now existing in various forms from magazines to satellite TV broadcasting. Producers of video pornography can be divided into two segments: companies like Vidéo Marc Dorcel, which produces "chic" adult feature films for the international market and companies that produce low-budget videos almost exclusively for domestic market (Œil du Cochon, Euro Choc, Ragtime, etc.). The latter type also tends to focus on popular fetishes such as rape, incest, and fisting (as indicated in the series Viol, inceste & fist-fucking by Fabien Lafait).
Germany
Early years of German pornography began with series of softcore pseudo-documentaries started with Schulmädchen-Report: Was Eltern nicht für möglich halten by Ernst Hofbauer in 1970. The sex scenes had become bolder with time and by 1975, era of hardcore pornography began. Director Hans Billian was the protagonist of the period and the films were usually in line with the so-called "sex comedies", often depicting male performers as comic characters, like Sepp Gneißl in Kasimir der Kuckuckskleber (1977). This era was also characterised by several Josefine Mutzenbacher films. Today's German pornography is generally very similar to the American "glamour" pornography though oftenly tailored primarily for the German market. In contrast several German labels focus on a more "homemade" amateur flair, oftenly focussing on heavy hardcore themes such as gang bangs, bukkake and urine fetishism (most notably GGG and its sister-labels 666 and John Thompson). Although companies like SG-Video that specialise in the concept do exist, contrary to popular belief, fecal pornography known as "Scheisse porn" (using the German slang word for feces) or, more commonly, as "Kaviar" (a generic term) is not particularly popular.
Italy
Although Italy had accumulated a lot of softcore pornography in 1970s, hardcore pornography was not a usual trend until 1980s. The first pornographic film in Italy was Il Telefono rosso in 1983 by Riccardo Schicchi with Ilona Staller (aka "Cicciolina"). The film caused much controversy and it was restrained from legal release until 1986 with an alternate revision of Italian censorship laws. With this atmosphere of liberty, Italian producers rushed to meet on-screen curiosities of viewers to even gain the title of presenting "bestiality" in mainstream pornographic films; a trend shared by Rocco Siffredi in his 2003 film Hazardous Duty (in the European release by Night Trips). Italian pornography producers depended on French actresses or expatriates like Marina Hedman (with the notable exception Moana Pozzi with her Valentina, ragazza in calore by Raniero di Giovanbattista in 1981) till the arrival of Hungarian Gabriella Kovács (aka "Angelica Bella") in 1991 (and her sister "Veronica Bella" in 1995) but following this, Italy faced an influx of female pornography performers from ex-East Europe. In today's Italian pornography, the strong emphasis is based upon hard anal sex often with implied coercion, many films with no genital intercourse at all. Another popular theme is age disparity between sexual partners, giving way to Incesto films by directors like Andy Casanova and Eros Cristobaldi.
Russia and the Ukraine
Russia (along with the Ukraine) is a unique source for international porn producers, in that it has plenty of beautiful Caucasian models with relatively low wages, a situation that allows producing low-budget pornography without possible "ethnic" expressions . Most Russian porn is produced in Moscow and in St. Petersburg where the largest adult film producer, SP-Company, is based. The types of Russian adult films may range from gonzo pornography to adaptations of Russian classics (Eugene Onegin (by Tatiana Taneyeva (2003)), The Master and Margarita (by Armen Oganezov (2002)), etc.) and these productions basically aim the domestic market. Much of the pornography is produced for the international internet market. The Russian nationality of the models is emphasised by some porn sites, but in other cases the model may be presented as "European", "American" or even "Latina". Sites that offer predominantly Russian content routinely block access from the Russian segment of the Internet to maintain the privacy of the models. Some studios, such as the LS-Models and Funs Studio incorporation in the Ukraine, produce both adult pornography and legal child pornography ("lolita art photography").
United Kingdom
In the UK, British-made pornography tends to focus on a rough-and-ready semi-amateur look rather than the more stylized look of mainland European pornography. Producers such as Ben Dover concentrate on producing "girl-next-door" or "candid" material. Some British pornography concentrates on sexual fetishism, particularly erotic spanking and rubber fetishism. The advent of the R18 certificate has allowed slightly more hardcore videos to be sold in licensed sex shops such as those in Soho. However, all videos sold legally in the United Kingdom must be passed by the BBFC, and this has restricted the amount of graphic sex that can be depicted, even under the new R18 rating.
See also
External links
- European Girls Adult Film Database Website about films and female performers from 1970s to present Warning: Pornographic content
- Eurobabeindex Website about Central and Eastern European female performers (listing by country) Warning: Pornographic content