October 10, 2021
Review: 'Raw! Uncut! Video!' Chronicles the Rise and Fall of a Homegrown Gay Porn Studio
Roger Walker-Dack READ TIME: 1 MIN.
Not for the faint of heart, "Raw! Uncut! Video!" chronicles the rise and fall of homegrown gay porn studio Palm Drive Video, and explores how a devoted couple helped battle a devastating health crisis by promoting kinky sex.
Legendary leatherman Jack Fritscher met Mark Hemry in 1979 at Harvey Milk's birthday party, and the two fell head over heels in love. When the AIDS epidemic swept through San Francisco, the couple left the city to begin a new venture: Turning a rural ranch in Sonoma County into a safe-sex porn studio that offered viewers new sexual possibilities in an age of plague. Casting rugged non-professional models to explore their unique erotic fantasies onscreen, the studio explored a wild array of queer kink – and helped champion sex-positivity in the porn industry.
But the film's release hasn't been without a social media issue. Film's director Ryan White said, "After working on the film for five years, we're about to (finally) release it this Spring – which is REALLY exciting!! But, we've also been having issues with Instagram repeatedly removing our account for no apparent reason. We've lost thousands of followers and supporters right before the launch of the film. In order to get the word out, we've put together a press release about the unfair removal by Instagram."
The film is produced by Todd Verow, Charles Lum, and Paul Lee, with original music by Jess Wamre.
"Raw! Uncut! Video!" screens at NewFest
Roger Walker-Dack, a passionate cinephile, is a freelance writer, critic and broadcaster and the author/editor of three blogs. He divides his time between Miami Beach and Provincetown.
This story is part of our special report: "NewFest". Want to read more? Here's the full list.
