Nica Noelle Sins So Sweetly

While we all appreciate her, the straight-girl division at Fleshbot (there's only one of me) especially loves Nica Noelle's films. They're incredibly sexy, enthusiastic, and fun. Turns out, so is Nica herself!

Nica was kind enough to answer a couple questions we had about her process, her favorite performers, and her vision for the future. She's written about her transition from a girl-on-girl director to a straight porn director before, but we were curious: what doesshe think appeals to us straight girls who watch straight porn, anyway?

Misty Stone and Nica Noelle (freepornofreeporn.com)

Fleshbot: You've spoken about your work being made for women, or at the very least with women as well as men in mind. What do you think women want out of porn that is different from what men want?

Nica Noelle: I think women want to see a little more intimacy, a little more of a story; they want to see some emotional investment on the part of the performers and they want to feel emotionally engaged as a viewer. For most women sex isn't hot when it's clinical or looks uncomfortable — I'm talking about your average woman now, because obviously there are women who love other kinds of porn, too. But in general they want to see attractive men who look like they know how to make love, who are exhibiting some emotion toward the woman in the scene. And likewise, they want to see women who are really responding sexually, not just "performing" for the men and doing the porn star hair toss and arching their back — that sort of contrived look that's come to be associated with porn. Women in general are not interested in seeing that because it looks fake and cold.

What in your films do you find appeals to women?

I think they like the storylines, they like the emotion, they like the very intimate yet very intense sex. Whether it's our girl/girl films (Sweetheart Video) or our boy girl line (Sweet Sinner) the idea is the same: intimacy and passionate sex without watering it down, without turning into something banal. I think women also like that I write and direct all the movies for both studios, because they know me and they know what to expect from me. They trust that the images I give them will be the kind they want to see.

[At left: Image of Darla Crane and Manuel Ferrara in Sinderella & Me courtesy of Mile High Media (milehighonline.com)]

You've shared some of the challenges that you faced when first shooting for Sweet Sinner, i.e. male performers coming on to you, people questioning your ability to shoot "differently" for straight porn. How have those issues evolved as you've become better known and your reputation has changed as a straight porn director?

Well I think in the beginning people didn't really know what to make of me. I was this female director that came out of nowhere and was telling everyone to do things differently than they were used to doing. I was challenging the status quo. So both crew and performers were a little puzzled by me and by the directions I gave. But I understood there would be some suspicion of me along those lines until I proved myself. It was like, "who does she think she is, telling me how to perform? I've been doing this for 15 years!" or "Who is she to tell me how to shoot a sex scene? I've done camera for some of the biggest studios in the business!" etc. There were those kinds of ego clashes. There were also people who sincerely thought I was nuts and they wanted to try to protect me; you know "Honey, you just CAN'T do it this way, your studio isn't going to make any money." So I just had to try to deflect all that negativity and keep focused on what I set out to do.

It helped that from the start we attracted some of the biggest performers in the industry - for instance, Manuel Ferrara really believed in what I was doing and he was very involved in our movies from almost the beginning. Nina Hartley really got behind our philosophy and wanted to be involved. So the perception of me and of the movies started to change. Performers who worked with us discovered they felt much better about their Sweet Sinner scenes than the work they did for other studios, so there was tremendous good will among performers. The wild card was whether the public would like us, but our first year out we had the most downloaded movie of the entire year on AEBN, and we won Feature of the Year for that one (My Daughter's Boyfriend). So the perception of me and of our philosophy has definitely changed. Now instead of "this girl is crazy" everyone wants to be a part of it.

Do you think there is value in more run-of-the-mill straight porn?

I think there is value in anything that addresses the fantasies and needs of its audience. Who am I to say that there is no value to things just because I don't watch them? There are many fans out there who want to see the basics, and who love gonzo, or who just want something very different than what we're offering, and that's valid. That said, I think there's some inherent truth to the notion that the more work you put into something, the more you think about it and care about it and oversee its quality, the more value it has on some fundamental level, or maybe on a cosmic level. And in porn there is a lot of product out there that nobody gave much thought to.

[At left: Image of Seth Gamble and Chastity Lynn in My Daughter's Boyfriend Vol. 3 courtesy of Mile High Media (milehighonline.com)]

Have you encountered people in the industry who actively object to what you're doing? Or performers who find it strange or off-putting? How do you respond to that?

Nobody actively objects to what we're doing, that I know of. I'm assuming you mean from a political or ideological perspective. If they do, they haven't approached me. As for performers finding it strange — in the beginning, yes. In one of my first b/g scenes, the male performer had some concern about doing such an "intimate" scene with a female performer because he knew her husband. A straight gonzo scene wouldn't have bothered him, but the idea that he'd be kissing her and holding her and looking into her eyes — he needed to make sure that was okay with her man! And he did, and we were fine after that. I remember when Ben English first shot for us, he said during the BTS (behind the scenes) interview that it was very different from any porn experience he'd ever had, and he made some comment along the lines of "I can see how it might be tricky for some people," or something like that. But the truth is, most performers prefer to do scenes our way. They just feel better about themselves when they can experience physical love and intimacy and are also allowed to give it. As for performers who might not be comfortable with it, I know who the hard core "porno" people are, who the cold fishes are if you will, and we just don't work with them.

Do you believe that porn should present a realistic, rather than an idealized or illusory, image of sex?

There are no "shoulds." Fantasy is a personal thing. And often fantasies are not stagnant, but evolving. Sometimes you want the idealistic visual; sometimes you want something realistic and gritty. Sometimes you want to see a girl who looks like she stepped from the pages of a magazine; sometimes you want to see the Mom-next-door. As long as you, as a filmmaker, put your heart into it and have the courage to approach the scene with truth, you can make that scene hot. Humans have some universal traits; we all respond well to truth and authenticity, even if it's within the context of a "fantasy" scene. Viewers want to feel that the director is communicating something true to them. Even fairy tales have a certain truth, if that makes any sense.

[At left: Image of Allie Haze and Manuel Ferrara in The Doctor 2 courtesy of Mile High Media (milehighonline.com)]

Do you have favorite performers that you work with? What do you look for in a performer?

I look for authenticity. I look for lack of vanity. I look for grace and dignity. I don't want to watch someone who looks like they're "performing." There are performers who treat this very much as a business and who are more concerned with their hair and makeup than they are with pleasuring their partner, and those performers are a bad fit for us.

I do have some favorites, of course. Samantha Ryan is such an incredible performer, and one of the most beautiful women in the business. She performed only girl/girl for a long time, but now she will do some selective b/g for me, and in fact her scene with Manuel Ferrara is nominated this year at AVN for Best Sex Scene. Magdalene St. Michaels, who came to the industry as a middle aged woman, is amazing. Every scene she does is completely authentic and intense to a degree you rarely see. She puts her heart into everything; her soul. She's a revolutionary. Natasha Nice is a wonderful performer, so real, loves sex so much. Julia Ann is probably the most compelling female performer I've worked with on a number of levels. She surprised the hell out of me. Even though she's a huge star, she's retained her honesty. Every scene she performs is real; every scene is unique.

As for male talent, it's the obvious answer but of course Manuel Ferrara. Chosen by God to do porn. I shouldn't say porn though, because he's just an erotic master, period. And nothing excites him more than being able to do a real scene; he prefers authenticity to something staged or posed. Joey Brass, who wasn't very well known but to me was one of the very top male performers. Wolf Hudson, who is one of the most passionate and honest performers I've ever encountered. Right now I'm obsessed with a young man named Xander Corvus who I predict will be the Next Big Thing in porn. He is beautiful, charming, an amazing performer and the best actor I've worked with. He's definitely my muse right now, because I can write anything for him. He can do anything. All of these performers bring a lot of truth and beauty to their scenes, and there are so many more I haven't mentioned but should have. There are a lot of very talented, dedicated artists in this business.

How important is a storyline to you in porn? Do you find women asking for more or less of a plot in your movies?

People want a storyline as long as it's well-written and adds a psychological component to the sex. If it's going to be a dopey story, poorly written and badly acted, then I think they'd rather just press the fast-forward button. That's how the perception developed that people don't want to see storylines in porn. The truth is, they don't want to see BAD storylines. If it adds to the fantasy though, they can't get enough. Women in particular, yes. But men also.

[At left: Image of Teri Weigel and Bill Bailey in The Cougar Club 2 courtesy of Mile High Media (milehighonline.com)]

Are there any other girl-guy directors or studios that you really love right now? Any one you're dreaming of working with?

Shine Louise Houston. Period, paragraph. She's a genius. I can't say enough about her talent. But there's no other studio. I will never leave Mile High Media, unless they throw me out! Any studio could make me any offer and I would say no. Nothing against anyone else, but if I couldn't work with Jon Blitt and the Mile High Media family I would just leave porn. And you can quote me on that.

What do you have in the works for the future? Are there any new directions you're thinking of going in?

Yeah, I think we're going to look at upgrading our cameras to something a little more current. I flirted with the idea of using the 5D but I decided that the sex would suffer because you can't get as much mobility with that camera. There's a big technological trend in porn where people are really focusing on using new cameras, and going 3D, and then there is also this big parody genre that's hot right now, so there's a lot happening in porn and it gave me pause for a minute. Because you want to keep up with the current trends, you want to stay relevant, but you don't want to compromise your integrity. And I decided that I'm just going to go deeper; strive for deeper truths, and new ways of presenting those truths. For instance, new camera angles that reveal bodies and sexual encounters in a different way; from a different perspective. I'm also thinking a lot about my own fantasies and experiences. With some of them I used to think, "I could never shoot that," but now I'm letting go of those final inhibitions. And I'm not talking about anything twisted or over the top, but very simple stuff - a masturbation scene in a bedroom. Sounds banal, sounds typical, but that's the challenge. We've all had intensely private, even weird, masturbatory experiences but on film all you see is pretty, made-up girls moaning seductively and almost posing while they jerk off. There are truths to every day sexual experiences that have never been shown because that's the real, private, scary stuff. It's easier to be campy than to be vulnerable and expose yourself to that degree. So that's what I'm focusing on in the next year — let's keep revealing those truths.

[At left: Image of Jiz Lee, Dylan Ryan and Wolf Hudson in Sinderella & Me courtesy of Mile High Media (milehighonline.com)]

· For more of Nica Noelle follow her on Twitter (twitter.com)
· More on Mile High Media's studios follow on Twitter (twitter.com)
· Or log on to Sweetheart Video (sweetheartvideo.com)
· And Sweet Sinner (sweetsinner.com)