LOS ANGELES — Women’s porn, lesbian-centric films, couples’ content and feminist adult filmmakers, although not new to the industry, have been experiencing a sharp rise in interest as of late — and for good reason — people are apparently clamoring for the products.
And Gamma Entertainment’s Girlsway all-girl Gamma Film Group studio has answered the call — doing it their way.
Spearheaded by co-director and head of production, Bree Mills, alongside main director Stills by Alan, the duo have made a mark on the genre with “The Business of Women,” a webisode offering that has struck a chord with fans and critics alike.
Curious as to how its signature movie has been affecting the “business,” XBIZ asked the producers about the studio’s tyro success of the soap opera-like, episodic series and what new plans Girlsway has in store.
Mills told XBIZ that the online release of ‘The Business of Women’ has exceeded expectations, and has generated an outpouring of feedback with each episode leaving viewers hungering for what’s going to happen next.
“It basically became like “Must-See TV” which is exactly the reaction I was hoping for,” Mills says.
She explained that each installment “raises the bar” in terms of momentum and reception. Three key episodes stand out as fan favorites: the pilot, the third part — which introduced audiences to the step-daughter role (played by Shyla Jennings), the pivotal scene in the storyline — and the finale, which tied up all the loose ends that featured a memorable group sex scene.
Mills explains that the concept evolved from two small ideas. “The first was a challenge for our cameramen: to shoot a ‘film noir’ inspired story that was much darker and more moody than a standard Girlsway scene. And the second was to tell a story about female power dynamics that wasn’t afraid to tap into the edgier side of sexuality.”
The producer/director admitted that the task was more than expected and the experience has raised the bar for future projects.
Although on the surface it appears the movie evolved from an exploration of “female power dynamics,” it actually grew from fan requests. Mills however did push the storyline and characters into an area much darker than normal to test the company’s limits and see how lesbian porn fans would react. “While fetish-lite is not to everyone’s tastes, we did find that it fit very well with our viewers and I’d certainly explore it further in the future,” Mill says.
In fact, the experience is pushing the studio to become more storyline driven. Mills reports that in the last six months, Girlsway has transformed into an almost entirely serial product producer with about 80 percent of updates being multi-part stories.
When asked if she believes serial episodes are the saving grace of the saturated website arena Mills says maybe not for every niche, but for Girlsway the answer is yes. But she cautioned about the amount of effort required to produce a series, saying that producers can’t just slap “Part 1” on a scene and expect it to be a success. “There is a ton of work involved in creating our universe, the characters within it, and all the inter-connected stories. I’ve seen a lot of other companies in the last year attempt this, to jump on the serial bandwagon, but few who have truly pulled it off and kept their members engaged,” Mills says.
What also makes Girlsway productions special are three key ingredients according to Mills: addictive storylines, interesting characters, and great lesbian sex.
Of course casting talent is single-handedly the most important aspect. The studio demands stamina, acting, sex performance abilities, and passion for other women. Mills says she would rather cast one Girlsway Girl a hundred times than a hundred mediocre performers once.
The stringent parameters have apparently paid off with a predominantly male audience along with a healthy viewership among women, lesbians, singles, and couples.
And fans can expect even more. Mills says "A Wife’s Affair" — a five-part prequel to “The Business of Women” is in the wings, and the studio’s second big feature, "The Turning," will be released in September. The remaining episodes of the “Sharing The Bed” series are also slated to be released.
“The goal is to have one feature series running at any time, so there is always a blockbuster for fans to look forward to. I’m already brainstorming our 2016 features,” Mills reveals.
She adds that part of the new plans may be collaborations, including potential new directors.
