LOS ANGELES — Performer-filmmaker Dana Vespoli has officially launched horror-erotica site TerrorXXX.com. The XBIZ Awards-winning director co-created the site with director of photography and industry vet Sal Genoa.
The handcrafted content, a longtime passion project, is “equal parts horror and erotica,” said Vespoli. “It is series of standalone stories set in universe where these characters can return. Fear, dread, desire and arousal are explored in carefully crafted scenes, along with themes of transgression, life, death and the supernatural. Also, it’s kinda hot to fuck monsters, so there’s plenty of that!”
Vespoli discovered her affinity for mixing porn and horror during her childhood in Portland, Oregon. She debuted as a performer in 2003 and transitioned to directing a few years later. “For more than a decade she has had a prolific output for a wide selection of companies featuring boundary-pushing scenes renowned for their authenticity and intensity,” a rep said.
“I’ve always been drawn to horror; it’s my favorite genre,” said Vespoli. “I love the films of Dario Argento and Pascal Laugier; I also love Stephen King. This has always been something I wanted to do. In horror, the kind of urgency that you feel is comparable to sex. It elicits visceral reactions. Also, it’s so transgressive. I’ve seen many horror films that transcend the genre; they actual move you. They can leave you feeling aroused, for fear and arousal are so closely linked.”
The TerrorXXX content is “a liberation from formulaic porn fare driven by corporate edicts," Genoa said. “It’s hard to fit a good sex scene into these tropes — younger/older, whatever — that they tell you to shoot because the analytics say those things go together. This is truly an indie movement of adult entertainment because we’re using our own money and shooting with no restrictions."
Vespoli will come up with a story, “and I don’t ever question it,” he notes. “And when we get to set that day she says, ‘Show me what you got.’"
Vespoli praised Genoa’s artistic eye and collaborative spirit. “Sal is the most talented camera and lighting guy I know, and he knows perfectly how to execute my ideas,” she notes. “We talked about collaborating on stuff, and I thought, ‘Let’s do horror!’”
Sovereign Syre headlines “Don’t Feed the Beast” for TerrorXXX. Vespoli is “fearless and always pushing the limits of what can be depicted onscreen,” she said. “As a writer she is rebellious, has a character full of integrity and empathy for her subject matter and is unlike anyone else in the adult industry. There is a reason she is loved so fiercely by her fans and peers alike."
Maya Kendrick stars “I’m in Love,” one of Vespoli’s personal favorites. “I’ve always wanted to do things that scared me,” said Kendrick, who plays a nerdy outcast who encounters a mythical beast while taking a shortcut through the woods. “The more nervous something makes me, the more I want to do it! Seeing and being a part of porn that’s finally embracing my favorite genre is incredibly fulfilling.”
Small Hands anchors “I Think She’s Rabid,” opposite Lily Love. He described working with Vespoli as “extremely pleasant and easy. She always has a clear vision, a good idea, yet gives me enough room to make it my own.”
Additional scenes currently streaming include “Nightmare Clown Hooker” with Vespoli and Dana DeArmond; “Amusing the Demon” featuring Emily Willis and Bill Bailey; “Here Piggy,” a home invasion thriller with Vespoli and Nathan Bronson; and “Dominating an Angel” with Skin Diamond and Aiden Starr.
Click here for hardcore previews and VOD/digital download details and follow TerrorXXX on Twitter.
Vespoli recently spoke exclusively to XBIZ about her life and career and her artistic vision; click here to read it.
