Bean Flicks: Ethics & Desires

Birmingham's 1st ethical, feminist, queer & kink-positive porn festival. Two nights of discussions and screenings with a stellar line up of sex & porn researchers, performers, artists, activists and creators and the 'Best Slumber Party Ever!' fest wrap party over Valentine's weekend.

*update: delicious south african (veggie) curries from Ubuntu Foods will now be available (cash only) FRI & SAT

+ Cock/Cuntails specially designed by Kaye Winwood Projects! (SAT ONLY)

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14th Line Up

6pm Dirty Soapbox

Contribute to Birmingham’s first Sex Positive and Inclusivity Manifesto with Neelam Heera, social activist and founder of Cysters- Taking up space, together. In three minutes or less, tell us your vision for a future that respects everyone’s desires in an ethical way.

7pm Queering/Querying Spaces

Jasmine Gardosi kicks off the fest with poetry exploring sexuality and gender identity, and reflections on how we might educate and evolve spaces by calling in, calling out, or simply by being ourselves safely. Gardosi is an awarding winning poet, multiple slam champion, with appearances across BBC Radio, at Glastonbury Festival and on Button Poetry. Film screening: Shanahoy’s Best Slumber Party Ever*

8.15pm RAW SEX: What IS ethical gay porn?

Prof John Mercer and Charlie Sarson explore what an ethical gay porn might mean. Whose ethics? Whose porn? Whose decisions? Critical questions that matter for gay men, especially when orthodoxies around ‘safe’ and ‘responsible’ gay sex are increasingly overturned. A session designed to disrupt easy consensus. Film screening: Liam Cole’s Bad Influence*

9pm Why we run London Porn Film Festival despite protests, censorship, and hate

In April 2019, the third London Porn Film Festival was attacked by trans and sex worker exclusionary radical feminists. Despite increased costs, an aggressive threat of prosecution, being forced to censor sections, and a visit from the police, the festival had its best year yet! Max Disgrace, co-organiser of the festival, shares details of the story and the reasons why the festival was started in the first place. Film screening: Max Disgrace’s and Lina Bembe’s Tribute

10pm Three in a bed and the little one said, ‘Pass the lube’

Dr Ryan Scoats, reads from his book, ‘Understanding Threesomes: Gender, Sex, & Consensual Non-Monogamy’ and discusses how understanding different sex practices expands sexual possibilities beyond those steeped in stereotypes and problematic foundations. Film screening: Erika Lust’s Heidi & the Dough Boys

10.45- 11.15pm Late Night Flicks

less talk, more porn. Join us for late night screenings of three ethical, feminist, queer and kink-positive porn shorts: Dear Jiz, Linger, and Crystal Clear

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15th Line Up (5pm till late)

5pm Brown Girls Do It

Iqra Choudhry and Alicia Anane of the ‘Brown Girls Do It’ podcast kick of Saturday with an interactive session on diversity and inclusivity in Relationship and Sex Education– a topical subject in Birmingham with recent backlashes against LGBTQ+ inclusivity in schools.

6pm Blurred Boundaries: It’s not who you go to bed WITH, but who you go to bed AS

Dr Michell Chresfield and Dr Lucy Neville explore sexualities, desire, and subjecthood based on the principle: ‘It’s not who you go to bed with, but who you go to bed as.’ Chresfield teaches gender, sexuality, and the history of science, medicine, race and identity in 20th century America and has appeared on BBC Radio 4. Neville, author of Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys: Women & Gay Male Pornography and Erotica, explores women’s engagement with sex, sex work and pornography.

7.15pm *Keynote* Ethics & Desires with Vex Ashley

Vex Ashley provides Bean Flicks’ keynote with reflections on the festival’s theme, ‘Ethics & Desires,’ through the lens of her work at A Four Chambered Heart. After rejecting being demoted to "muse," spending 3 years at art school and getting naked online as a cam girl, Ashley started making work at Four Chambers to expand the idea of what sex on film could say, do and be. Vex performs in, directs, edits and produces the Four Chambers project in collaboration with a partner and the performers. Film screening: Four Chamber's Archetype .

8.30pm Disabled, Desirable and DTF

Mat Fraser and Gill Leno address taboos around disabled people being desirable, sexual and down to fuck. Fraser has been an internationally renowned disabled actor, writer, and a pioneer, bringing Disability Arts into mainstream arts environments, for over twenty five years. He is known for his TV work (BBC/HBO series “His Dark Materials”), hosts the Erotic awards, and advocates for sexual expression in Disability Arts. Leno, local Birmingham *legend*, is a specialist sex and relationships educator, writer, researcher and advocate working with people with intellectual, physical and sensory disabilities and autism spectrum conditions. Leno focuses on sex and body positive, pleasure focused education for everyone and sexual citizenship for all. Film screening: Clarke Matthews’ KRUTCH

9.15pm Professional Domination - Mistress Tess

Bean Flicks is honoured to have the internationally renowned Mistress Tess in conversation. Mistress Tess has a wealth of expertise and is an authority in her craft. Mistress Tess is one of the top Pro-Dommes in the UK, with fans all over the world. She will be sharing stills from her film Strap, Spit and Roast and other work and talking about the ongoing censorship of women's creativity, craft and expertise within the sex industry, particularly in regards to kink and BDSM.

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10pm Fest Wrap Party: BEST SLUMBER PARTY EVER

We’ll be drawing proceedings to an end late Saturday night with a tribute to the candy punk aesthetic of one of our favourite porn makers, Samuel Shanahoy. (£5 entry, separate to fest tix)

• Join local artist Ruth Harvey for Porn-e-oke and BedPosts performances & games– cum it’ll be a riot.

• Music from DJs Virgina Bludclart and b_vo.

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18+ only! Bean Flicks reserves the right to carry out age checks so please bring proof of age.

Ticket prices: Friday only: £10; Saturday only: £12; Friday & Saturday: £18; Festival Party- Best Slumber Party Ever: £5

• Queries/more info, email: beanflicks2020@gmail.com

• Bean Flicks is organised by a group of researchers and activists based at Birmingham City University and University of Birmingham, with financial and in-kind support from Film Hub Midlands and Centrala.
• This is a safe space event with zero-tolerance to any forms of hate. Those displaying such behaviour will be removed and tickets will not be refunded.
• *Films subject to change, pending approvals for screening.
• Bean Flicks aims to be as inclusive as possible, so that everyone can attend. There will be a wheelchair accessible portaloo. The main entrance door is 76cm wide. If you have specific access needs, please contact us at beanflicks2020@gmail.com - we will do our best work with you to provide what you need.