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‘HUMP!’ Fest offers porn by the people, for the people

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Image courtesy HUMP! Film Festival

Dan Savage’s HUMP! Film Festival is on the road again, bringing a carefully curated collection of porn to a city near you.

Yes, that’s right, porn.

Now in its 15th year, the HUMP! Festival brings audiences “a new kind of porn,” according to its website. The films it screens are submitted, on condition of anonymity and limited viewership, by sexually adventurous couples and friends, “people who aren’t porn stars but want to be one for a weekend.”

The best of the crop, selected by Savage and a 12-person jury, then go on a tour across the country, screened in theatres for a short, limited run and then never to be seen again. The movies are short – each less than five minutes – and they offer proof that, when it comes to sex, it’s all a question of taste. The HUMP Fest’s entries feature “whatever their amateur filmmakers and stars think is hot and sexy, creative and kinky, their ultimate turn-ons and their craziest fantasies […] a cornucopia of body types, shapes, ages, colors, sexualities, genders, kinks, and fetishes, united by a shared spirit of sex-positivity.”

The official line from its creators:

“HUMP! is a celebration of creative sexual expression. You will see films at HUMP! that shock you. You will see films at HUMP! that make you laugh. And you will see films at HUMP! that turn you on. You will also be touched by the sincerity and vulnerability with which these films are lovingly made. HUMP!’s main mission is to change the way America sees—and makes and shares—porn.”

Savage, the out journalist and activist behind the “Savage Love” sex advice column and the “It Gets Better Project,” started the festival back in 2005. He told BuzzFeed in a 2015 interview, “We are reviving old-school, artisanal pornography.”

He explained the purpose of the festival by offering an example from the many films submitted for consideration.

“A couple years ago, there was a film called “Go Ahead and Pee.” It was just a normal, average-looking woman jumping on a trampoline with a leotard, saying, ‘Go ahead, pee.’ Eventually, she’s jumping on the trampoline, and you begin to see that she is urinating. She’s peeing herself. Her leotard is changing color as she pees down her own legs. That was the video. That’s all that happened. And we were like, ‘That’s someone’s kink. That’s somebody’s porn. That’s something we want in the festival.’ Juxtaposed with the other films, I thought it worked really well. It was beautiful.”

He summed it up by saying, “It makes people better humans to be comfortable with and down with what other people are doing, what other people are into. To witness it and cheer for it.

“Under the plumbing, under the kinks, under the gender identity, everything is the same: the desire, the lust, the passion, the humor, the vulnerability. All of those things, the more important things, are the same. That’s the cake, and the differences are the frosting. We are all the fucking cake.”

If you’re interested in seeing some of the many flavors of frosting on display at this year’s HUMP! Film Festival, you can find the tour schedule and ticket info, along with a full listing and description of the selected films, at their website.

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‘Heated Rivalry’ stars to participate in Olympic torch relay

Games to take place next month in Italy

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(Photo courtesy of Crave HBO Max)

“Heated Rivalry” stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie will participate in the Olympic torch relay ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics that will take place next month in Italy.

HBO Max, which distributes “Heated Rivalry” in the U.S., made the announcement on Thursday in a press release.

The games will take place in Milan and Cortina from Feb. 6-22. The HBO Max announcement did not specifically say when Williams and Storrie will participate in the torch relay.

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Bars & Parties

Here’s where to watch ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ with fellow fans

Entertainers TrevHER and Grey host event with live performance

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(Photo by New Africa/Bigstock)

Spark Social Events will host “Ru Paul’s Drag Race S18 Watch Party Hosted by Local Drag Queens” on Friday, Jan. 23 at 8 p.m.

Drag entertainers TrevHER and Grey will provide commentary and make live predictions on who’s staying and who’s going home. Stick around after the show for a live drag performance. The watch party will take place on a heated outdoor patio and cozy indoor space.

This event is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

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Bars & Parties

‘Queer Eye’ watch party set for Friday

DC Center to host event

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Members of the cast of 'Queer Eye' speak at an event at Crush Dance Bar in August. (Blade photo by Michael Key)

The DC Center is hosting a watch party for an episode of the 10th and final season of “Queer Eye,” which was filmed in D.C. The screening will be held on Friday, Jan. 23 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Center.

The screening will last 45-55 minutes, with community time both before and after the episode. Drinks and snacks will be provided and organizers promise a “surprise or two.” For information on tickets, visit the DC Center’s website.

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