TheSuperheroines.com Interviews

JessP wrote: @jdrock24
I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that peril fans are Superheroine fans. They're two completely different things.
Sick as it may be, there are guys out there who love to see women beaten, humiliated, and ultimately violated. The thing is, that type of content isn't just taboo; it's downright illegal in many regions.
Now, if you dress the female victim up in a Wonder Woman costume, then it's suddenly perceived as a "fantasy fight between superheroes" and not this kind of gross simulated rape.
So this whole peril fad has nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing to do with Superheroine fans, or comic books, or anything of the sort. It's simply a way of disguising this twisted, violent content whose fans would otherwise be ashamed to admit they get off on.
JT and I have banned the word "Superheroine" from our production company because of the peril sites. We can't risk our cast and crew thinking that we're somehow part of that. It's a real shame.
Jess

Thanks for this post Jess. I agree with everything you said. It is a shame.

HeroineFX: I understand your frustration and I wish I had some good answer for you. For the life of me, I cannot understand why people share content with the world that other people produce, especially exclusive content like this genre. It frustrates me to no end when people like yourself cannot reasonably profit from their labors.

This thread has made me very depressed. I always wondered why their were so few girl power films relative to peril films, and now to discover the reasons are mindless morons sharing these files for free, rather than rewarding the film maker who's willing to produce these films, makes me very sad. I wish I had an answer, but if you did put up a kickstarter, you'd have my money.

Kick Ass Kandy, Competitive Enterprises, Deadly Dymes

BolarPear: What makes you think any of those companies are actually doing well? They keep going, but that doesn't mean they are actually doing well, or that they are not support by other means. Kick Ass Kandy has "diversified" into peril films. Do you think that is because his girl power films are selling like hotcakes?

one set of tastes would be any more likely to behave in such a dishonourable way than people with another set of tastes. Statistically that seems improbable.

BolarPear: It's a matter of having a "system" for pirating. Girlpower fans see a new release here and you immediately know where to go to look for the pirated version. Everyone here knows EXACTLY where to go to get the pirated version and you go there in mass. It's not a mystery. There will be several hundred copies pirated in a matter of hours. In fact you can find our films there right now. Peril forums are not quite as "centralized". Peril films are out there, certainly, but they aren't as organized in terms of the "go to" places to find them. They are more scattered. It's harmful, yes, but it's not as "fast" as the girl power redistribution. Also, as I mentioned, our films aren't really peril films to begin with, so they fly relatively low under that radar. Apparently we don't do enough raping and beating or whatever... but girl power fans jump all over our stuff, and thus they are more readily "shared".

improbably or not, the fact remains that girlpower films are not supported financially within about 48 hours of release, while peril films have a relatively longer "shelf life".

Youtube.

Castor: We had the same thought. Nyoka has been up there for free for a very long time and earns next to nothing. Your numbers are unrealistic and unpredictable. I could put up a feature length film for free and make $5 or $50 or $500... but I have no way of knowing. And once i do that, i will NEVER be able to sell it as a download. Would you invest $2000 in a film and then stick it up on YouTube on a hope and a prayer that your film will go viral? I'd rather take the $2000 to Vegas and bet it all on black. It's a safer "investment". 50/50 is better than playing the YouTube game where it's literally you versus the world.

You are correct that the mainstream market is huge. It's also largely inaccessible without marketing dollars. If you'd like to invest in my existing Angel Avengers films for example then I will happily give you 50% of everything that you can earn over $3000... but I honestly don't think you'll be able to hit that number.

This thread has made me very depressed.

dauntingmold: Sorry, but yes... it's a bummer. I may ask for your support later this year when/if I testdrive kickstarter.


I really do appreciate everyone's thoughts and suggestions! Hopefully this community develops a system that they are actually willing to support on a regular basis. As soon as you do, just let me know and I'll start cranking out movies.

Just looked up Nyoka.

It gots 80,000 hits. Thats pretty respectable. Not amazing, but i would call that respectable.

By most youtube numbers i am familiar with that..should generate somewhere in the 2400.00 not sure if it did of course, but if you click on all the add options a heavily advertised youtube video makes something like that.

your right its highly unpredictable-and there's is no guarantee your going to get all that.

But theres plenty of people putting stuff up on youtube. And like i have said. If you do it smartly, i have known people who have made either a living or some change with there money. Some of them do have budgets- i have talked with the head of Machimia (they do stuff like ryu vs robocop or what ever) and i know most of there budgets are about 10k, but this out there as model...

Its not a great model...

Its just that the model of trying to sell these short films..is kind of crazy...

and i would tell that to the people who sell the peril videos to..i doubt there all that much better. i would classify that as porn, and god knows you can hear people bitch about that in LA.

Frankly i suspect in 10 years the market of trying to sell like huge Hollywood films maybe kind of crazy.

and i don't think its going to change. Well i think the pay per click may go up a couple of cents but not really.

But if you could get 80,000 hits for your video, i don't think your going to make much money but i suspect its something to consider.

Castor

Ps. And you know if you advertsing nothing else its, AC comics and the merch. Keep it in the public eye. that is worth something.

The bottom line, unfortunately, is that this is the digital age and piracy on the internet is unstoppable.

There are two main reasons for this - the digital format and anonimity.

The digital format allows perfect reproduction (unlike the VHS tape days where each copy would degrade) and also electronic distribution. And anonimity means you don't know, and will never know, who is doing it.

Sad as it sounds, I have to agree - it simply isn't worth releasing/producing these products.

You could try something like DRM, but even that can be bypassed. I simply can't think of any way to protect the product from piracy.

The best suggestion I think in this thread has been Kickstarter. If you can raise the funds to make the product (plus X% profit that you want to make), then that way at least you have made the money that you would make off that film. It doesn't matter if its pirated after its released. And any sale you make is bonus.

Apart from that, I'm stumped. And while its no real consolation, you have the same problem all creative industries have - videogames, music and Hollywood.

Hope you find a solution.

Peace.

/K

It really is a sad state of affairs.

HeroineFX you know you have my support if you plan on doing something later this year.
Please don't forget about the Stormy Fans out there.
I know it's rough but some of the teaser videos that backers got a chance to look at were really spectacular.
Almost Game Changing!

The Scarlet Scorpion was really well done also.
It's a shame that these projects get Hi Jacked.
I have no answers.

80,000 hits. Thats pretty respectable.

Thanks! But it's taken years to hit that number and it has not generated several hundred dollars, let alone several thousand. It has been good marketing for CultRetro's downloads and DVD's though, and it shows people what we could do, which is what we were hoping for. But it's not a moneymaker on its own.

Its just that the model of trying to sell these short films..is kind of crazy...

Exactly. There just is no good system right now. Which is why we stopped. There is demand. There is supply. But there is no reliable way of connecting the two at the moment. For every YouTube video that takes off, there are literally millions more that you've never heard of that simpy vanish and never earn a dime. "Hoping" to be one of the rare exceptions is not a business plan. Not to mention that we have people (probably competitors) that actively and aggressively try to get our movies and trailers taken down...but that's a different topic all together.

What WAS the topic anyway? Oh yeah... TheSuperheroines.com... Tiffany Chase is CRAZY hot and I'd hire her in a heartbeat!

Please don't forget about the Stormy Fans out there.

Thanks Markiehoe. And yes... we definitely tried to kick it up a notch with the final round of Stormy films. I don't think some of them are fetish movies at all... they're just fun movies period! Monsters, custom aliens, sets, bikinis, underwater footage, new costumes, many villainesses, male superheroes... it's crazy! Plus Nicola Rae makes it all look easy. We were actually trying to make "comic book films" and not just fetish films (though those elements are still there in the background). I have not crossed them off of my "to do" list and I continue to work on them from time to time (just because it's fun). I am really eager for people to see what we filmed, but they will require a significant time and financial investment to complete, and I am going to need some sort of "sign" that there is a way to release them without shooting myself in the foot... again... and again. I'm just waiting for the right sign (backed by statistics instead of guesswork).

Perhaps if my personal Kickstarter works out and I have some concrete numbers to show for it I might then be able to convince the powers-that-be to try a similar track with the remaining Stormy films. Who knows? I guess we shall see.

Thanks to you all for your concerns and suggestions!