Free Speech Coalition Honors Girlfriends Films
Studio Wins Leadership Award
Girlfriends Films Honored By Free Speech Coalition
Adult studio wins FSC Leadership Award for excellence, innovative business
practices
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. ‹ Lesbian-content studio Girlfriends Films was honored
with the 2010 Free Speech Coalition Leadership Award at the XBIZ Awards in
Hollywood, Calif., on Feb. 10. The FSC Leadership Award, established in
2009, is given to an adult company that exemplifies excellence and
innovation in business practices.
“It’s wonderful to give recognition to Girlfriends Films as a company that
really exemplifies what doing good business is all about,² FSC Membership
Director Joanne Cachapero said. ³They create movies that are popular with
consumers, as well as setting a high standard for fair business practices
when it comes to dealing with their performers, employees, vendors and
colleagues.”
Since its founding in 2002, Girlfriends Films has had a history of fair
businesses practices and ongoing philanthropy. The company donates a portion
of its annual revenues to selected charities and has hosted charitable
fundraising events.
“We not only pay our bills on time, but we pay some in advance,”
Girlfriends Films President Dan O’Connell said. “And I¹m especially adamant about making
fast payment to the little guys, who are often stretched for a dollar and
depending on us. On our shoots ¬ which are almost all done at rented homes ¬
we always treat the models and the homeowners with respect and
consideration. The models know they are shooting in a safe environment with
a small, respectful crew. As a result, we have far more talent wanting to
work for us than we could ever use. And we always give the talent same-day
pay, which makes them very happy.”
Frequent Girlfriends Films performer Magdalene St. Michaels started her
career with Girlfriends Films and has appeared in more than 30 productions
for the company.
“I was discovered by Dan at the Adult Expo in Las Vegas in 2007,” St.
Michaels said. “He wrote ‘I Like to Kiss’ for me. It was my first adult
movie and I was in all four scenes. When you go on a Girlfriends Films set,
you’re spoiled for life. Dan is easygoing and I’ve never seen him lose his
cool. He can describe exactly what he wants from you as a performer. There’s
a small crew and it’s intimate.
“I’m getting fan mail from people from all over the world from my work with
Girlfriends. I just got one from a 77-year-old woman.”
Going into the lesbian-content niche was the first of Girlfriends Films’
innovative moves.
“If you try to copy the big guys you¹ll get steam-rolled. When we started, I
immediately targeted the more mature and couples markets as I thought they
were being under-served. That was a great choice,” O’Connell said. “We
continue to bring out new theme-based series, the most recent being ‘Pin-up
Girls.’ We have a few more new series planned for the first part of 2010,
and I¹m sure some more will come to mind.”
Girlfriends Films was founded in 2002 and produces lesbian-content videos,
with series including “Lesbian Liaisons,” “Road Queen,” the
three-time AVN Award-winning Best All-Girl Series “Women Seeking Women” and “Lesbian
Legal.” Many of its productions take place in the fictional town of
Thornhill, including “Thornhill Diaries,” “Twisted Passions” and
“Field of Schemes.” All Girlfriends Films productions are available on DVD and the
company is preparing to celebrate its 200th release this spring.
