Twenty Questions with Feminist Performer/Director Nikki Silver

Feminist porn performer/director Nikki Silver makes her hairy and wonderful magic out of Oakland, California and she recently won an award at the 2014 Feminist Porn Awards for her website NaughtyNatural.com.  She is all about creating porn that showcases women as they are without a whole lot of artifice and that can be fun stuff.  Here are her answers to twenty questions.

1) What kind of girl were you back in high school? Who did you hang out with/date?

I was definitely a weirdo. From an early age I felt really comfortable being kind of on my own and doing my own thing. I never really belonged to any of the alternative cliques, (I still don’t have the hang of dressing cool) but I hung out with them from time to time and was respected by them. I was a lesbian (no longer, haha, I sleep with everybody now), and super out about that. I internet dated a LOT, I had a string of girlfriends and we all loved Ani DiFranco. I was really all about fucking alternative girls and saving the world from capitalism and patriarchy. I’m ashamed to say I had dreadlocks and dated a few girls with dreads as well and I was, of course, unshaven.

2) Were you a porn fan before you got into the industry? Who were your favorite porn stars/favorite porn movies?

To be honest I was not a porn fan before getting into the industry. However I think a lot of this is due to the fact that for many years I wasn’t settled in one place and didn’t have a computer or lived in the woods without internet access. I was however always pretty promiscuous and into different kinds of sex, starting with girls when I was younger on to all kinds of public stuff, group stuff, kinky stuff, etc.

3) What/who do you want to do on-camera that you haven’t done yet?

Well, luckily I run my own site so almost anything I want to, and can do on camera I have done! I wish I could do a menstruation video, either solo of with another girl on her period, but it’s not allowed. In terms of things that are allowed I would like to do a scene being submissive to a woman, I am usually dominant in my girl/girl scenes.

4) Who is your favorite male performer/female performer to work with and why?

Wow, hard question. Unlike many performers I haven’t done that many scenes with big name performers, I usually hand pick my scene partners out of my friend group. Ruckus was definitely my favorite male performer. We actually have known each other for years and come out of a similar political circle so getting to finally fuck him was really fun! Obviously he’s also adorable and super sweet and was VERY good at fucking me with his hand, something rare for a lot of men.

Favorite female performer… either Maggie Mayhem or Joey Minx. Maggie has a wild fun energy that I really feed off and I love how bratty Joey is, makes me want to take care of them and beat them at the same time.

5) You seem to really love your fans and respond to them a lot on Twitter. Tell me how having this fan base has changed your life.

I actually just wrote a blog post about this on my site. You’re right I really do adore my fans. It’s very different to run your own site than to solely preform on other peoples sites, your fan base is MUCH more important.

From a more emotional and creative standpoint I am getting constant positive feedback on what I consider my art. It really builds my confidence and helps me be inspired to keep creating that I’m constantly being told how talented I am, not just as a performer but as a cinematographer and director as well.

6) What’s your favorite position to get fucked in and why does it get you off?

Oh, from behind for sure, the obvious reason is it hits the G-spot, the other reasons are...I don’t know there’s just something dirty about it. When I’m bottoming I like to feel like I’m being thrown around and used and I think this position just adds to that feeling, I also really like my ass being grabbed and spanked so it’s just easier from behind.

7) What do you think makes your porn at NaughtyNatural.com stand apart from the rest of what’s out there?

Most importantly the way I portray myself on NaughtyNatural really isn’t an act. The person you see there really is myself, and I don’t just fuck I also talk about my life and my art, my friends and lovers. NaughtyNatural is a window into a world that most people don’t have access to and I really do my best to make it accessible to the members, including extensive and personal emailing.

I also work very hard to keep NaughtyNatural updated really frequently. It is a model run site with over 52 models on it and 3 updates a week. I love my models and my members and want to provide both with has much work and content as possible.

Oh yeah, and everyone is really hairy.

8) What made you decide to launch the site?

I really wanted to take control of my image and my content (as in content I shot of other models) I was working for a big hairy site and it was just very boring and repetitive and very limiting for the models. Even masturbation scenes needing to be scripted in terms of how long it took to take off clothing and when they came etc..

I also really feel in love with my fans and wanted to provide the fans of hairy girl porn something really high quality both in production value and in erotic quality like how comfortable and genuinely turned on the models are.

I wanted creative freedom in terms of who I shot, how I shot, what kinds of fetish and different elements I included. As well as representing the models with more of their input and in a way that was more respectful.

9) What are the best things about being in porn?

Having sex with babes. But really, getting to construct really fun and engaging sex scenes with beautiful, vibrant people is really great.

I never would have learned all the things I have about photography and video production without porn. Now I have an art book, called Unshaven coming out in June and will be working on a feature porn art film this spring!

10) What makes armpits sexy?

They hold in pheromones, I genuinely do love to smell my lovers and bury my face in their hairy armpits. They also allude to hairy pussy or man bush (what is it called?) it’s like a reminder of where else they might be fur. It also just feels very normal to me, in my life hairiness is the norm, not the exception.

11) What makes your porn feminist?

I identify as a feminist. That’s something that’s been integral to my whole life and a lens through which I see the world. My programmer is a queer woman so really the site is entirely run by women.

The way I represent the models and the way I treat them is very important to me. I make sure to pay people in full and on time, I don’t coerce or pressure models to do things they want to do, often changing things as we go along if a model is uncomfortable with some aspect (either physically, like they are cold, or emotionally like they don’t want to do or say a certain thing). My goal is to become friends with my models (if they aren't my friends already) and figure out what kinds of things they are most excited about doing and have them wear their own clothes. I try to represent them as close to their real self as they are comfortable with and is possible to do.

The site is also all about female pleasure, hence so many solo scenes. If you aren’t interested in seeing women orgasming then NaughtyNatural is not for you!

12) What do you most want to achieve in the adult industry?

I want NaughtyNatural to be a successful site that is able to run for years and pay and treat it’s models and members very well.

I want to have awesome sex with amazing performers.

I want to get to know my fans and learn about their desires.

I want to make feature films that are really hot and turn people on and get them off but are also beautifully shot and have engaging plot lines.

13) Who are your role models in porn and how/why do they inspire you?

I tried to think about this and basically all my friends came to mind. I work very collaboratively with a number of Bay Area site owners/performers, so pretty much all my friends inspire me, Jiz Lee, James Darling, Siouxsie Q, Quinn Cassidy, Lyric Seal. Aja Pops and Isabel Dresler are huge role models in terms of videography/production. There aren’t too many people I look to that I don’t personally know, I guess I really get off on the intimacy of friendship.

However in terms of so many things, business structure, content, site itself, I adore the company Feck, based out of Australia, they run ifeelmyself.com and beautifulagony.com I went there and modeled and spent time with the owner and he is really wonderful. The way they treat and pay models is top notch and something I definitely strive for. I believe they are the only company I know of that does profit sharing with models based on how many clicks your content gets, pretty impressive.

14) What advice would you give a woman who wants to be better at pleasing her partners?

Haha, my immediate thought is, ‘prioritize yourself’! But that’s not actually the advice I would give. I mean sex can mean and be a thousand different things. You must communicate, clearly and thoroughly with yourself and then with your partner. You must know what you want or at least be ready to explore that, with some avenues you’d like to go down. So ask your partner questions, create space for them to answer honestly, and really go the extra mile in making their dreams come true! Stay present with them, connect your pleasure to theirs and join them on their journey of pleasure.

15) What is the best mainstream movie you have seen recently?

I really loved ‘Her.’ I guess it’s not that recent but I don’t go to the movies that much. It made me feel really freaked out about my own relationship with technology. I used to be very much anti-civilization and obviously have changed a lot in my lifestyle and what I do but still have inclinations towards distrusting technology deeply and I do really hate our computerized ways of socializing. I’ve never had Facebook and whenever I’m not working on my site and interacting with friends and fans I try to take as much time away from the computer and outside as I can. Obviously I have a complicated relationship with the idea of someone falling in love with a computer since for many of my fans; I live in the computer. Am I ‘her’? Am I a computer? Ahhh!

16) How about the best porno movie? Is there someone whose movies you like to watch who is working now?

You know, I really appreciate good porn but I don’t actually watch it that much. Crashpad is always amazing; I like watching my friends!

17) Are you into toys to get yourself off alone or are you a low-tech woman?

Depends on my mood. Sometimes I’ll just rub my clit till I cum, other times I try to shove as many of my fingers inside myself as I can, other times it’s full on Hitachi with the big dildo. It just really depends on what kind of fantasy is going through my head, and let me tell you, they run the gamet.

18) If you could fuck any celebrity, who would it be? Give us your male and female choices.

Male - Connor Paolo - He mostly plays a teenager(he is of age now), he was the gay boy in Gossip Girl. He is so fucking adorable. I have a thing for short people especially short men.

Female - Naya Rivera, who plays Santana on Glee. She does have a mean streak but in terms of just having sex that could be a very good thing. Maybe I wouldn’t date her, I do prefer to date nice people. And forever crush, Angelina Jolie.

19) What is coming up for you?

I have a book coming out in June, called Unshaven. It’s a collection of photos from my site and some I took just for the book of defiant, proud women with body hair. It’s been a lot of fun putting it together and working with Tina Horn who’s writing an essay for the ‘book’ being as she’s often a proud unshaven woman as well.

I will also be working a feature film this spring with Quinn Cassidy. It will be the most story/plot heavy porn film I’ve ever shot and certainly the longest. I will be filming, directing and also playing one of the main characters who is an opium smoking, bisexual, witchy cat lady. Which isn’t too far from reality for me minus the opium, thank goodness.

20) Is there anything you want to say to your fans here at Fleshbot?

Even if hair isn't your thing, I encourage you to come check out NaughtyNatural. I really enjoy my craft and have lots of gorgeous girls, regardless of your taste in body hair, I think anyone could find something to enjoy. The sex is real, dirty and a lot of fun. And if you do like body hair, well you really hit the jack pot!

Keep watching my porn! Hope it inspires you to have great sex!

All the images here appear courtesy of NaughtyNatural.com.  Here's a trailer of Silver with Minx in "Spellbound".