Grooby is one of the largest and most popular producers of transgender porn in the world. Since 1996, it’s been creating and marketing adult entertainment featuring trans women, starting with its flagship site, Shemale Yum, and followed by Ladyboy-Ladyboy, Black Shemale Hardcore, Shemale Pornstar, and over two dozen others. Since 1996, the company owned by Steven Grooby has been creating and marketing adult entertainment featuring trans women. It began with flagship site Shemale Yum, which was followed by Ladyboy-Ladyboy, Black Shemale Hardcore, Shemale Pornstar, and over two dozen others. But as awareness of trans issues has gained traction broadly, and small producers and outspoken activists within the porn industry have advocated for more respectful and realistic representation, Grooby was faced with a problem: Should it change its successful branding to reflect less derogatory terminology? If it took terms like “shemale” and “tranny” out of its site names, search terms, and film titles, would it lose its market share to other companies that were willing to keep using words that upset performers, but beckoned consumers?

“In terms of SEO, words like ‘shemale’ and ‘tranny’ are searched exponentially higher than other terms” for transgender content in porn, says Kristel Penn, Marketing and Editorial Director at Grooby. “Our product was reaching those looking for it without diluting the results of those looking for non-adult services.” But sensibilities were changing, and the pressure to abandon outdated and damaging terminology for transgender people was growing everywhere—but especially in the porn community.

And it was about time.

Trans pornography has always been a small segment of the overall porn industry in America—Penn says “it has a minute market share in the adult industry overall”—but it’s always been popular within that niche. Viewership for the genre has increased steadily since the 1990s, and exploded in the past half decade. Searches for the word “transgender” have gone up by nearly 300 percent over the past three years on Pornhub alone, according to research the company compiled specifically for this article. And trans porn is bankable. In 2015, Adam Grayson of production company Evil Empire told IBT that trans porn was his most popular genre. “In terms of revenue per scene or movie? Hands down, without a question,” he said. “Nothing even touches it. And we sell it at a price premium…because we can get it.” Fans of trans erotica are extremely loyal, as there’s relatively little content available to them that fills their needs.

But despite the money that trans performers have made for producers, their work has been mired in cringe-worthy epithets, reductive stereotypes, and predictable (and often offensively non-representative) scenes for decades. Models had long been at the mercy of producers and marketers more concerned with making a buck than representing performers with dignity—part of the reason it’s been such a long, slow climb to respectability.

Transsexual performers were named on the so-called “Cambria List,” which discouraged the creation of pornography the included elements considered obscene by federal prosecutors back in 2001 (in anticipation of the conservative George W. Bush years). Also on the list? Bondage, interracial sex, and facial cumshots. But where most of these elements have become common in porn over the past sixteen years, trans porn remained somewhat sequestered in its own corner of the industry. There weren’t many producers who were willing to take the chance, and those who did were worried about pushing the envelope too far.

“There was this centralized model, where there’s [a few] porn companies that hire trans people, and they’re each run by one guy who decides how it’s supposed to look,” says Tobi Hill-Meyer, a trans-positive porn director and the editor of Nerve Endings, a collection of trans-centric erotic comics. “Everything becomes really cookie-cutter, because they make something and it works, and then they don’t want to do anything else.”

Hill-Meyer remembers the first time she got hired by a mainstream trans porn studio as a performer. She was to shoot a 30-minute masturbation scene. “They literally had me scripted out by the minute,” she recalls. “I didn’t get to make decisions about what would be erotic. Someone else made the decisions and told me what I should be doing. And of course, that someone else making the decision was following the direction of one of those twelve rich, white, cisgender guys who ran everything.”

These same decision-makers wanted to film what their viewers—other cisgender men—wanted to see trans women do. It may come as a surprise to some that the majority of pornography featuring trans women is consumed by cisgender men who identify as heterosexual. But it’s a truth well-known among porn industry insiders. Pornhub reports that men are 63 percent more likely to search for transgender-related pornography, and xHamster says a full 87.5 percent of their searches for the word “shemale” are from men. “There’s the basic general rule that mainstream porn is always marketed to men,” says Tobi Hill-Meyer. And what those male viewers have learned to expect from trans porn, it seems, is trans women with erect penises who penetrate their partners—whether that’s what most trans women want to do in their real lives or not.

In most mainstream trans porn, says RS, a queer, nonbinary, trans, femme porn performer, “It’s clear that the sex is not for [the performers]; it’s for someone else. It’s for the male gaze, it’s for that viewer who just wants to see these things.” Though viewership for trans female porn has been diversifying—Kristel Penn of Grooby reports that they’ve seen an influx of trans-identifying viewers, and Kelly Pierce says that she’s been gaining female cam viewers recently—most trans porn is still made by male directors or producers, with other men in mind.

“Men, when they see a beautiful trans woman and like what she’s got downstairs, they think that the trans woman thinks just like they do,” says Kelly Pierce, a former porn performer who now performs via webcam. “A lot of porn viewership likes trans women on top [penetrating a partner]. So they’re putting trans women into sexual activities that they might not normally do. You have to use your penis, for instance. But the majority of trans women don’t want their penises touched. The majority don’t want to do anything with their penis.”

And while it may be lucrative to make porn that plays into viewers’ fantasies, it can be detrimental for performers whose gender identity is tied up with body dysmorphia. Many trans women in the porn industry—and sex work more generally—enter the industry to fund their physical transitions. They plan to purchase breast implants, facial surgery, or sexual reassignment surgery—often referred to as “bottom surgery”—with their earnings. But that puts trans female performers into a bind: “I know a lot of trans women who are stuck with the duality of wanting to have bottom surgery,” says RS, “but not being able to because their source of income depends on them having [a penis].”

A lot of trans porn used to (and still does) revolve around the element of surprise. In many cases, the “downstairs,” as Kelly Pierce calls it, is revealed partway through the scene, and treated at first with horror…then as a taboo turn-on. “It’s erotic for everyone because there’s so much taboo,” says RS, “but that kind of situation can be extremely unfair for a trans feminine person. It often is. A lot of assault comes from that kind of setting.”

Violent assault isn’t just a scary campfire story for trans women, either. Although recent strides in transgender acceptance, like Laverne Cox’s advocacy, Caitlin Jenner’s headline-grabbing comments, and Amazon’s barrier-breaking drama Transparent have drawn public attention to transgender issues, they’ve also increased trans exposure to violence. Crimes against trans people—especially trans women of color—are at an all-time high in America. There were 22 reported homicides against transgender individuals in the United States in 2016—a record high. And so far 2017 has seen 18.

In such dire circumstances, some proponents of transgender rights hope that more responsible representation in adult entertainment could serve an educational purpose for the general public. “People are naturally ignorant when it comes to sexuality and gender identity, because there is a lack of education,” says Venus Lux, an outspoken trans activist and winner of the 2016 AVN Award for Transgender Performer of the Year. “It’s not like they encounter transgender people on the streets to be able to ask them questions.” That leaves many cisgender individuals with few options when they’re curious about transgenderism. If they search for the word “trans” online, they’re likely to find porn, which may be their first and sometimes only experience with trans people.

Performer and director Dana Vespoli, who works with TransSensual, a trans-positive production company, says that it’s not just about educating cisgender people: Many trans people are learning about themselves through porn, too. “I think about young people in parts of the United States like the South, the Midwest, that are realizing they’re trans,” says Vespoli. “If they’re going and accessing [porn], I want them to see themselves represented in a way that’s nuanced and shown in a positive light.”

Vespoli is far from the only pornographer who feels that way. After decades of being treated as little more than a sideshow, the trans porn genre is starting to demand more recognition and dignity—and making its own internal changes to get the ball rolling. A great example is the evolution of the Tranny Awards, an online competition that Grooby began in 2007. “At the time, there was a lack of trans representation at the major adult award shows,” says Penn. “It was meant to be an informal online competition,” but it was so well received that it quickly evolved into a one-night event at a nightclub, then into its current iteration as a three-day convention and stage show. But as the Tranny Awards gained renown, so did their unfortunate choice of monikers.

Potential sponsors were leery of attaching themselves to the word “tranny,” and activists vocally denounced the name. Performers from both the mainstream and indie sides of the porn industry agitated for the awards show that ostensibly was made to “honor” them to change its name to something that sounded honorable, rather than derogatory. In 2014, Grooby, at last, made the switch to “the Transgender Erotica Awards.”

By the time the TEAs were rebranded, the company had already been promoting properties with the words “shemale” and “ladyboy” for nearly two decades. But Grooby had seen the writing on the wall: Trans activists, porn performers, and even lots of people in the general public wanted change. So Grooby decided to start a rebranding process across many of its properties. “We do understand why this terminology has been an issue with folks and ultimately we want to do right by our performers and fans. Our intention has always been to show respect to our performers,” says Penn.

After years of careful planning, Grooby officially renamed its flagship site—formerly Shemale Yum—GroobyGirls.com on August 15, 2017. “The site has been around for twenty years and is our most established brand,” says Penn. It’s a huge move, and Grooby isn’t going to stop. “Our remaining sites and future DVDs will be rebranded in the months ahead,” Penn declares.

This dramatic move is only a part of a trend in adult entertainment toward treating transgender performers with more respect on camera, in marketing, and on red carpets. Back in 2013, for instance, the “Oscars of Porn”—the AVN Awards—first allowed trans performers to present and receive awards onstage during the annual awards ceremony, and to walk the red carpet beforehand.

Part of presenting trans performers with dignity means partnering them with more diverse scene partners. Trans people have just as many sexual orientations as cisgender people, but until the past few years, trans feminine performers were almost always paired with men in their scenes. There’s a growing body of trans porn content from a number of studios with similar pairings. “It’s blowing people’s minds,” says Lux, “because lesbian porn in that capacity is changing.”

Later this month, one of the industry’s leading production companies, Wicked Pictures, will release its star performer jessica drake’s showcase film, jessica drake Is Wicked, which will feature drake in a fourway all-female orgy with three trans partners. “We had a level of integration of trans [performers] within Wicked Pictures productions, which has never been done in its twenty-five-year history of operation,” says Venus Lux, who is one of the women in the scene. This film follows on the heels of Real Fucking Girls, a Grooby film about trans women in lesbian relationships from 2016. “The movie swept all three major adult award shows,” says Kristel Penn—a first for a transgender film.

PHOTO: Alan Tom/Altomic Visuals

The cast of ‘Real F*cking Girls’ (from left: Aubrey Kate, Mona Wales, Natassia Dreams, Kelli Lox) accepting the Best DVD Award at the Transgender Erotic Awards show.

Of course, trans women aren’t the only transgender folks that the general public could stand to learn more about through porn—there’s a growing field of trans male performers in the wings. Buck Angel, a trans advocate who rose to fame in the early 2000s has made porn for over a decade, pioneered sex toys for trans men, and traveled the world as an advocate for trans acceptance. His latest pornographic outing, Buck Angel Superstar, is a big-budget, dramatic feature film based on his life. Dana Vespoli, who directed it, is hopeful that Buck Angel Superstar will do well with female audiences—or any audience. “I want to shoot more and have more representation of FTM performers,” she says.

“Pornography reaches many people,” Angel says via e-mail. “[Trans people] have become more visible in porn, but I would say that this is more with trans women. Trans men still seem to be under-represented.”

Finding the audience for trans men in porn has been a sticking point for decades, but experimentation is finally starting to get under way. “Sometimes you have to see something visually before you imagine it as an option for yourself—and how better to do that than show big-name gay porn stars having sex with trans men and loving it?” says Cyd St. Vincent, founder of the company Bonus Hole Boys, which St. Vincent describes as “the first gay porn website featuring trans guys.” The formula seems to be working. “Hundreds of people write to me telling me they didn’t even know trans men existed, and that our porn was their first exposure!”

And, though the focus on gay men as an audience is gaining traction, trans male performer Viktor Belmont reports, “I’m a gay porn performer, but my fan base is women.” St. Vincent, too, says, “The majority of our fans are gay men…but we have a huge following of women, as well.”

It seems that trans men in porn appeal to multiple demographics, many of whom aren’t even being marketed to yet. According to Pornhub, there’s a wide-open audience that’s just starting to consider the possibilities, particularly when it comes to trans men.

“The number one [transgender]-related search is ‘FTM’ (female to male)” by a large margin, according to Pornhub’s findings. The site hosts a vast amount of content featuring trans women (much of it labeled “shemale,” unfortunately), but there’s simply less trans male content to go around, and it seems that people are hungry to find more.

But porn featuring trans men is susceptible to the same tropes and stagnation as the trans female porn that’s been on the market for decades. “People really like to cast trans men in a sort of ‘genital reveal’ sort of way that can feel sort of trope-y,” says Viktor Belmont. “I would never yuck anyone’s yum, but in a porn if that’s the only storyline going on, it can feel a little repetitive and stale.”

Luckily, there’s a robust group of small, independent porn companies creating work that depicts trans people in myriad ways that reflect their authentic desires and sexualities—and they’ve been doing it for a while. The inclusivity and authenticity of indie, queer, feminist porn has long been an incubator for change within the more mainstream side of the industry, especially when it comes to trans representation. Tobi Hill-Meyer, for instance, gained traction nearly a decade ago as the first visibly transgender woman to perform for Crash Pad Series, Pink & White Productions’ flagship series, which hires performers of many gender identities. Trouble Films, a company launched by Courtney Trouble in 2003 as NoFauxxx.com, was giving trans men screen time before Buck Angel even landed his first major performing contract.

And the contemporary landscape of indie porn is more diverse than ever. Performer RS has worked with a number of small independent companies, including AORTA Films, which allows performers to explore their various trans, nonbinary, and other gender nonconforming identities.

Foxhouse Films, created by performance artist and adult performer Alyx Fox, allows its “multigendered and polysexual” performers to explore their sexualities regardless of their gender identities, and encourages trans, nonbinary, cisgender, and genderqueer performers alike to enact their desires on camera. “We try to capture authentic sex,” says Fox. “It’s easier for us to work from performer desires and what they want to do…It has to be something they are excited about.”

And performers themselves are starting to also create porn, thus taking the means of production into their own hands. In these days of online piracy, says Tobi Hill-Meyer, “The big companies are making less money, and the tools of being able to produce your own porn are getting super accessible.” Hill-Meyer has created several documentary porn films about trans women herself, to much acclaim, and she’s seeing more trans individuals create their own work all the time. “That additional accessibility is radically shifting the possibilities for people who don’t want to do what the twelve wealthy, cis, white guys want them to do.”

PHOTO: @viktorbelmont

Viktor Belmont

Webcamming, too, is offering an outlet for trans performers to express themselves sexually on camera—on their own terms. Kelly Pierce has been performing exclusively on cam (sometimes with her husband) for the past six years, and she loves it. “I’m just really thrilled that I can control my career, finally. And I can be myself!…My cam fans get to see me on a more regular basis, whereas in porn, they just see you as a fantasy, and they don’t see you as a person.”

As trans visibility increases—for better or worse, under the Trump administration’s conservative policies—the general public is growing more aware and more curious. “What’s happening,” says Alyx Fox, “is there are a lot of people who are having an evolving moment of consciousness. I think people are starting to have sexual desires that are more fluid and identities that are more fluid.”

The porn industry, from the biggest and most established companies down to individual cam performers, is finally getting ready to meet these viewers’ needs. And the best way for consumers to ensure this evolution keeps going?

Kristel Penn at Grooby—who’s creating a safe and respectful place for trans women to perform in mainstream pornography—pleads: “To those reading this, please, please, please pay for your porn.”

“By paying us and supporting our projects,” says Viktor Belmont, “we can keep creating media for you to enjoy!”

Lynsey G. is a veteran porn journalist and author of the book Watching Porn: And Other Confessions of an Adult Entertainment Journalist. As part of our Summer of Sex, she’ll be taking a look at the ways pornography informs and subverts social issues. Her installments on mainstream porn and race, can be found here, and her installment on ageism can be found here.

Lead image: Stocksy