HUMP! In All Shapes, Sizes, and Sexualities

Dan Savage’s 13th annual HUMP! Film Festival will reach the Twin Cities Sept. 13-15. Photo by Nicolle Clemetson

Dan Savage’s 13th Annual HUMP! Film Festival comes to Minneapolis Sept. 13-15.

Everybody’s sexy. That’s what Dan Savage’s HUMP! Film Festival truly believes and represents with its 13th annual amateur porn festival. Featuring dirty movies no longer than five minutes each, HUMP! displays a wide variety of sizes, shapes, sexualities, genders, races, kinks, and more.

“You name it, you’ll see it at HUMP!,” says Caroline Dodge, HUMP! marketing and promotions director.

Dodge says HUMP!’s main mission is to change the way America sees, makes, and shares porn by giving everyone the opportunity to be a porn star regardless of the way they look, who they are, or what they’re into.

“Our motto is that everyone is sexy! We wondered what would happen if we created a safe, fun, sex-positive place for people to express themselves on film. The results are in: we’ve gone from a few shows in Seattle to over 30 cities in the United States and Canada! People want to laugh, squirm, be challenged, and most importantly, be turned on, by all different kinds of sex! Not just mainstream porn,” she says.

Any and all submissions are welcome, Dodge says. The only requirements are “no poop, animals, children, or MAGA hats.”

“We have seen pretty much everything! We are always hoping for more representation from people of color, women, and LGBTQ communities,” Dodge says.

A problem in mainstream porn is the vast underrepresentation of diversity, especially in sexuality. Dodge says the majority of mainstream porn tends to be “straight, straight, straight,” so it’s important to have a festival like HUMP! to represent the wide variety of sexualities.

“Some of our audience are seeing LGBTQ sex for the first time! Lesbians watch gay men have sex. Gay men watch straight women have sex. Straight men watch gay men have sex. And everything in between! It’s very educational, and it normalizes taboos that mainstream culture has been selling us forever,” she says.

One of the highlights of the HUMP! festival is that each film is required to be five minutes or less, which means that if an audience member doesn’t like one of the films, it won’t be too long until the next one.

“If you don’t like something, hang tight—the next one will be for you! Films are five minutes max, and the show is 90 minutes,” Dodge says. “We squeeze as much variety as we possibly can into one show! Expect to turn off your cell phone and lose yourself in a world of every kind of sexuality—art films, animations, comedies, iPhone home movies—it’s all there for you to enjoy!”

Because HUMP! offers a variety of films featuring an extremely diverse group of people, Dodge says it really offers something for everyone who is interested in celebrating sexual expression and diversity.

“This festival is for anyone who wants to celebrate creative sexual expression. You will laugh, you will gasp, you may even cover your eyes a few times! But I can safely say you will never see anything quite like HUMP! It is a total blast,” Dodge says.

If you’re interested in learning more about Dan Savage’s 13th Annual HUMP! Film Festival, visit their website at humpfilmfest.com for more information, tickets to the festival, or to submit your own short film.