March 13, 2021 | The Biz

The rise and fall of Palm Drive Video

RAW! UNCUT! VIDEO! examines gay porn studio Palm Drive Video, and the couple that helped create the kink positive company.

Palm Drive Video was created by leatherman Jack Fritscher and Mark Hemry. The two met in 1979 at Harvey Milk’s birthday party. Then, as the AIDS epidemic swept through San Francisco, the couple moves to a rural ranch in Sonoma County to create a safe-sex porn studio, hoping to create content that provided new sexual possibilities.

The models were rugged non-professionals, plucked from small-town bars, fairgrounds and bodybuilder competitions. And the fetishes ranged from extreme BDSM to mud worship, medical torture, and leather.

"Our approach to RAW! UNCUT! VIDEO! is to use archival-focused storytelling to provide a fresh and contemporary exploration of a little-known form of AIDS activism," explained director Ryan A. White. "Current footage and interviews introduce our primary characters and highlight Palm Drive’s efforts to produce safe-sex videos that would appeal to a diversity of kinky queers.

"Throughout the film, our characters’ serious drive for activism and sexual exploration is countered by their constant sense of humor, the uniqueness of the experimental fetish scenarios that are explored, and the infectious enthusiasm of the Palm Drive stars to push their outrageous sexual limits for a greater good."

The film is currently in post-production; a crowdfunding site has been set up to cover the costs.