Jiz Lee Bizarre Magazine Interview

Originally posted on Bizarre Magazine, interview by Lux Alptraum. Note: I’ve edited the interview to reflect genderqueer identity in the taglines that were added at publication.

Lesbian adult actress Genderqueer adult star talks ejaculation, porn politics and shooting with Belladonna

Text: Lux Alptraum
September 2009

A Hawaiian transplant who lives in San Francisco, Jiz Lee is a featured character on Pink And White Production’s Crashpadseries.com. Next they’re starring with Syd Blakovich in Belladonna’s Strapped Dykes.

You’ve been in porn for a few years now. What was your original inspiration for making adult entertainment? Was working in porn about what you expected, or were there some surprises along the way?

I’ve been doing porn since 2006 but have been pretty selective about seeking out porn work. At this moment there are about 15 adult films, plus a handful of website scenes for sites like Kink.com and CrashPadSeries.com.

And during this time I have also gone through several career transitions — from swimming instructor/assistant aquatic director to non-profit executive director to web producer. Porn was there in the background the whole time, and I guess I’d say that I didn’t expect it to take such a major role in the larger scheme of all my interests.

Coming out in the SF Bay Area I was greeted by a community of sex-positive people, with sex toy stores and a vibrant gay night life and queer arts scene. I watched my first porn in a theater of about 50 queers and knew at that moment that I wanted to be on screen and be a part of creating that sexual energy.

It wasn’t until a few years later that I had the opportunity to meet Shine Louise Houston and be cast in her directorial debut. I have about 20 years of trained dance and theater performance experience, plus my own sexual exhibitionism so the actual experience of shooting was pretty much what I expected; performing in front of the camera was a lot like a combination of dance/athletics, theater and sex.

To me porn performance is a craft and art-form in its own right, and when coupled with the inherent political nature of doing and being something that counters normative mainstream culture I get inspired by porn as a medium of social change. That the work I’ve been a part of has gotten so much attention shouldn’t really be surprise then, although I didn’t anticipate things like the fact that I would come to be more known as “Jiz” than as my own name.

Negotiating my personal life around a presumed public personae is still something I’m getting used to. I anticipated social responsibilities and personal disassociation that comes with “fans” and so far I’ve had a great deal of support from friends and strangers alike. I’m grateful for that validation; it feels good.

I am also weary that awards, praise, and accomplishments could dictate the value of my experience. Fuck fame and fortune. Well, obviously I’m still in the midst of navigating all of this and haven’t come to any conclusions yet.

On your website, you refer to yourself as “one of the industry’s only genderqueer pornstars.” What does genderqueer mean to you? Are there other genderqueer performers you look up to or admire?

For me, “genderqueer” is an identity that allows me to continuously explore how my gender presents itself, particularly within my sexuality.

That was the short answer. The slightly longer version follows a general philosophy of identity politics. I believe gender is polarized in our society and forced to align within two oppositional sexes. I generally dislike theories that simplify our experience as black or white, good or evil, pleasure or pain… I don’t even believe yin & yang has a static quality. I think our world is more complex than what an ‘either/or’ explanation can provide. Of course this is further complicated by the fact that our identity is made up of how we see ourselves as well as how we think that others see us.

Many times I don’t see myself as a woman (which of course doesn’t mean others can’t). And rarely do I see myself as a man, at least not a ‘real man’ which we all know is a fallacy. At one point in my life I identified as trans however I quickly determined that ‘transitioning’ from one gender to another was not my path. I’ve opted for genderqueer because it suggests a ‘queered’ role in gender identity/expression. To me, it’s something I can fuck with — literally — in a way that’s fun and fuels my sexual drive.

As for inspiration or role-models, I’m attracted to mainstream stars who perform gender fuckery, even if it’s only from time to time. In porn, I was attracted to Belladonna’s shaved head and aggressive sex and Buck Angel’s unabashed ‘Mangina’. I’m also fascinated by public discourse around gender and sex in the news and pop culture, such as the recent online threads about Lady Gaga being intersex and the unjustified gender testing of 800-meter champion Caster Semanya.

You’re known for your impressive ejaculation abilities. Is it a talent you were born with, or something you had to train yourself to do? Any advice for ladies looking to learn how to (or get better at) ejaculating?

I first ejaculated while having phone sex. It was a small gush of clear fluid about the size of a sand-dollar on the bed sheet. I was twenty-two and had heard something about female ejaculation so I knew what I had done.

Having felt it happen during masturbation, I immediately understood how to do it again — both how to fuck myself with fingers or toy to create it, and also how to allow myself to internally give into the release of that sensation.

I also got a lot of practice. I was in a newly-opened relationship and the idea of being a slutty show-off excited me. Coincidentally, it was about the same time I discovered I could take a fist vaginally, so you can just imagine how eager I was to share. I was popping cherries all over town, sleeping with strangers, teaching them about safer sex, open-relationships, fist-fucking, and ejaculation – often all on the same night. I was like the cunt fairy!

As for advice, well we like lists, right? Here’s ten tips for folks wanting to tap water:

1. Know your basic female sexual anatomy

2. Pee before sex

3. Pee after sex

4. Drink water, every day

5. Get massively aroused; let yourself really build up steam

6. Strengthen your PC muscles

7. Put a little pressure on the urethral opening, but remember to #3

8. Keep towels of different sizes near the bed

9. Try lots of different things: firm curved dildos, cocks, fingers, pussy slaps or punches, vibrators on clit, mind-control, any of these can make you pop!

10. If all goes well, invest in waterproof mattress covers

You recently shot a few scenes for Belladonna’s “Strapped Dykes.” Do you think Porn Valley is getting–or will eventually get–more comfortable with performers with a wider range of looks?

Honestly, with the exception of a few companies, I’ve been pretty oblivious to “Porn Valley” until this year. Kind of in the same way I didn’t go to the prom. Was I not interested because I only saw it as heteronormative bullshit, or was it just because I wasn’t invited?

Hmmm… There’s that phenomenon with participation — if you don’t see people who are like you, is it because they don’t want people like you? Or is it because everyone like you thought the same thing and didn’t apply? I think mainstream porn would benefit from diversity, and believe its something consumers want.

Are there any things you love to do off camera that you’re not willing to do on camera?

I can’t think of anything I do off camera that I’m not willing to do on camera… actually, there are several things I do off camera that I WANT to do on camera, however these things are censored by the dumb gods of DVD distribution and credit card processing.

If queer-presence really does make an impact in Porn Valley, I hope that manifests itself through bringing natural sex acts out of the closet too. Safer sex, menstruation, and joyfully, fisting.

Who are your favorite co-stars to perform with?

While I’ve worked with outstanding performers in the industry like Belladonna, Lorelei Lee, Madison Young, April Flores, and Princess Donna, my favorite co-stars to perform with are my real-life lovers; namely, Syd Blakovich and Dallas Fivestar. There’s something very special about sharing a sex scene with someone you love, and it’s also incredibly hot to watch on film.

Currently, porn is a side gig for you. Do you think you’d ever want to do porn full-time?

I’m really picky about who I shoot for. I like working with directors and photographers who are friends of mine, or whose work I respect and know well. My porn values focus on work that is authentic, aggressive, and/or artistic.

Every year seems to offer more and more modeling opportunities. There are more queer porn directors making content, and each new film is another chance to work. This year alone, Shine Louise Houston’s Pink & White Productions launched a new project; Courtney Trouble put out not one but three NoFauxxx DVDs through Good Releasing; Madison Young and Trannywood are on the heels of new releases and I met about a dozen emerging queer pornographers who plan to break into the business in the next year. You know, if this kind of thing happened full-time, I wouldn’t complain…

When you’re not getting sexy on camera, how do you spend your time?

Staring at a computer screen, with very bad posture.

I develop and maintain websites as well as online marketing campaigns and affiliate programs for small businesses, non-profit organizations and independent artists both in my full-time job and an odd assortment of side projects that never ever seem to end. I also serve on the boards of a number of non-profit art organizations throughout the city of San Francisco the most prominent being CounterPULSE, where I am Board President.

Occasionally I write for sites like CarnalNation.com and Good Vibrations Magazine or make art through 24 Hour Show and twincest. Regardless of where I am in my day, I advocate for accessible media technology, sex-positive culture, arts activism and multi-cultural gender/queer consciousness. And I’m trying to spend more time in bed, sleeping.