"People come and go so quickly here." That piece of dialogue�spoken so memorably by Judy Garland in 1939's The Wizard of Oz�seemed more than appropriate when considered against the quickness with which the first-ever GAYVN Summit came and went.
Indeed, the two-day event seemed to be over almost as soon as it began, coming to a memorable end on Saturday night with the ninth annual GAYVN Awards and a NakedSword-sponsored after-party.
The awards show, held for the first time at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco, was the highlight of the show for many attendees, with host Kathy Griffin delivering a slew of zingers throughout the two-hour-plus ceremony. Noting the death of her father one week prior to the event, Griffin earned a standing ovation during her opening monologue when she said, "If it weren't for my gays, I would be at home crying my eyes out."
Off-color comments on the likes of Britney Spears�and even about some of the evening's winners and presenters�further endeared Griffin to the crowd. Following an acceptance speech by Lebanon director Colin O'Neal, who called for peace between Lebanon and Israel, Griffin remarked, "Who knew it would take the gay porn awards to bring the Middle East together�what they couldn't do at Camp David." An appearance by a fully bearded Shane Rollins (who accepted an award for Best Oral Scene for his work with Ty Hudson in Michael Lucas' La Dolce Vita) prompted Griffin to say, "I'm glad to see that the Amish are represented at the gay porn awards."
References to last year's skirmish between Raging Stallion's J.D. Slater and the notoriously outspoken Michael Lucas ("Settle down out there�I don't want to be dodging any ice up here!"), and the lack of religious conviction among the winners ("No one has thanked Jesus yet�that's bullshit!"), also drew loud applause for the star of Bravo's My Life on the D List, whose videographers were present to capture Griffin's appearance at the show.
The night's big winner, however, was Lucas, whose controversial film Michael Lucas' La Dolce Vita took home a record 14 trophies, including ones for Best Picture, Best Director (Lucas), Best Actor (Lucas), Best Art Direction, Best Screenplay, Best Threesome, Best Videography, and Best Non-Sex Performance, among others.
Hot House Entertainment also scored a victory with the Best All-Sex Film award for its highly regarded Black 'n' Blue, while Jet Set Productions took home a trophy for Best Sex Comedy for its title Going Under. Meanwhile, Matt Cole was named Best Newcomer, and Titan exclusive Francois Sagat was "crowned" Performer of the Year.
Following the awards show, many made their way over to the aptly named Porn Palace, which hosted NakedSword's post-awards Variety Party.
These events were the capper to a day's worth of seminars (including the well-attended "Director's Download" session, which featured several of the industry's leading content producers), luncheons, and special events catered exclusively to gay webmasters and traditional brick-and-mortar content producers.
"The GAYVN Summit has been long overdue," commented Jet Set Productions' Mark Hovanec. "In one weekend, our entire industry came together and found a focus I have not seen in 10 years. It was positive, and companies shared. I think the concept was visionary, and it was in the perfect city and at a time in our industry where we all needed to grow and focus to get to the next level in these changing markets."
