Venerable trans studio Grooby’s late-2021 launch of Transnificent.com, with press materials featuring the slogan “Beyond Boys,” dramatically expanded the playing field for trans masc male-identifying and nonbinary performers. Founder Steven Grooby issued a clarion call announcing that prospective models didn’t necessarily need experience, but simply “a good attitude about feeling sexy and a desire to show themselves to the world.”
Transnificent thus joined only a scant handful of similar sites, among them JockPussy and FTMMen, both created by filmmaker and performer Jason Sparks in collaboration with Carnal Media for the Carnal+ streaming service.
We are now in a time when trans masc people are in abundance and are begging to be seen and respected in whatever presentation they feel fit...
XBIZ spoke briefly with Grooby’s longtime creative and editorial director, Kristel Penn, about the development and launch of Transnificent.
“There is so much room for growth and diversity here,” said Penn. “I think the timing of this launch is because of the pandemic, which impacted how this concept was created.”
Grooby, she said, had seen and bookmarked many new performers on social media, independent creators who were making their own content but who didn’t have access to studios and had no platform to present themselves other than their own fan pages.
“Steven saw there was a different landscape that was forming.”
As for diversity, Penn said: “It’s getting better.” She described how Grooby has heard from an array of trans people, from fans to consumers, who saw their bodies presented as desirable for the first time in adult content.
“It’s not perfect, but sometimes our content is the first access point for trans people,” she said. “We’ve seen there is a market for Transnificent. There are a lot of folks who are making good stuff. But I think it’s important who is shooting it and how it’s presented. Part of the reason that Transnifcent took some time to launch is because we wanted to do everything right.”
Significant effort was expended on making sure the featured performers felt like they were being represented in a manner authentic to who they are.
An opportunity now exists to reinvent the way trans male content looks. Many would say it’s about time, since after 20-plus years, pioneering performer, filmmaker, activist and entrepreneur Buck Angel can’t reasonably be expected to carry the entire genre on his muscular shoulders forever.
“In the past, trans sites have been created from the top down and it hasn’t necessarily been super collaborative,” Penn stated. “That’s changing now. It’s more artistically free.”
Penn then passed the interview baton to Transnificent series photographer Nikki Sequoia, who echoed her sentiments.
“We are now in a time when trans masc people are in abundance and are begging to be seen and respected in whatever presentation they feel fit, whether that means jock boys wearing lingerie or feminine-looking men in leather gear,” she said. “Nontraditional gender expression is now more accepted than ever before and we are pushing those boundaries even further.”
ADAMS: Let’s set the table a bit. How did you get involved in adult, particularly on the production end?
SEQUOIA: I've been involved in the industry for about a decade now. I got started as a cam model and as clip sites became more popular, I gravitated towards content creation. After many years of producing for myself, I partnered up with Penny Petalz to help produce a site called TransRoommates.com and that is where I feel my true career in adult production began. Although I had been involved in photography in the past, this particular project helped me come to the realization that my skills in photography went far beyond taking pictures of bugs and reptiles, and that I had a gift for helping models express themselves. When we started filming for Transnificent, it was difficult at first to change the style from shooting in a way that brought out femininity to a way that highlighted masculinity, but throughout my time bonding with the trans masc models, I learned that everyone had their own ideas on gender expression and it allowed me to learn how to shoot based on who I'm shooting and not what I was shooting. This realization is truly where it all started for me, and what brought me here today.
ADAMS: How did you become involved with Transnificent?
SEQUOIA: When Penny was approached to produce for the site and asked me to join her in the venture, we were thrilled to be a part of such a groundbreaking project. Shooting for Transnificent has allowed me to make so many friends and meet some of the most talented models in the industry. Throughout my time photographing the trans masc models, it has strengthened my skills behind the camera to levels I didn't realize were possible. I've since allowed myself to invest in higher-quality gear and plan on broadening my photography services to further benefit the community. The overall goal of the content that Penny’s company produces for Transnificent is to show the wide range of talent and aesthetics that trans masc performers possess. Everyone we shoot is so unique and deserving of an outlet to be recognized for that. Penny and I also strive to provide performers with the tools and resources to grow their brands and have a long successful career in the adult industry.
ADAMS: There are still only a handful of trans male paysites. To what do you attribute this market-wise? Is there a supply/demand issue?
SEQUOIA: First of all, we really prefer to use the term "trans masc" because we also shoot nonbinary and gender-nonconforming people on Transnificent who present in a more masculine light. We use “trans masc” to identify everyone in the category of “being trans and presenting masculine” and then “male” or “nonbinary” is what someone would use for their specific gender. Our production assistant and model Keith Eros, who identifies as trans male, feels that due to the lack of trans masc representation in mainstream media, gender expression of trans masc models has been incredibly suppressed. Many people feel that trans masc individuals have been forced into a corner to present extremely masculine and cis-passing. Keith feels that the representation in porn specifically has been stripped down to the genitals — which most sites don't even label respectfully — and the sites already in business tend to only cast hypermasculine trans men in a strictly bottom-only role with cis men partners. This narrows the visibility of the vastly unique pool of trans masc talent we have in our industry currently who are deserving of a platform to express themselves.
ADAMS: Talk a bit about some of the featured performers on the site.
SEQUOIA: Every single performer that has been featured on Transnificent has shown extreme talent and professionalism, and I don't really feel that any one person is more deserving of recognition over the other. The uniqueness of each person that we have had on set has impacted us in ways that we are grateful for, and we wouldn't be where we are today without all of the different personalities in each scene. I will toss out there, though, that my most notable day on set was when we shot a partnered scene with Atlas Cummings and Rowan on Thanksgiving, and Rowan cooked the whole meal for us and all of the friends everyone traveled with, and I loved having boys in harnesses cooking in my kitchen between takes. Best Turkey Day ever!
