It has been a year since we spoke to the charming and affable David Benjamin, and a lot has happened for him in this last spin around the sun. When we last spoke, he was preparing for one of his first live performances at Evolution Wonder Lounge in Edmonton. This time around, and a year after the fact, Benjamin has nothing but glowing words to say about the experience.
"Evolution was only the second time I had ever done a live performance... So I really didn’t have that much to compare it to... The people are wonderful; the community is fun, energetic, optimistic... Hands down, Evolution Wonder [Lounge] is the best venue I have performed at over the past year."
And what is he hoping to get out of the experience this time around? "How do you top the best experience you’ve ever had?... From my point of view, I’m just hoping people come out."
For Pride celebrations, in particular, Benjamin has a great deal of enthusiasm and a desire to see people attend. "There is a tendency, especially amongst our more cynical Americans – especially in New York, L.A., San Francisco – to be a little blasé about Pride; to really kind of take for granted [that] it’s still an important moment for the community to come together and show solidarity."
Far from being only a professional success, Benjamin coyly refers to what one might call a more personal success on his last trip to Alberta. "I met the most adorable Albertan... we had an amazing time. You’re really putting me on the spot here... Let me just say that I have calls to make when I return to Edmonton, and I’m certainly hoping that the person on the other end picks up."
As the interview continued, we asked David about what it was like to be nominated for not one, but five Grabby awards in his first year as an adult film star. True to form, Benjamin – eloquent, and a little self-effacing – told us: "A year ago – literally a year ago – I went to Chicago to introduce myself to the porn industry. I bought my own passage. No one knew who I was; I basically started my career two weeks before that [when I] shot my first scene... Should I be fortunate enough to take home one of the awards that I’m up for, I would be honoured. For me, this really is a celebration of my journey... It’s the community that I love giving me a big hug back, and I’m so appreciative of that."
Benjamin’s story is a little unusual, in that he is entering the world of adult film during what he comfortably refers to as his ‘middle-age’. "Despite my reservation and my nerves around it, [my age has] actually been more of a blessing than a curse." The very act of being able to be comfortable in middle-age, as a gay man, Benjamin maintains is ground breaking, for both him and others of his generation due, in large part, to the generation before, that was so very nearly lost in its entirety. "I believe... that the culture of youth in the gay community is dissipating quickly. We did not have the opportunity, until recently, to understand what it meant to be middle-aged and openly gay... The first generation was decimated by the AIDS epidemic, so those who survived, and those who were the examples, there were fewer of them. For the first time we have the full embrace of the gay middle-age experience... People feel in their prime. Men who are physically fit, who are intellectually curious, who are sexually adventurous, who are comfortable with their identity and their place in the community, and they are looking for men who are like them in all areas of life – in fashion, in entertainment, in porn. I really find that they are key to the support that I receive from my fans."
In addition to having sex on film – and so well that he won two of those five Grabby nominations – Benjamin’s career has arrived him at modelling underwear for Cellblock 13. He is very excited to be the company’s exclusive model for spring and summer of 2015, and it all stems, he says, from a shared philosophy with the brand’s creative director Timoteo Ocampo. "We were both committed to this idea that there is an audience for a more mature, sexually-confident, playful, sexy gay man. He was designing for that, and I was primed to work as a model representing that, and there was a synergy almost immediately."
Our conversation then took a veer toward the philosophical, as Benjamin got deep into the question of what, exactly, sexiness is, and where it comes from. He began, "Men don’t like to, necessarily, talk about wanting to feel sexy, and being sexy, but it’s true. I enjoy feeling sexy. I like putting something on, and being conscious of myself, and saying I feel good, I look good, I’m confident... The way we interact with the world is, in large part, shaped by a certain amount of style. It tells the world not only what our belief systems are, but who we are as individuals." The rest of his comments about the sex appeal of diverse bodies, and the social psychology of sexiness, are definitely worth hearing in full.
As things began to wind down, we asked Benjamin what he thought of the small, but growing, contingent of straight women who are consuming gay porn. Far from seeing them as appropriators or interlopers on a gay male space, Benjamin says, "I love the ladies of porn. They are some of the most irreverent, funny, self-depreciating group of women that you will ever meet. They know that they are watching gay porn, and it is immaterial to them... I don’t want to speak for them, but what I really get is: they love the idea of living outside of a conventional experience... There are those among us who need and want to walk the path less travelled, and I think these women really react to that in gay porn. They see men who are out there, doing something very... unconventional, and they get off on that. And in return, I get off on their energy. They are so excited when we finally meet – they are some of the most devoted, energetic, voluble fans out there... I’m excited to have them on my team."
Check out the rest of the massive interview video to see David Benjamin and our own Steve Polyak discuss the business of porn, David’s working relationship with Falcon Studios, how high-quality underwear ties in to maturity, age and sexiness, and why performing in Edmonton was so critical to building his confidence as a live performer. There might even be a sexy little surprise or two from the savvy, self-assured star.
Watch the special X-Rated part of the interview at http://www.gaycalgary.com/a4685. You will need a FREE account on the GayCalgary Magazine website and be over the age of 18 to view the additional content! To sign up for a FREE account go to http://www.gaycalgary.com/signup 