Benefit Monkey: Performer-Controlled, ‘Ethically Made’ Porn
Ethical debates about adult content tend to focus on what’s being done before the camera, rather than on the performers themselves and their consent (or lack thereof) in creating it.
Switzerland-based premium adult site TheBenefitMonkey.com short-circuits this ethical debate in the easiest and most morally-clear way possible: Everything being offered by this site is created and controlled by the performers and the site’s staff of professional filmmakers/writers working together.
“Shooting ethical content means creating an environment where both actors and filmmakers aren’t pressured into doing things they don’t want to do,” said Benefit Monkey spokesperson Alex. “Everyone on set is an important person with professional skills that join in the creation of the scene. To create anything ethical, it is necessary that anyone on set feels comfortable and free to create authentic performances that will involve the audience deeply.”
Benefit Monkey is produced by the “A.Monkey” art collective, which is comprised of performers and cinematographers. “The website thebenefitmonkey.com was launched in May 2020 with an eye-popping collection of original 4K Ultra HD premium quality all-girl content starring adult’s most popular and exquisite performers,” Alex told YNOT.com. “In August 2020 A. Monkey expanded its artistic endeavors to include Hungrylla (Hungrylla.com), ‘The Dark Side of the Monkey’ that showcases Boy/Girl hardcore scenes and POV blowjob scenarios that go far above and beyond the ordinary.” A few months after that, A.Monkey won two AVN award nominations for Best New Production Banner and Best Foreign-Shot All-Girl Sex Scene for ‘Life in a Glass’ starring Alyssa Reece and Cherry Kiss.
The fact that A.Monkey is an egalitarian collective is central to its existence. “An ethical production company runs based on the people who are involved in,” said Alex. “Our main goal is that anyone who works with us feels that they are an active part of the project. This idea of ‘full collaboration’ is what supports us in every way.”
In addition to the idealism that drives it, Benefit Monkey’s content is competitively priced ($9.99 per month). This fact, plus the authenticity of its product, is driving the collective’s popularity in the marketplace.
“We have only been online since March 2020, but we have had very good feedback from our customers,” Alex said. “As well, we started out with no bond or connection to the adult industry. Yet just a few weeks after we released our first scene, we started to receive many proposals to collaborate.”