Victoria Lewis
With a film career dating back to the early days of Film Arts Foundation and American Zoetrope, it’s obvious that Victoria Lewis enjoys telling stories. Whether making her own documentaries about water dowsers or nudie cuties, or sharing profuse production anecdotes about Russian mobsters, producer-crushing crucifixes, and Terry Zwigoff’s back spasms (she edited Louie Bluie, 1985), Lewis has comfortably occupied a real-life role in Bay Area film lore. Shortly after moving to the area in 1975, Lewis declined an offer to star in a porno that became the cult classic Thundercrack (1975). Lewis has no regrets about missing out on fleshpot infamy, and considers the experience a blip on her life’s radar. But the episode did have a long-lasting effect ---thirty years and five projects later, she is revisiting the motivations of females in the porn industry with her documentary, Women in Sinema (winner of a Film Arts Development Award). The film, which Lewis has been researching for five years, will trace sexploitation’s history from the early sex hygiene reels through the swinging ‘70’s. Lewis also plans to bring her love of unique characters to other film projects underway including The Box Show, about an artist community in West Marin.