Inside the Kink.com BDSM Porn Studios: Throwback Thursday

[Update August 2018: In 2017, Kink.com began to cease productions in the building, moving their studios elsewhere. In January 2018, Kink.com sold the San Francisco Armory for $65 million to SF Armory LLC.]

Have you ever been inside an actual BDSM porn studio?

My first time was this past November, when I visited San Francisco and treated myself to a guided tour of The San Francisco Armory.

The San Francisco Armory used to be where the National Guard kept its guns and ammo, and was registered as a historical landmark, meaning that major architectural changes couldn’t be made.  It sat empty from 1976 until 2006, when it was purchased by Peter Acworth, founder of Kink.com, for a cool $14.6 million.

Today, his BDSM porn studio is the biggest in the world, home to Kink.com and various of its subsidiary sites, like Electrosluts, HogTied.com, Public Disgrace and other sites with kinky and hardcore BDSM themes.  It’s important to note that all the models, even those who are being tortured or punished, have previously consented to a range of scenarios they would be willing to try.  And the safety and comfort of the models are of utmost importance.

One of the most incredible things about The Armory is the way Kink.com‘s art team managed to preserve the authentic austerity, darkness and dungeony feel, while revamping inside for the comfort of the models, Like padding some of the floors with rubber, but making them appear to be actual concrete.  Giving the chains (new) and walls an authentic vintage look. Impressive. You’ll see more creativity in the rest of the photos.

Our tour began in the basement, where lots of different themed rooms used for their shoots.  There was actually a live shoot going on at the time, a men-only performance of Naked Combat, which is an unscripted, sexy version of Fight Club.  If they win, competitors get a sexy bonus – they get to fuck the loser (but is it really losing?). They get points whenever they do something dominant, like undressing the opposition, pinning them down, shoving a finger in their ass, etc.

Among the rooms/sets we saw were a meat locker (with meat hooks dangling from the ceiling), apartment setup, padded cell (with a two-way mirror and another room attached to see what’s happening), a medical/surgical suite and these:

Bar scene with secret entrance (Prohibition style), constructed for their Public Disgrace series.

Training of O dungeon, for the series involving the training of slaves and submissives.

The real basement of the Armory… not much set work required to make this place look so authentic.

My favorite part of the tour was The Upper Floor.

The Upper Floor is like something out of a Lexi Sylver story, no kidding. With plush furnishings and vintage class, this floor is reserved for only the elite, and a select few from Kink.com‘s private member’s club are invited to attend these erotic parties.  Models act out master-servant fantasies, and the whole thing is livestreamed, letting their other members around the world chat and participate with other fans. This means, if I’m watching and I’m really loving a scene in the corner where someone is getting the life spanked out of them, I can chat online and ask the cameraman to pay a bit more attention there, and offer some ideas for things they would like to see.  It’s very sexy and original, and I am more than a little obsessed with the cabinet of toys I saw when I first walked into that luxurious room.

Have you ever been to The San Francisco Armory? Tell me about your experience in the comments below, on Facebook or Twitter.

xxx
Lexi

Extra Sources:

Kink.com
Images of Armory facade and Training of O dungeon via Vice
Tickets for The Armory tour