List of pornographic subgenres

[...] is the explicit portrayal of [...] subject matter for the purpose of [...] arousal. It is commonly grouped into a number of distinct subgenres. [...] is typically categorized as either softcore or hardcore [...].

Softcore [...] GeneRally contains nudity or partial nudity in sexually suggestive situations, but not explicit [...] activity, [...] penetration or "extreme fetishism".

Hardcore [...] contains graphic [...] activity and visible penetration.

The majority of the genres in this list relate to hardcore [...].

Overview

Pornographic films are characterised as either softcore and hardcore, which can contain depictions of [...] penetration or extreme fetishism. Subgenres can also be classified into the characteristics of the performers or the type of [...] activity on which it concentrates, and not necessarily on the market to which each subgenre appeals. Pornographic films are classified into a number of subgenres, each of which usually conforms to certain conventions, and each of which caters to particular markets.

Traditionally, pornographic films were made for a male market. A typical pornographic film featured a female performer on whom the film focused. Her male partner had no distinctive features other than a large penis. However, there has been an increase in female viewers over time, and there have recently been efforts to increase the sexualization of male performers also. New features such as men with smaller penises, charming facial features and well-built bodies are becoming predominant, as well as the emergence of feminist [...].

Genre by physical characteristics

Age

Mature [...] features performers aged 40 and over. A related type of [...] known as MILF (Moms I'd Like to [...]) features women, generally of age 25 or older, in fantasy scenarios with younger men.
Teen [...], sometimes referred to as Barely Legal, features young actors depicted as being aged 18 or 19. Eighteen years old is the youngest age to lawfully perform in sexually explicit films in many countries.
[...] Preteen Video is non-pornographic (or simulated pornographic), live action, films consisting of models that are under the age of consent for actual [...]. Like adolescent and pre-teen [...], it is not considered child [...] in countries where such films are legal to make and/or possess, and all parties involved gave consent.
Child [...] is commonly considered [...] involving children or teenagers who are under the age of consent for [...] relations (although in some countries such as the United Kingdom and United States the definition of child [...] includes subjects at or over the age of consent pretending to be younger). The United States considers any [...] entertainment with people under the age of 18 to be child [...], even in states where the age of consent is considerably lower than 18 years old. Production, possession, and distribution of child [...] are illegal in many countries. In the countries where child [...] is illegal, simulated photographs ("pseudo-photographs") or lifelike edited images representing child [...] are often illegal as well.
Lolicon [...] is hentai illustrations or animation featuring young, female, childlike characters. Shotacon is the male equivalent of Lolicon, featuring young, male, childlike characters.

Hair

Hair fetishism is [...] arousal connected with hair, mainly

long head hair
pubic hair
hair [...]
hair jobs

Body features

Big Beautiful Women (BBW), or chubby, plumper, fat [...] features thick overweight or obese women.
Big breast [...], also called ginormous tits, big-boob or big-bust [...], features women with large breasts. Some viewers prefer performers with breast implants, others prefer women who have naturally large breasts.
Big [...]/[...] [...] features men with large penises.
Big butt or Big [...] [...] features women with large buttocks. This genre eroticizes the buttocks and anus, and it often overlaps with anal [...].
Cameltoe [...] involves women with a large and/or prominent labia and/or clitoris.
Leg and feet [...] has an extreme emphasis on legs and feet. See: Other [...] section below

Race

Race-oriented [...] does not always feature performers who are actually of the race listed in the title. Performers are sometimes billed as being of a certain race, if their facial features, body shape, or skin color fit a publicly accepted idea of what people of that race look like. Some performers are billed as being of one race, and then of another, depending on the film.

Asian [...] features performers who are (or appear to be) Asian/Oriental or from the Far East such as Japan, China and Thailand. Much in domestic and exported to foreign markets.
Ebony or black [...] features performers who are (or appear to be) black. They can be sub-divided into African [...], African-American [...] or Caribbean [...].
European [...] involving performers who are (or appear to be) European with features from Western Europe or more commonly Eastern Europe.
Interracial [...] features [...] between people of different racial backgrounds.
Latina/Latin [...] features performers who are (or appear to be) from Latin America or Latin Europe which includes South America, notably Mexico, Cuba. Most are of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Native American or Mestiza descent.

Middle Eastern [...] features performers who are (or appear to be) from the Middle East. There is certainly an overlap with Arab [...] involving performers who are (or appear to be) Arabs from the Middle East or North Africa, and with Indian [...].
Bi-racial [...] features a model who is biracial and not specifically racially defined. This may include Albinos, Southeast Asians, Aborigines or Red-heads.

Subculture

Alt [...] features performers with tattoos, piercings, unusually coloured hair, unique haircuts or who have a goth, punk rock, skinhead, hippie, raver, rockabilly/greaser, crusty, emo, scene, skater or stoner appearance. Many involved are members of the punk, goth, skinhead, rave and even Kustom Kulture. Good examples of this are films directed by Bruce LaBruce, who is a punk himself and his work could also be seen as avant-garde cinema.

[...]

Bondage/[...]

Bondage [...] features performers tied up or constrained in various ways.
[...] [...] depicts bondage and discipline, domination and submission, sadism and masochism.
Femdom features [...] scenes in which the dominant partner is female.
Japanese rope bondage is distinguished by its use of specific katas (forms) and aesthetic rules. Sometimes, asymmetric and often intentionally uncomfortable positions are employed to heighten the psychological impact of the bondage.
Rough [...] [...] is similar to [...] featuring sadomasochism, and typically features a Top who humiliates and/or degrades a Bottom while being physically violent towards them. Typically featured are hitting, choking, name-calling and hair-pulling. Many of these activities might be based on [...].
[...] [...] features performers simulating [...]. [...] itself is a crime in many countries. The viewing of this [...] is illegal in many countries.
Spanking or whipping [...] involves spanking or whipping, generally of the buttocks, with the hand or with other objects such as belts, switches, paddles, brushes, or whips.
Facesitting when a woman or a young girl sits on a man's(or woman's) face.
Snuff [...] involves the actual death of any of the participants, consenting or otherwise, simulated death is not considered snuff. The existence of such content in commercially available [...] is widely considered an urban legend. In some areas, there are laws stating it is not legally possible to consent to be killed, and elsewhere it may still be legally dubious (see Armin Meiwes). The 1979 U.S. drama Hardcore showed this kind of film on its film. The viewing of this [...] is illegal in many countries.
Guro or Gore is a genre of Japanese [...] involving blood, gore, disfiguration, violence, mutilation, urine, enemas, or feces.

Bodily functions

Menstrual or "red rhapsody" [...] features [...] activities involving women who are menstruating, with a focus on the menstrual blood.
Scat or "brown" [...] features defecation, manipulation of feces, or consumption of feces, in reality or fantasy; a well-known example is the 2 Girls 1 Cup video.
Milking [...] features lactating women being milked or milking themselves (not to be confused with milk enemas).
Watersports [...] features [...] activities involving urine, such as "golden showers".
Emetophilia [...] involving vomiting and gagging.
Facial [...] involving male ejaculation onto a female performers face.
Preggo [...] features pregnant performers and may include [...] lactation as a [...].
Squirt [...] involves women ejaculating.
Saliva [...] involves salivation and saliva.
Cum-shot [...] features a collection of male ejaculation scenes.
Crying [...] that features participating actors crying.

Other [...]

Bareback [...] features performers who are not wearing condoms.
Bestiality [...] involves the [...] attraction of humans to animals. Bestiality is illegal in many countries. The viewing of this [...] is illegal in many countries.
Boot [...] includes women and sometimes men wearing boots for their [...] appeal. It is sometimes combined with [...] features.
Bukkake [...] involves a performer, usually female, onto whom several men or women (see Squirting) ejaculate, usually on the face.
Clothed female, [...] male (abbreviated CFNM) [...] features [...] men and clothed women; typically, the women humiliate and abuse the men or perform fellatio and/or handjobs on the men. The reverse of this, in which [...] women interact with clothed men, is called Clothed male, [...] female (abbreviated CMNF).
Creampie (also called internal ejaculation or internal cumshot) [...] features ejaculation inside the vagina (vaginal creampie), mouth (oral creampie) or rectum (anal creampie) instead of the common cum shot, followed by the visible seeping or dripping of semen from the vagina, mouth or anus.
Crush [...] features objects being crushed by an actress or actor, who generally plays an overtly dominant role.
Cuckold [...] [...] that involves a cuckolded husband.
Cum swapping [...] involves performers trading semen between their mouths.
Diaper [...] involves performers wearing diapers, sometimes with an adult performer acting in the role of a "caretaker."
Dwarfs or midget [...] features performers who are dwarfs/midgets.
Foot [...] [...] features heavy emphasis on the feet of the participants, either in combination with kissing and genital [...] or in the context of acts such as trampling or crush fetishism.
Felching involves drinking (via suction / soda straw) recently ejaculated semen from the vagina or anus.
Fisting involves the insertion of one partner's entire hand (or, less often, both hands or even a foot) into a vagina or the anal cavity.
Yiff or Yiffy [...] features "Furry" or anthropomorphic animals in an [...] or [...] context.
Incest [...] features [...] between actors who portray a familial relationship. Incest itself is largely taboo, and is a crime in many countries. The viewing of this [...] is illegal in many countries.
Jerk off instruction (also known as Jerk off Encouragement (JOI / JOE)) features a performer encouraging or instructing the viewer to masturbate, often culminating in a countdown at the end of which the viewer is invited to induce [...].
Lolita [...] (also known as lollipop) features women who are 18 years old or slightly older, who pretend to be underage teen girls. The [...] centers around this fantasy portrayal. Lolita [...] that features actual teenage girls under the age of 18 is illegal in most countries and treated as child or youth [...]. Lolita [...] caters to ephebophiles. The name was coined from the title of the controversial book. The viewing of this [...] is illegal in many countries whether or not the actors involved are 18 years or older; if they are pretending to be under 18 years old it is illegal to view this [...]. .
POV (Point-of-View) [...] involves camera angles designed to provide the viewer a view similar to that seen by one of the participants, whose face is never shown.
Rubber [...] involves rubber, latex, and similar materials.
Smoking [...] involves performers smoking cigarettes, cigars, joints, and/or blunts.
Wetlook [...] involves clothed wet persons.
Pantyhose/Tights/Stockings [...] involves women or men dressed in pantyhose, tights, or stockings.
Bra [...] involves women or men dressed in bras.
High heel [...] involves women or men dressed in high heeled shoes.
Cheerleader [...] involves pictures of cheerleaders, both staged and real.
Arcane or occult [...] involves sexualized situations with an occult or magical tone or performers who costume themselves in keeping with the theme (for example, a male performer dressed as a wizard).
Jail/Prison/Police [...] involves people in police custody or inmates in jails or prisons in various [...] situations, such as strip searches or body cavity searches. These are often fake. Real jail or prison or police station shots or videos may violate laws in some countries.
Medical [...] (often called Doctor or Nurse and Patient [...]) involves sexualized medical, often fake, including gynecological pelvic examinations, rectal examinations, and pelvic or gynecological ultrasounds. Real medical shots or videos may violate privacy laws in some countries.
Enema [...] involves adults given enemas to others, often fake. Real enema shots or videos of true medical situations may violate privacy laws in some countries.
Teacher and Student or Boss and Secretary [...] involves sexualized situations which take place between an authority figure, such as a teacher or boss, and an underling, such as a student or secretary, often fake. Real school shots or videos which are sexualized may violate privacy laws in some countries.
Tentacle erotica features tentacled creatures (usually fictional monsters) raping or otherwise penetrating women or men.
Babysitter [...] features usually teenage girls being exploited and having taboo [...] with older, male employers.

[...] orientation

[...] features an increasing variety of combinations of actors by their [...] orientation such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexuals in addition to traditional heterosexual roles.

Men with Women, Women with Men

Heterosexual or traditional [...] accounts for the majority of produced film and video content in the industry.

Men with men

Gay [...] is usually male homosexual [...], acts depicted typically include anal or oral [...]. Men who perform in mainstream gay [...] often do not consider themselves gay or bisexual. See "Gay-for-pay".
Twink [...] features younger performers, and usually features young men under 30 who identify as gay or bisexual. Performers are usually clean-shaven, thinner and more effeminate than ones in mainstream gay [...].
Bear features a combination of middle-aged, hairy or overweight males.
Yaoi male homosexual hentai designed to appeal to women and men.
Bara male homosexual hentai designed to appeal to men.

Women with women

Lesbian or girl-girl [...] features women engaged in [...] together, but is typically aimed at a male audience. Women who perform in lesbian [...] often do not consider themselves lesbian or bisexual. See also Gay-for-pay.
Lesbian [...] made for women is usually made by women, and usually features women who identify as lesbian or bisexual. Lesbian [...] typically features a wider range of appearances and body types than is typical of mainstream [...]. Particularly, some [...] in this genre features butch women, who are almost never seen in mainstream [...].
Yuri female homosexual hentai.

Multiple men and women

Bisexual [...] features one woman and two men who all perform [...] acts on each other. The [...] is geared towards men; hence the word "bisexual" refers to the men rather than the woman.
Bukkake [...] usually depicts numerous men having [...] with one woman, with multiple, usually 10 or more, men ejaculating on the female's face. Especially popular in post-World War 2 Japanese culture.
Threesome or 3some [...] features one man and two women (MFF or FFM). It is geared towards heterosexual men, who most typically define a threesome as such. A threesome is also depicted with one woman and two men (MMF) who all perform [...] acts on each other (but not male on male).
Gang bang [...] usually depicts numerous men having [...] with one woman, or one man. A scene where many women have [...] with one man is referred to as a "reverse gang-bang".
Group [...] [...] (including [...] parties such as an Orgy or a swinger party) features at least two men and two women (foursome or 4some), usually more, who all perform [...] acts on each other.

Transsexual people

Transman [...] features performers who were born female and who medically transitioned to male. Buck Angel is the best-known actor in this genre.
Transsexual [...] features transwomen performers, who typically have male genitalia and augmented female breasts (though there are exceptions to both). They are most often featured with male partners, but are also featured with other transsexuals or cissexual women. Common phrases used to refer to these individuals are "chicks with dicks" or the derogatory term "shemale", although these are generally considered pejorative among transwomen. Transsexual [...] star Wendy Williams has stated that "transsexual [...] is classified as Straight Specialty."
Transgender [...] features performers who cross-dress for [...] gratification, either for themselves or for their partners. Many men who like trans partners of any variety, known as tranny chasers, don't necessarily identify as gay themselves. This is why video stores might consider stocking transgendered subject matter in the straight section, as some straight men will have passive or ACTIVE [...] with another man as long as their partner appears to look like a woman to them, to some minor or major degree.
Hermaphrodite, also known as herm, refers to [...], typically hentai, that features persons with the genitalia of both sexes. The most common depiction of a hermaphrodite is a person with a female face, breasts, and build, and a penis (see also futanari), although there are other combinations. This type of [...] is almost exclusively hentai, as true hermaphroditic humans are not fertile and are not usually found in nature. Is also common of the furry genre.
Futanari, "Hentai" females with a penis.

Reality

Reality [...] refers to real or faked 'amateur' encounters. This category also includes pornographic home movies. Related genres include:

Amateur [...] originally referred only to [...] produced by amateurs but now also includes professionally made [...] designed to appear as if it were amateur. Pro-am [...] is subgenre of amateur [...] that refers to professionally made [...] that features amateur actors/actresses, often appearing for the first time in a pornographic film.
Celebrity [...] tapes are amateur or professionally-made recordings of [...] acts, as performed by a celebrity and their partner(s). These typically are leaked to the public via the Internet, with or without the celebrity's consent. A celebrity may allow such a recording to surface willingly, as part of a publicity stunt.
Exhibitionist [...] features performers, usually female exposing themselves in public and spans simple flashing to public [...]. The Girls Gone Wild series is one example.
Gonzo [...] involves a first-person cameraman/performer perspective. Also see POV.
Upskirt and Downblouse [...] features staged filming up women's skirts or down their blouses while in public. Actual upskirt or downblouse shots may violate privacy laws in some countries.
Hidden Camera [...] involves shots that appear to spy or peep on a woman who is unaware she is being viewed or filmed while dressing, going to the bathroom, or showering; either at home or in a commercial place, such as a locker room, public restroom, spa (including spa treatments such as spraying, scrubbing, bikini waxes or Brazilian bikini waxes, and endermologie (also known as lipomassage or cellulite treatment)), or dressing room. Actual spying may violate privacy and/or trespassing laws in many countries. Voyeur or peeping Tom [...] is usually more staged with the subjects aware of the cameras, sometimes openly including this exhibitionist awareness. Voyeur [...] may also include shots of topless women on topless beaches who are unaware of the cameras but may legally be photographed due to the public setting.
Gloryhole [...] features women performing fellatio on unidentified men through a small hole made in a bathroom divider. This genre also features male-on-male fellatio through a small hole made in a bathroom divider.

Specific [...] acts

Anal

Anal [...] features anal penetration with a penis, dildo, other objects, or some combination of them.
[...] to mouth (aka ATM or A2M) [...] shows the transfer of a performer's penis (or other object) from a second performer's anus to that same second performer's (or another performer's) mouth in a single shot. A variant of A2M is ATOM ([...] to other mouth) where a performer inserts his penis directly from one Recipient's anus into a second recipient's mouth.
Gaping in [...] refers to scenes of anal [...] with a focus on the recipient's anus remaining open for a period of time after the erect penis or dildo is removed. A sub-set of gaping is the "'tunnel cumshot", wherein the male ejaculates directly into the gaping anus.
Pegging is a recently invented word which features a woman penetrating a man with a strap-on dildo.
Rimjob [...] centers around anilingus.

Other [...] acts

Double penetration (aka DP) [...] depicts simultaneous anal and vaginal penetration of one woman. Double Stuffed (aka DS), Double Vaginal (aka DV), or Double Anal (aka DA) [...] involves the penetration of one orifice by two penises or other objects.
Fisting [...] features the insertion of an entire hand into a performer's vagina or anus. A sub-set of vaginal fisting attempts to photograph the female cervix immediately after the fist (or large dildo or speculum) is removed from the now-gaping vagina.
Oral [...] [...] frequently features a person performing fellatio, and less frequently cunnilingus.
Deep-throating features the recipient taking the penis through the mouth into the throat, either as fellatio or irrumatio.
Solo [...] features performers masturbating. Can also include auto-fellatio, or performing oral [...] on oneself.
Insertion in [...] features women inserting various odd objects into their anus or vaginas.

Other categories

Computer-generated, interactive, and animated

Cartoon [...] depicts illustrated or animated fictional characters in [...] and [...] situations.
Hentai is the various forms of Japanese [...], including H-manga, H-anime, and H-computer games. The term hentai is never used in this context in Japanese. The meaning of hentai is "perversion", "abnormality", or "metamorphosis". Yaoi is anime or manga that features gay males (although not necessarily pornographic). Yuri is the lesbian equivalent.
Interactive [...], available in CD-ROM and DVD format, allows the viewer to select the particular acts performed at any one time, sometimes with the camera providing a first person view.

Miscellaneous

Classics (sometimes referred to as the "Golden Age of [...]") are pornographic films from the 1970s and sometimes 1980s.
Compilations are a collection of pornographic scenes, usually themed to a particular [...], taken from otherwise unrelated films. (For copyright reasons, compilations are often limited to clips from films published by a single company.)
Full-feature pornographic films are typically longer in running time and usually have a plot.
Parody [...] is a subgenre that parodies mainstream film or television show using [...] puns.
Independent [...] is [...] produced by filmmakers unconnected to the major [...] studios in a given country. It is often mislabelled "amateur [...]", though the producers and actors are often professional pornographic filmmakers and actors. (It is not always easy to distinguish between genuine amateurs and unknown professionals: often, the distinction is a matter of timing.)
Japanese adult video or JAV is [...] produced in Japan for domestic consumption, though it has a large international audience as well. JAV has a number of features that place it in a unique genre when compared to [...] produced in other countries. Notably, because of Japanese obscenity laws, most Japanese [...] videos and photographs include a "mosaic" that blocks the view of the performers' genitalia. Uncensored JAV is also produced, though illegally. JAV has a diverse array of subgenres, many of which are the same as the subgenres in general [...]; however, there are also [...] and costume genres that are largely unique to the JAV milieu.
Vintage erotica is generally pre-1970s [...], especially early-20th-century black and white photographs and stag films.
Extreme [...] is a term introduced by the UK Government, describing a classification of adult [...] that has become illegal to possess under new laws.
Women's [...] sometimes referred to as Pro-[...], [...] Positive [...], or Feminist [...] - refers to a category of [...] that is expressly produced for female customers, taking into account that male and female receptive and aesthetic needs may differ widely. Sometimes that involves, that the director and/or producer are women. Frequently, there is a focus on certain dos and don'ts for the production process (behind the scenes and on-screen) and the actions portrayed.