Gearing up for the fest yet? SXSW 2011 is fast approaching and to get you ready we're bringing you profiles of the upcoming panels with interviews of the panel organizers. This week, we sat down to ask CineKink co-founder and director Lisa Vandever about her upcoming panel Sex it Up!.

SXSW: Hi Lisa. Tell us about your panel - why will people be interested?

LV: For me, founding and running CineKink (“the kinky film festival”) has been a way to combine two of my passions – film and sex – and I’m sure most of the SXSW crowd will have a shared affinity for both. Sex is a common denominator for us all, but it can be such an uncomfortable subject that many filmmakers shy away from it completely. I’d like to think people will be drawn to the possibility of opening up their work to the inclusion of sex and sexuality, and to learning more about the specifics involved in their depiction.

SXSW: Who are your panelists, and why did you select them for this panel?

LV: Buck Angel has been working as both a director and performer in the adult film industry for nearly a decade, sometimes producing on his own and sometimes via a studio, will be able to speak to both aesthetics and practicalities from a range of perspectives. Lynn Comella, a women’s studies professor at UNLV, whose focus is on sexuality and media, will bring an important cultural and political angle to the discussion. Vivian Darkbloom is an exciting, new director whose first film, Indietro, is a fantastic example of a work that manages to balance explicit imagery with good acting and a compelling narrative drive. Alan Levy, an attorney, has written extensively on laws restricting the depiction of sexuality on film and will address some of the many legal issues that can crop up once you bring depictions of sex – actual or simulated – into your film.

SXSW: What do you hope your audience will take away from Sex it Up!

LV: My immediate hope is that they’ll go out inspired and equipped to create some great, sexy and sex-positive films in time for next year’s CineKink! Beyond that, of course, those are the types of works I’d like to see more of out in the world. Film has the capacity to expand our conversation about anything, I’d like to leave our audience with some insights on making that happen around sexuality.

SXSW: What are you most excited about at SXSW 2011?

LV: The same thing I’m excited about for every SXSW ... the prospect of catching up with friends, making new ones, exchanging ideas and insights, and immersing myself in the wonderful gluttony of just movie after movie. That, plus some really good BBQ!

Read Lisa's entire proposal for Sex it Up! here. For a complete list of accepted session for the 2011 fest, check the SXSW Schedule. Please note that you can see more film panels by filtering by letter.

Interview by Kate Brown