Icon from the childhoods of millennials, Giovonnie Samuels, can be seen soon in her first leading role in a film.
Orgasms can be complicated, especially for women participating in heterosexual sex. For more than two decades, researches have found blaring orgasm gaps between men and women. Some studies say its biological, while others say it all comes down o the role emotions play in sexual pleasure for women.
Filmmaker Zanah Thirus tackles these theories, and what really continues to widen the orgasm gap between men and women participating in heterosexual sex, in her upcoming feature film, The OG Bootcamp.
Here’s the logline:
The OG Bootcamp takes a hilarious and thought-provoking dive into the world of sexual inequality as it explores the disparities in orgasms between heterosexual men and women. The film centers on an aspiring sexologist who devises a social experiment involving four wives who ambush their husbands into attending a sex education bootcamp with the goal of improving their communication and sexual satisfaction.
The film’s trailer was released to coincide with National Orgasm Day (July 31).
“I read the story by Zanah about a year before we started shooting and I fell in love with the story and the meaning behind it,” Samuels told Blavity’s Shadow and Act exclusively. “I’ve always said that hard conversations are better swallowed with comedy, and this is definitely one of those stories that need to be brought fourth. Zanah and I met at a networking event in Atlanta in about 2019, and I really love her spirit and her personality. I really admire her creative writing style and she was just a joy to work with onset. Zanah gave me full range for this character and it was very easy to collaborate with her on jokes. “
Aside from starring in the film, Samuels is a co-producer on the project, describing it as “a new hat for me and my production company, So Not For Sale Productions.”
“This was my first movie and my second project overall. Good Judy’s is a tv pilot that is doing well in the film festival circuit now,” she said. “I really wanted to use my name and platform to get good stories like Zanah and others out. I really love that 90% of our crew were women. I want to continue to be a production company that gives people the opportunity to use their skills that might be overlooked: POC, DEI, women and LGBTQ+.”
On her character and what she hopes fans takeaway from her role in this project, she explained, “With most characters that I play, I always bring a little bit of myself into the role. With Zoe, she has my open minded, bubbly, genuine hearted self. It was very easy to slip into the roll because one the material was easy to play and to the story was coming from a genuine place. I hope that fans see me in a more mature light. I have been playing a teenager for almost 15 years. This role gave me a chance to come back strong and is also age appropriate. I still have my comedic chops that’s never going away. I really hope that couples can have a deeper sense of intimacy after watching this film and making their relationships last longer while closing the orgasm gap.”
The film is executive produced by Linda Karn and produced by Ryan Grundtisch. Thrius is both the director and writer.
Watch the trailer below: