Private Project

The Peach Activations

The Peach Activations is a devoted homage to the butt, fleshy and jiggly, funny and lovable, as diverse in appearance as the face itself. The film documents, in mesmerizing slow motion, impromptu private performances by amateur activators who pinch, poke, stroke, slap, or shake butts. The artist filmed many scenes at Fire Island Pines and received plenty of additional footage contributed by collaborators worldwide. Enthusiastic consent was granted by all participants before, during, and after every step of the creation of this film. This means that models and butt (peach) activators have fully consented to participating in the performances as well as in the dissemination of this video artwork. Most participants have chosen to remain anonymous. The Peach Activations, Volume I, is Nadine Faraj’s first art film, conceived to be released in several segments as its title suggests.

The Peach Activations also has a French title: L'activation des foufounes.

French synopsis:
L’activation des foufounes est un hommage dévoué aux foufounes, charnues et tremblotantes, drôles et aimables, aussi diverses en apparence que le visage même. Le film documente, au ralenti envoûtant, des performances privées impromptues d’activateurs amateurs qui pincent, piquent, caressent, secouent ou giflent des fesses. Certaines séquences ont été filmées par l'artiste même à Fire Island Pines, tandis que d’autres proviennent de collaborations avec ses complices à travers le monde. À chaque étape durant la création de ce film, un consentement enthousiaste a été exprimé par chaque participant.e - les modèles et activateurs ont donc pleinement consenti à participer aux performances, et sont en accord avec la dissémination de cette œuvre vidéo. La majorité des participant.e.s. ont choisi de préserver l’anonymat. L’activation des foufounes, volet I, marque la première œuvre vidéo de Faraj. Comme le suggère son titre, elle a été conçue en plusieurs volumes et sera publiée à ce titre.

  • Nadine Faraj
    Director
  • Nadine Faraj
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    L'activation des foufounes
  • Project Type:
    Experimental
  • Genres:
    Experimental, LGBTQ+, New Queer, silent, art film, surrealist, whimsical, unscripted
  • Runtime:
    8 minutes 42 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    2,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada, United States
  • Language:
    English, French
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Nadine Faraj

Nadine Faraj is an artist well known for painting. The Peach Activations marks her debut as director.

Faraj’s work is suffused with raunchiness, humour, tenderness, and soul, while simultaneously engaged with human rights, LGBTQI activism, feminism, and sex and body positivity. Faraj’s watercolour paintings present portraits or figures in varying degrees of abstraction, drawn from the worlds of pop culture, nudist culture, and erotica. The artist’s fluid style allows her figures to emerge as deeply psychological and emotional beings in compositions that depict a full sense of their humanity. Her art is exhibited regularly in Montreal, New York, Los Angeles, and London. Faraj lives and works in Montreal (Tiohtià:ke) and New York City (Mannahatta).

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

When I was very little, maybe three or four years old, I walked into my parents’ bathroom where my mom was brushing her teeth in the nude. My dad was sitting on the closed toilet lid, trimming his fingernails, and he saw me notice my mom’s gently jiggling behind. He started to giggle. And then he gently tapped on the side of her right cheek to amplify the waves in her butt. This, of course, made me giggle too. My mom didn’t seem to mind, she just went about her business. My dad and I giggled for a few more seconds as he continued his antics. I don’t remember why I originally sought out my parents that morning, or what we did after that, I just remember the laughter. This is an event I retold my mom recently, and her reaction was an easy “yes, that sounds like something your dad would have done”. My mom has always been very comfortable in her skin, for her to brush her teeth naked with family members around is no big deal. When I asked my dad about this story his reaction was a laughing “yeah, that sounds like something I would’ve done”. Neither of them remembered the event. This moment of innocent joy, at taking non-sexual pleasure in the naked body, this moment is the spark of my film.