Source: Girlfriends Films PR
By: Company Press Release
(RESEDA, CA) — Girlfriends Films founder and owner Dan O’Connell was named the 2012 “Man of the Year” by adult news media XBIZ. O’Connell will receive the honor on stage this Tuesday night, January 10 at the 10th annual XBIZ Awards Show at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica. The award comes as Girlfriends Films celebrates its own 10th anniversary this month, as one of the top studios in adult entertainment today.
To read the article on XBIZ.com announcing Dan O’Connell’s award, as well as the exclusive interview with O’Connell, visit www.XBIZ.com/news/142874.
For more information about the 2012 XBIZ Awards, visit www.XBIZAwards.com.
When asked what the award means to him, O’Connell told XBIZ, “When Girlfriends Films won the FSC Leadership Award in 2010, we found ourselves suddenly getting even more involved because we wanted to set an even better example. I wouldn’t have anticipated such an effect. I’m sure that this award will do the same. It is the biggest award I will ever receive. It’s great to get such attention, especially when it comes attached to being a positive role model. But at the moment I am just feeling flattered and elated beyond words.”
Girlfriends Films enters the year with the momentum of an eventful 2011 in which it released its 300th original title, launched its first official membership site, published its first book and enjoyed record sales. The accomplishments led popular adult review site XCritic.com to declare it the Adult Studio of the Year.
While O’Connell remains hands-on in driving the creative side of Girlfriends Films, he also devotes a remarkable amount of time and effort to industry activism and charitable causes.
Girlfriends Films reformatted its already robust charity program in 2011 to include monthly donations to various organizations on behalf of performers and industry members. The move to monthly contributions allowed for more performers and charities to be involved.
“I have always admired Dan for the way that he has built up Girlfriend Films to be a prominent adult studio and certainly one of the leaders, if not the leader, for lesbian adult studios,” said Hustler president Michael Klein. “But beyond that, Dan is always on the forefront getting involved in causes important to the industry and ready to battle to protect the interests of the adult community.”
Klein continued, “And I also have tremendous respect for the work Dan does through Girlfriend Films and on his own to support numerous charitable organizations with constant donations each year. Clearly, he is a worthwhile recipient of the ‘Man of the Year’ award.”
Paul Fishbein, the founder of AVN Media Network, echoed Klein’s sentiments. “Dan O’Connell is one of those rare successful people who gives back to the community and cares about the world at large,” Fishbein told XBIZ. “The fact he actually has an outreach program to various charities he cares about makes him a very unique individual in the adult community.”
The 2012 XBIZ “Woman of the Year,” Diane Duke, agreed. Duke, the executive director of the Free Speech Coalition, pointed to O’Connell’s passionate efforts to help the industry overcome the biggest challenges it faces today.
“Dan is a brilliant businessman. But what makes Dan so extraordinary is his knowledge about, and work on, the issues impacting the adult entertainment industry,” Duke said. “Dan not only makes sure he stays informed about issues, but also rolls up his sleeves and gets involved. Whether attending and speaking at a Cal-OSHA meeting or protesting against .XXX, I can always count on Dan to be on the front line of fighting for the rights of the people in our industry.”
Duke continued, “Finally, Dan is a great philanthropist. He has been successful in business and seems to go above and beyond to give back to the community. Excellent choice XBIZ, I can’t think of a more deserving person for the award.”
Alec Helmy, president and founder of XBIZ, said, “Dan O’Connell possesses that rare combination of humility, strength and vision. In addition to running a growing enterprise built on ethics and integrity, Dan has shown great selflessness through his charitable endeavors and unwavering commitment to improving the well-being of the industry at large. He embodies the very spirit of our ‘Man of the Year,’ and we are very pleased to honor Dan with this award.”
XCritic’s award to Girlfriends Films as the Adult Studio of the Year reiterates the praise. To read the article on XCritic.com presenting the award to Girlfriends Films, visit www.xcritic.com/columns/column.php? columnID=2987.
Media and distributors interested in obtaining access to Girlfriends Films’ press site in order to download the trailer and stills may request login access at www.girlfriendsfilmspress.com/PR_files/index.php.
About XBIZ:
XBIZ™ is the adult entertainment industry’s leading source for business news and information, providing late-breaking coverage of the industry at XBIZ.com and in three trade publications – XBIZ World for the digital media market, XBIZ Premiere for the retail market and XBIZ Sensuals for the pleasure products market. In addition, XBIZ hosts four annual trade events, XBIZ Summit, XBIZ Eu, XBIZ Retail Expo and XBIZ L.a., which culminate with the annual XBIZ Awards, a red carpet gala event honoring the most influential members of the industry. XBIZ is frequently cited in the media for coverage of the rapidly evolving adult entertainment industry and has been published in CNN, Fox News, Newsweek, MSNBC, Forbes, the Wall Street Journal, Wired, ABC, USA Today and Los Angeles Times among others. For more information, visit www.XBIZ.com.
About Girlfriends Films:
Girlfriends Films was created to provide realistic lesbian-sex movies for discerning viewers who demand the best. The studio’s combination of gorgeous performers, talented directors and aesthetic focus allows for Girlfriends Films to continuously produce best-selling movies appealing to both men and women. Girlfriends Films received AVN’s Best All-Girl Series award the last four years running and remains “The Most Downloaded Studio” year after year on Hot Movies. In 2011, Girlfriends Films partnered with AbbyWinters.com to create the studio’s first ever content-rich pay site – www.GFFMembers.com. For more information, visit www.GirlfriendsFilms.com, www.Facebook.com/Gf.Films and www.Twitter.com/GF_Films.
For more information please contact:
Moose
818.881.5015 (phone)
818.881.5021 (fax)
