Sometimes, it takes a documentary to make you realize that there are fundamental changes taking place in society.

This is certainly the case with A Wicked Eden, a 96-minute examination of femdom culture that’s available online at the Whistler Film Festival until December 31.

Calgary director Naddine Madell centres her film around Goddess Alexandra Snow, a veteran fetish-video-content creator who’s also known as Domina Snow to her paying clients.

“I’m going to break you into the smallest little pieces and reassemble you as something else entirely,” Snow sneers to pulsating music near the beginning of the film.

But rather than being a highly sexualized and erotic journey into dominance and submission, A Wicked Eden is more about the everyday practicalities of creating fetish videos, as well as a how-to manual for anyone considering entering this industry, along with a little bit of nudity. (The age-restricted trailer is available here.)

Snow’s commanding presence anchors the documentary, but the film is also populated by several other dommes, a couple of male slaves, a filmmaker, an editor, and a clinical psychologist named Susan Writer, who each provide their own insights.

Writer points out that femdom “creates a space where there’s no judgment”.
“There’s no shame or blame,” the psychologist declares. “That’s the sexiest place you can be.”

Later in the film, Writer says that functional magnetic resonance imaging has revealed that those with fetishes experience the same type of dopamine bursts from seeing the object of their desire as when seeing a romantic partner.

Yet according to Writer, it’s still unclear what causes fetishes to emerge, notwithstanding anecdotal stories that try to explain this phenomenon.

One of the dommes interviewed, Princess Rene, says that the online world of fetishes has exploded in recent years. Nothing seems too weird—there are clown fetishes, fart fetishes, wedgie fetishes, and balloon-popping fetishes, she notes.

“I think probably before the last decade, somebody with a fetish really wanted to be closeted,” Princess Rene says. “It was taboo. It was weird. Now it’s just all over. It’s so popular—it’s kind of amazing.”

This, of course, has led to financial opportunities for women who cater to these desires. One domme, Sara DiAvola, discloses that she entered the business after learning she could sell used panties online.

Another one, Princess Meggerz, quips that she was attracted to this industry because she is a bitch in real life.

“I didn’t care,” Princess Meggerz says. “I just wanted the money.”

These are not women who should be seen as victims—they come across as being completely in charge of the choices that they're making. And they're in no mood for being "rescued" by those who want to curtail their capacity to earn a living in the name of ending exploitation against women.

Snow and others tell their families about their work

There’s also a lengthy segment, filmed in Vancouver, featuring Snow training her protégé, Seattle resident Raevyn Rose, on how to become a successful content creator for submissive men. No matter what, Snow advises, put your face in the shot as often as possible. That’s because this is what the audience is interested in seeing.

Snow also teaches her student to never go beyond her comfort level, no matter how much money she might be offered.

In fact, Snow says, “I’m no longer interested in teaching someone only motivated by money.”

But who is Goddess Alexandra Snow? Madell’s film goes a way toward answering that question, thanks to a revealing interview with Snow’s half-sister Sierra.

Somehow, the dominatrix managed to transcend a very difficult childhood to take control over her life.

This is one of the fascinating aspects of A Wicked Eden, which is named after the dungeon that Snow created with her former husband. In fact, it’s not always easy telling close family members that you make your living by creating femdom video content.

Snow was able to make inroads with her sister when she talked about the science behind domination and submission.

“It helped me a lot,” Sierra says.

Another practitioner of femdom, Astro Domina, recalls preparing for the big reveal for her father and brother. It turned out that her brother already knew for three years what she had been doing to earn a living. Fortunately, her father responded in a loving way, telling her that it didn’t matter.

Princess Meggerz also speaks frankly about disclosing her occupation to loved ones.

Where the film isn’t as strong is in revealing what draws some men to crave the escape that femdom provides them.

The slaves who are featured try their best to convey this and they go a ways toward normalizing their desires.

Madell, however, might have been wiser to interview someone who has truly studied this phenomenon, like psychologist and author Roy Baumeister. He would have explained that submission and masochism's deepest appeal come from how they provide an escape from the self. 

The takeaway from A Wicked Eden is that those who create femdom video content are regular people, just like the rest of us. And some of them, like Goddess Alexandra Snow, happen to be very good at what they do.