Rossellini's Green Porno explores scandalous seas
Last Updated: Wednesday, September 9, 2009 | 5:03 PM ET
The Canadian Press
Isabella Rossellini is starring in a porno, but it's not as scandalous as it sounds.
The actress was in the city Wednesday on behalf of Green Porno: Scandalous Sea, an art installation that will be on display at the Royal Ontario Museum throughout the Toronto International Film Festival, which kicks off Thursday.
"I've always been interested in animals, but most people seem to be interested in sex, so we decided to do a series of films about how animals reproduce," Rossellini said with a laugh as she stood in the foyer of the museum on Wednesday.
Originally, the cartoonish-like green porno films (the museum will be showing nine instalments) were an experiment by the Sundance Channel, which wanted two-minute films about the sex life of marine animals.
In one short, Rossellini is clad in a red starfish costume and set behind a sea made of blue paper.
"If I were a starfish, I can reproduce sexually or asexually," she intones as her limbs float away, illustrating how a starfish fragments its body.
"To mate, you don't have to have a penis," she adds, smirking at the camera.
In another film, Rossellini is dressed as an "ugly" angler fish, hiding in the abyss waiting for its mate — also played by Rossellini — which will pierce its belly to impregnate it.
The most outrageous of Rossellini's films shows the stunning former model wearing a giant blue whale suit, which is equipped with a six-foot-long erection.
"They do it in very funny, scandalous ways," said Rossellini as she described the mini-movies.
"The films are meant to be comical, but also for people to laugh and say 'I didn't know that.'"
'Visual language for new canvas'
Since the films can be accessed online, they are ideal for cellphone users, she said.
"The experiment was to try to find a visual language for the new canvas," added Rossellini, who said the videos have already garnered more than five million hits and resulted in a book deal and DVD.
Francisco Alvaraez, the managing director for the Institute for Contemporary Culture at the ROM, said the films are a wondrous glimpse into a very active underwater world.
"You learn about the incredibly fascinating weird habits of whales versus crustaceans," said Alvarez, adding that despite all the laughter the films have a larger message.
"The deeper message is one about preservation," he said, as he commented on the films' ability to raise awareness about environmental concerns such as overfishing.
Rossellini also has another project that will be showcased in Toronto. Her voice is featured in the animated film My Dog Tulip, which will screen at the festival.
