Pornography in Latin America

This chapter represents the first initiative to construct a comprehensive yet fragmented history of adult/erotic/pornographic moving pictures across Latin America, with a primary focus on the influential film industries of Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. Operating on the industry’s fringes until the 1960s, independent producers, driven by both financial gain and a desire to push artistic and legal boundaries, began making substantial inroads into the realm of mainstream cinema with more erotic productions. This contributed to a diverse and dynamic cinematic landscape. Drawing extensively from Spanish and Portuguese publications and a few foundational studies in English, this chapter provides a transnational lens to illuminate the interconnected development of pornography in Latin America. It aims to assemble existing research into a historical framework that acknowledges its many gaps and frequent discontinuities by presenting a chronological account of the genre’s history and stimulating further scholarly engagement in this burgeoning and understudied field.