Sexploitation films are movies centered on sexual exploitation. The exploitation can range from nudity to eroticism to pornography.

Although sexual exploitation is a common element in cinema, sexploitation films emphasize it much more prominently in terms of both duration and structure.

In the pre-cinematic era, sexual exploitation found a recognizable place in various artistic disciplines, such as stone carving, dance, frescoes, painting, sculpture, and written texts.

With the emergence of photography in the 19th century, it also began to find a broad place within this discipline. The nude models photographed in Eadweard Muybridge’s works—which documented human movement in specific situations—became some of the most well-known examples in photography.

In the pre-cinematic era, moving examples of sexual exploitation began to emerge through devices like the stereophorescope and similar instruments that allowed for the creation of animation. Even in the early days of cinema, before the 20th century had even begun, sexual exploitation began to appear in films. The first known erotic short film was shot in the last quarter of the 19th century: *Le Coucher de la Mariée* (1896) by Albert Kirchner. By the beginning of the 20th century, the first known pornographic films began to be produced. Cinema’s ability to convey movement created an intriguing, vast, and rapidly expanding production and consumption arena for sexual exploitation, particularly in short films. In the United States, even before the pre-Code era began, nudity and eroticism found ample space in mainstream cinema. Whether nudity or eroticism appeared in a film was largely a matter of preference for those in charge of its production. This situation came to an end with the relevant provisions of the Hays Code.

After the Hays Code, films containing sexuality and eroticism found a place in drive-in theaters and grindhouse theaters and began to diverge from mainstream cinema. By the 1960s, changing economic and sociological structures in the United States and around the world, the emergence of liberal views, and the influence of the Beat Generation and subsequent movements led to sexual content becoming much more visible and accepted. Sexuality and nudity became widespread not only in cinema but also across many platforms—including literature, music, and comic books—and even at festivals and camps.

The evolution of the “sexploitation” concept into a genre within exploitation cinema began with Russ Meyer. Russ Meyer started making films with an 8mm camera as a child. He served as a war cameraman during World War II. After the war, he worked for *Playboy*. In 1959, he directed his first feature film, *The Immoral Mr. Teas*, which became a major commercial success. The film quickly achieved cult status. Films from the late 1950s and 1960s—a significant portion of which were directed by Russ Meyer—defined the classic era of this genre. The first film to be labeled “sexploitation” came out in 1959. With *The Immoral Mr. Teas*, Russ Meyer elevated sexual exploitation from being merely a component or element of the film to making it the central backbone of the story. Subsequently, similar films directed by Russ Meyer and other filmmakers transformed sexual exploitation from a mere component into a distinct genre within exploitation cinema.

Technological advancements in the 1970s and beyond—including the advent of the VHS era, 8mm cameras, and the decline in production and viewing costs brought about by digitization—increased the variety and production volume of sexploitation films. Along with the global spread of liberal ideas, sexploitation films rose in popularity alongside exploitation cinema. Sexploitation films diversified into many different themes to meet audience demand in various countries.

While sexploitation is a genre in its own right, it also encompasses many subgenres.

These are films in which women are taken captive and subjected to torture and sexual abuse. "Woman in Prison/Cage" films feature sexual fantasies based on nudity, lesbianism, rape, humiliation, slavery, sadism, masochism, and rebellion. The Big Doll House (1971), Caged Heat (1974), Barbed Wire Dolls (1975) …

Similar to “Woman in Prison/Cage” films set in Nazi Germany, these are based on the exploitation of women held captive against their will. *Love Camp 7* (1969), *Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS* (1974), *Salon Kitty* (1976) …

These films depict the exploitation of women who have been isolated from society for religious or cult-related reasons. Prominent elements in these films include the Inquisition, lesbian tendencies, virginity, the transformation of religious objects into fetish tools, hysteria, narcissism, masochism, and sadism. *The Devils* (1971), *Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun* (1976), *Sister Emanuelle* (1977) …

Their origins date back to the early days of cinema. Nudity in these films is presented through simple methods, detached from plot and narrative. Scenes of undressing and dressing, nudist camps, and voyeurism are the most commonly used methods for depicting nudity. *The Immoral Mr. Teas* (1959), *Garden of Eden* (1954) …

These films focus on the revenge taken by rape victims or their loved ones. The rapes are typically committed against women. *Straw Dogs* (1971), *Thriller: A Cruel Picture* (1973), *I Spit on Your Grave* (1978) ... “White Coater” films are those in which characters wearing doctors’ uniforms commit sexual abuse under the pretext of providing sex education (!). I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967), Language of Love (1969), Girls at the Gynecologist (1971) …

The rise of sexploitation films in the second half of the 20th century had an impact in many countries. Countries began producing works within their own distinctive cinematic frameworks. During this period, Mexico, Argentina, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Hong Kong, Turkey, and many other countries began producing sexual exploitation films. Local subgenres of sexploitation emerged in these countries. Mexican Sex Comedies, Bavarian Porn, Pornchanda, Turkish Sexploitations, Pinku Eiga, and others were some of the subgenres that emerged during this period. In countries where the age of sexual initiation was relatively late, sexploitation films became a sort of unofficial—distorted and flawed—source of sexual discovery, education, and satisfaction for audiences.

To avoid being classified as films featuring mere nudity, erotica, or pornography, sexploitation films build their narrative framework around other subgenres. Conversely, it is also very common for elements of sexual exploitation to be added to the narrative framework to make the film more appealing. Both scenarios contribute to the increasing diversity of sexploitation films in terms of subgenres. Typically, scenes of sexual exploitation are incorporated in a way that fits the film’s narrative development. As the film progresses, the frequency and duration of these scenes increase, and their presentation becomes more graphic. They face the risk of being classified as banned films. What is and isn’t allowed in these films is determined in advance based on the intended screening location, the target audience, censorship boards, and screening conditions. For this reason, for example, a film that is extremely bold in its depiction of nudity may still avoid showing genitalia or sexual intercourse. Because these films often face financing difficulties, they frequently fall into the B- and Z-movie categories.