PROFILE

Sarasota Base for Playmate's Web

By Danialle Weaver

Her press photo shows off exposed garter belts. Her Web site solicits votes for her election as Playboy Magazine's 1996 Playmate of the Year and hawks autographed posters, glossy photographs, Playboy calendars, sweatshirts, T-shirts - even a fan club.

"She is strong, she is smart, she is beautiful, and she could be in the palm of your hand so soon," croons the introductory narrative for her debut adult CD-ROM title, Riana Rouge.

Now that's a come-on.

It's not sex per se that is being sold by Loree Gillian Bonner, a 30-something Atlanta native who is CEO and founder of BlackDragon Productions Inc., a Sarasota multimedia gaming company (www.blackdragon.com) set to release the Riana Rouge title this spring.

But only time will tell how well Riana Rouge will sell in a market now dominated by sticky-fingered teenage "gameheads." That's because the title is told from a woman's point of view and features the leather-clad Riana, an abused secretary-turned-superhero who's mad as hell and isn't going to take it anymore.

"To many people, 'adult' means pornography, and that is totally not what I'm into," explains Bonner. "The plot is about a woman forging her own identity and learning compassion, strength, endurance, wisdom and the power of her own sexuality. The costumes parody sexual cliches, so they're funny as well as sexy."

Bonner, who began her modeling career a decade ago in New York City, started BlackDragon in 1994, partly out of boredom and partly out of recognition that models have a limited professional life span. She poured every penny she had into the project and has found other investors, whom she declines to identify. So far, Riana Rouge has cost $1 million. Not surprisingly, the biggest challenge has been raising capital.

Bonner has had difficulty getting software development talent in Sarasota. She located there because of the beautiful environment and quality of life, as well its artsy feel and the proximity to the computer animation school at the Ringling School of Art and Design. In fact, Bonner was briefly a Ringling student before leaving to produce her own digital sensuality.

So far, Riana Rouge is selling well even before its official release, although Bonner has been too busy to even make a rough count. She already is in pre-production for the sequel and is negotiating for additional financial backing. "We definitely have a gold mine of ideas for future titles," she says.