Sex for Sale~Prostitution, Pornography and the Sex Industry (11 page)

Fame and Glamour

Many respondents report that “becoming known” is a greater motivating factor to enter the industry than money. This motivation is most common at the pro-amateur and professional levels, which have a large distribution of materials, and thus, more opportunities for recognition.9 Porn stars I interviewed reported being photographed, applauded, and having their autographs requested. Fan clubs offer more opportunity for stars to be admired.

Fan magazines often portray the world of porn as glamorous, and the industry attempts to promote this image. At the pro-amateur and professional levels, the release of high-budget feature films and videos (“glamour pieces”) are often accompanied by black-tie parties in highly visible settings (e.g., hotels or convention centers). One key component of these parties is the hordes of photographers from fan, trade, and entertainment magazines who serve as paparazzi for the industry. The mixing of glamorization and advertisement is best exemplified in a recent billboard erected over a busy street in Los Angeles featuring the top actresses of a large company. Other examples include the two domestic award shows each year hosted by the industry (a third is hosted abroad). Tickets to these black-tie affairs typically cost $100 apiece. While the focus of these ceremonies is often on high-budget features, amateur productions are also honored. The opportunity for “fame” is therefore available to participants at all levels.

Several actresses, actors, producers, and directors commented that the desire for fame was a desirable trait in talent because enthusiasm for their work increases as popularity and recognition grows. In contrast, if talent is only motivated by money, they are often left frustrated or bored. As one actor argued, “If you are doing it for the money, you won’t last long.” Production companies similarly assume that interest in money is evident to viewers and disrupts the fantasy that the talent really enjoys their work.

When contrasted with the “straight” (not X-rated) entertainment industry, porn offers a relatively quick and easy means to earn public recognition. Acting in the straight industry is typically characterized by few opportunities, high competition, and waiting for “luck” or “big breaks.”10

Straight actors and actresses often audition for hundreds of parts just to win a few. In contrast, someone aspiring to be a porn star, if attractive enough, can
52

MOTIVATIONS FOR PURSUING A CAREER IN PORNOGRAPHY

sign up with an agent and appear in a video within days. And fame tends to come quickly in pornography.

Fame and recognition are sought by both actresses and actors. Although actresses attract considerably more attention in adult publications, there are fewer actors overall in the industry, so they become familiar and easily recognized. But while this motivation is not determined by gender, the concept of “fame” varies between the sexes. For females, being famous includes not only being recognized and supported by the industry, but also being desired by viewers, which is much less true for male actors, since the viewers are largely heterosexual males.

Freedom and Independence

Research into the motivations of many other types of sex worker suggests that individuals often become involved in the industry because of their low socioeconomic status and restricted opportunities. For example, in their study of table dancers, Ronai and Ellis argue that women who work in gentlemen’s clubs have fewer resources and opportunities than other women.11 Other conventional explanations for why sex workers enter the trade include broken homes, poverty, sexual abuse, and few opportunities to make money legitimately.

By contrast, a number of my respondents reported that they turned to the adult industry because it offered them what they wanted in a job—namely, flexible hours, good money, and fun. It is not blocked opportunity but an understanding of the often inflexible and demanding nature of conventional work that motivates entry into pornography. Porn is appealing because it offers more flexibility and independence. Joanna, a native of France and an experienced actress, said:

I just can’t work in an office. I flip out—I get sick after 2 weeks. With this, I get to travel and have freedom. I got to come to the United States. I have enough money to take a vacation whenever I want. I just took 2 weeks off, although I am trying to save money.

Other respondents claimed that they were drawn to the ease of the work.

As Kurt explained, “I might be on set from 8 A.M. to midnight, but I don’t do a goddamn thing. They pay me to show up, read a book, flirt with girls, and fuck. As far as that goes, it’s cake.”

A sense of freedom and independence is supported by the structure of the industry itself. A few dozen actresses and two actors hold exclusive contracts
53

SHARON A. ABBOTT

with professional companies.12 The contracts assure these individuals a number of features each year, as well as public appearances and modeling engagements. (While the contracts offer some stability, they also limit talent’s exposure to other companies, and thus are often regarded with ambivalence.) Most talent, however, work as “freelancers” or under nonexclusive contracts, in which they guarantee a company a set number of days each month. Not being held to a contract allows talent to select jobs and projects that best fit their schedules, interests, and preferences. As Dane explained, not being under an exclusive contract can also increase overall earnings, because a person is free to work on more projects and spends less time on production sets: The reason I accepted a contract is because they are not keeping me exclusively.

. . . I have a guarantee that’s just about as big as a normal contract, but I can still work around, and my hours are less. I don’t stick around for dialogue and bullshit, I just show up and ba-da-bing, I’m done, like, in 3 hours. In a contract where I am doing a feature, I sit around for 10, 12 hours. If you spread $500 over 12 hours, it’s not as much as if you spread $500 over 3 hours. Logically, it makes a lot of sense to be nonexclusive.

Producers benefit from this freelance system as well by being able to select participants on a project-by-project basis. Only a few well-publicized stars are needed under exclusive contracts to promote the company.

While porn offers freedom and flexibility in comparison to most other jobs of equal pay, there are certain requirements for being regarded as professional and competent. In order to assure future projects, actresses and actors in all categories are expected to arrive on time, have all necessary paperwork available (identification and HIV test results),13 be sober and cooperative, and be willing to stay overtime. Being labeled a “flake” is detrimental to a career, and includes everything from forgetting appointments, being uncooperative, and being unable to perform the requirements of the job (for men). Therefore, while the work is unconventional, some aspects of the job are typical to many industries.

Becoming a quasi-professional is possible only at the professional and pro-amateur level. The reasons for this are threefold. First, amateur productions specialize in “new,” “different,” and “never before seen” talent, leaving little possibility for repeat projects. Second, amateur productions attempt to capture

“real” and “authentic” sex, and will not typically hire anyone with a “name” or with experience in the industry. Finally, because amateur productions pay so little (relatively) and are seldom linked to other money-making avenues (such as stripping), it is unlikely that someone could survive financially at this level.

54

MOTIVATIONS FOR PURSUING A CAREER IN PORNOGRAPHY

Therefore, these participants are motivated by individual interest and opportunity, not a desire for flexible employment. This interest, however, is created by the freedom the industry offers. Many respondents reported that once they made the decision to enter the industry, the doors were open to them.

Opportunity and Sociability

At the amateur and pro-amateur levels, individuals typically find their way into the industry via friends, lovers, and coworkers. For example, amateur companies rely on actors and actresses to invite their friends to participate in a production. Agents are rarely involved with amateur productions because their fees would be too low, but “talent scouts” are used to refer reliable talent (scouts are typically paid $25 to $50). The opportunity to enter pornography therefore often comes from other participants. This avenue of entry applies to both women and men.

Once in the industry, it is easy to make connections that foster sustained contact with the business. On low-budget productions, for example, actresses and actors are often friends, and are brought onto a project specifically because of these relationships. On set, new relationships are formed, which in turn lead to additional projects. On professional sets, stars are given the opportunity to select their costars. Having these social ties is therefore critical for success. In addition, these relationships sustain interest and enthusiasm when other motivating factors, such as the lure of money, diminish.

As in many other careers in deviance, once in a subculture, friends and social networks typically become limited to individuals who are also part of the subgroup. Being part of a stigmatized group fosters these relationships. In the porn business, industry parties and less formalized social gatherings provide opportunities to socialize and network. Networking is as vital in porn production as it is in “straight” industries. These parties thus serve to make contacts, form alliances, and provide opportunities to “be seen.”

In addition to opportunities via friends, lovers, and acquaintances, other sectors of the sex industry provide an avenue into the world of porn. For women, erotic dancing presents an opportunity to enter the porn industry.

Dancers are often informed that they can make more money stripping if they appear in a few pornographic videos, and if a dancer has established a name for herself, she may be recruited by the porn industry. Based on her physical attractiveness and name recognition, a dancer may be offered both an exclusive contract and her pick of directors and co-talent.

If stripping can lead to porn, the reverse is true as well. It is rare for a big-name actress not to “dance” (strip) at least periodically. Dancing provides an
55

SHARON A. ABBOTT

opportunity to increase recognition and fan appeal, and thus, to make oneself more “profitable” to the industry. When an actress “headlines” (a featured appearance) at a dance club, the owners advertise that they have a porn star performing, which in turn draws larger crowds. Bigger crowds and increased interest results in higher tips for dancers and more business (and thus more profit) for the clubs. Therefore, actresses, club owners, and porn companies all stand to benefit from this symbiotic relationship.

Porn companies, particularly those offering semi-exclusive or exclusive contracts, often encourage actresses to dance in order to advertise the company.

Larger companies retain booking agents for their dancers so that arrangements and pay negotiations are handled “in house.” In addition, videotapes in which the dancer has performed are often made available for sale. When state laws prohibit such sales, “one-sheets,” advertisements for videos with photographs taken on the set, are made available to the customers.

Increased recognition, however, can have negative effects on an actress’s career. Porn companies are continually searching for “fresh” faces in order to appeal to both new and old viewers. Actresses who are “overexposed” in videos, magazine layouts, and dancing appearances are assumed to be unable to offer much appeal for viewers since their images become too familiar. Therefore, although publicity is mandatory for a profitable career, it is often a reason for limited company interest. The ingredients for a successful career are the very things that can end one.

Because magazine spreads and dancing opportunities are far more available for women than for men, actors are not vulnerable to overexposure, and as a result, their careers in porn commonly last twice as long as women’s.

As one actress explained:

Girls have a shelf life of 9 months to 2 years, unless you are different. Like me, I am Asian, so it helps. Men stay forever. It is different for a man. If he can perform, he can stay in. There are guys that have been in the business 10 or 15 years.

Furthermore, as Levy14 found in the “straight” film industry, popular successful actresses are younger on average than their male counterparts, suggesting the beauty norms held by both producers and audiences. In both the straight and adult industries, actors are able to age, while actresses are replaced by younger, newer talent.

Being Naughty and Having Sex

A number of my respondents reported that porn offered them a chance to snub the prevailing norms of acceptable sexuality. Few careers offer the same stigma
56

MOTIVATIONS FOR PURSUING A CAREER IN PORNOGRAPHY

as appearing on screen engaging in what most people consider a private act.

While porn undoubtedly attracts exhibitionists, it is also a vehicle for people who wish to violate, challenge, and refute social norms. This phenomenon is particularly relevant for women, as the double standard offers more stringent norms for female sexual expression, whose violations carry additional sanctions. Male stars in many ways embody sexual norms that equate masculine sex with prowess, adventure, and detachment. A humorous comment by Dane evinced the link between male sexuality and porn: “[An actress] asked me if I had ever thought of being in the adult industry. I am an American male and I have seen porn—of course I have” thought of being in the industry.

One company in the study catered to and profited from this desire to be

“naughty.” The owner–director sought actresses and actors interested in being

“bad.” He believed that talent interested in money was rarely interested in sex, while those who desired fame were “used up” before they achieved it. Being

“naughty” could easily be captured on film and would be appealing to viewers who want to see “real sex” (i.e., not acting). Interestingly, working for this producer offered actresses and actors an additional opportunity to be “naughty”