Tag: porn
Feature: Making Music Sexy
by Suzan Ryan on Sep.13, 2011, under Features
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There’s little in this life more glorious than a perfectly aimed money shot, shown from 10 angles and drawn out over a microcosmic eternity. There’s a certain majesty to it, a self-contained grace and momentum that pushes on and on. But how many drum rolls does it take to make that come shot work? How many people prefer watching a good porno with the sound off? There are brave men and women around the world who face questions such as these every time they front up to work. Christopher Hart, the maestro behind big-budget Digital Playground productions Pirates and Pirates II: Stagnetti’s Revenge, is one such courageous soul. Hart is a qualified recording engineer, songwriter and producer with a background in mainstream movies, television shows and commercials. His first attempt at an adult soundtrack—Pirates—netted him an Adult Video News Award for Best Music in 2006. “I didn’t look at it as composing for porn,” says Hart. “I saw it as scoring a film, and for that you need to know orchestration, arranging and the effects different instruments have.” Hart tells us that both Pirates and Pirates II had completely original scores, composed specifically for each movie. “We recorded strings, flutes and a huge variety of other instruments. The Pirates movies have about 90 minutes of non-sex scenes in them, which is comparable to feature films. We wrote more than two hours of music for each film.” But this is not the industry standard. “This is very rare in adult films,” explains Hart. “Usually, there’s no budget at all for a composer and they put in some music from a music library. That’s why porn music is often so bad. They say the music doesn’t matter, but the relationship between sound and image is important.” Closer to home, award-winning songwriter, score-writer and television star, Glenn Dormand, is another musician who fell into composing soundtracks for adult films. “I was working a day job and a colleague mentioned he was going to make a porn film with some money in the budget for a score,” says Dormand. “I’d just had a minor hit on the radio with a song Tex Perkins and I had written together (‘Fake That Emotion’), so I was the most famous musician he knew. I was in my mid-twenties and had just broken up with my girlfriend, which meant that I had one stipulation: I’d need to be on set to find true inspiration.” Dormand, best known for his work as Machine Gun Fellatio’s Chit Chat Von Loopin Stab and as a presenter on musicMAX, worked on porn soundtracks and sets between the demise of his first band, Vrag, and the many joys of his second, MGF. |
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Though he went into the process as “a pretty good lyricist and a terrible singer who knew nothing about soundtracks”, Dormand emerged from the unusual experience with a similar philosophy to Christopher Hart.“The main thing is to remember the composer plays a supporting role,” says Dormand. “The sex is the star, so the trick is to do everything possible to elevate the sex. “We wrote tracks that would work over a long period of time, whether that was 10 minutes or 20, and then we’d arrange them to best highlight the images. “Though the old ‘wah’ is an industry standard and surprisingly still works well, at the time we opted for drum and bass, which was very popular and effective. We’d build with string pads, then get crazy with the drums. We also used a lot of slide guitar.” Aside from the artistic details, the process of score production is fairly straightforward. The music is written, or cut together, scene by scene while the film is in ‘locked picture’ mode—meaning it is edited the way it should eventually be sold. “The tricky thing is, the director can do re-cuts and take out scenes after the film is locked,” Hart tells Penthouse. “That means the last couple of weeks before the deadline are crazy and consist of 18-hour days. “For Pirates, we also worked with the movie before all the heavy effects work was put in, so in the beginning we would only see the actors and a green background! We would write certain themes—the hero theme, the villain theme, the love theme and so on. And then we would compose scene by scene, and put in variations of the themes. In Pirates II, they travel around the world, so we got to write a lot of ethnic music, too.” However, Cherry2000, an AVN-nominated electropunk band from Sydney, experienced the process from the other end. Songs from the band’s first two albums were cherry-picked, and their music ended up on a soundtrack that was nominated for an AVN Award. “A porn producer named Jack the Zipper got in touch with us,” says Cherry2000 singer Rachael Chaos. “He was doing ‘alt-porn’ with an up-and-coming video company. He asked if we would like to give him some music to use in his films, and we said yes. It became an ongoing relationship, though we never got paid.” |
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That relationship took the band to LA in 2007 for the AVN Awards—the Oscars of porn—where they were in and out of Hollywood, surrounded by porn stars and eccentrics, and witnesses to the hedonism of an AVN after-party. It was during that little adventure that their quid pro quo relationship with Jack eroded to nothing. Before the tension, though, Cherry2000 had written the title track for Jack’s next film, King Cobra. The song didn’t make the cut, but the lyrics were printed on the DVD cover, with no credit given to the band. “It was annoying, but we were still flattered,” says Andy Rantzen. “The thing is, there were times when we felt we were being taken for a ride, but there were also times we did feel valued. People like Kimberly Kane and Eon McKai had respect for the musicians they worked with.” American porn star-turned-director Kimberly Kane, whose film Live In My Secrets won Best Music Soundtrack at the 2010 AVN Awards, acknowledges there is good and bad in the industry. “Most pornographers are in porn to make an easy buck,” she says, “so they’re all about quantity over quality—the soundtrack is the last thing they think about. “But great audio lends an important depth to any movie. I know the best pornographers in the world and they care about every detail of their films. That’s what makes them the best.” For Hart, it’s even simpler than that, “You don’t put on crappy music when you want to seduce someone, do you? You put on smooth jazz, sexy R&B or hard rock. A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and a lot of directors seem to forget that.”
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ONE ON ONE: Stoya
by Meg on Feb.16, 2011, under Interviews
TOP GUNNER
Digital Playground star Stoya on double-penetration, her role in new hardcore spoof Top Guns, and the ‘perversion fairy’
Continue reading “ONE ON ONE: Stoya” »
Digital Playground releases Top Guns trailer
by Suzan Ryan on Feb.10, 2011, under News, Web Exclusives
It’s being called the best adult film trailer ever…
Top Guns, Digital Playground’s highly-anticipated, super-sexy new action adventure, has clocked up more than one million views just one week after launch.
The million dollar blockbuster is available in March.
Digital Playground’s high-octane, action-packed trailer is available for download, and the special fan site also contains exclusive cast photos, wallpaper and is optimized for iPhone and iPad users.
The plot is classic Top Gun:
Fly hard with deep throttle action as Jesse Jane and Riley Steele show the men the true definition of hardcore power.
They are the new top guns, the two best female fighter pilots the Air Force has to offer going up against their arch rivals, Kayden Kross and Stoya, the unbeatable bitches from the Navy.
It’s lust-fuelled girls going up against the hardest fly boys in the military to prove they’ve got more thrust in their game and more devious tactics than any enemy riding their tail.
Top Guns stars: Jesse Jane, Riley Steele, Kayden Kross, Stoya, Selena Rose, Raven Alexis
SEE THE YouTube TRAILER HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MnZ31VxOS0
SEE THE OFFICIAL TRAILER HERE: http://www.topgunsxxx.com
Wanted: women to talk about porn
by Suzan Ryan on Feb.09, 2011, under News, Web Exclusives
An American psychology graduate student is asking for women to share their thoughts and experiences with porn via a confidential survey.
To participate in the survey, click here:
WINNERS! A Wicked SPEED DVD Prize Pack
by Meg on Dec.23, 2010, under Competitions, Past Winners
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS!
D. Chant, Alexandra Headland, Queensland
M. Potter, Rosebud West, Victoria
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Thanks to Wicked Pictures and Australian Penthouse, two lucky readers have won a Wicked SPEED DVD prize pack. Continue reading “WINNERS! A Wicked SPEED DVD Prize Pack” »
Free vintage porn calendar
by Suzan Ryan on Dec.17, 2010, under News, Web Exclusives
GET YOUR FREE VINTAGE PORN CALENDAR 2011
Each year European adult film company, Private, produces a free calendar (in PDF format) for its customers to download, and this year the 2011 calendar features vintage porn images taken from early Private magazines from the 60s, 70s and 80s!
The 2011 calendar was produced to promote Private’s forthcoming vintage porn site www.privateclassics.com which launches 22 December.
The whet your appetite with a free vintage porn calendar, log on to: www.privateclassics.com
Interview: Joanna Angel
by Cameron Murray on Nov.16, 2010, under Interviews, Web Exclusives
American adult movie star and “CE-Ho” of porn studio BurningAngel, Joanna Angel talks to us about her recent visit to Australia, her most memorable bonk, and a fantasy threesome with Iggy Pop and David Bowie
Hey, Joanna! What are your stats?
I am five feet tall, I have C-cup boobs, a 61cm waist, pink and black completely unnatural hair, brown eyes, a big smile and a big nose!
Did you enjoy your visit to Sydney for Sexpo?
I had a great time in Australia, and I’m not just saying that because I’m trying to impress you. Sydney is a beautiful city, with lots of good food and fun places to go shopping. I also went to the zoo and took a picture with a koala, and I look at that photo at least once a day and think about how incredibly adorable he was. I miss him. We really had something special.
What do you think of Aussie guys?
I think Aussie men are sexy and, in general, really buff, really polite, and very funny. A great combination.
Is it tough to operate BurningAngel in an industry that’s dominated by men and big studios such as Vivid and Digital Playground?
I think the big studio aspect is more of a challenge than the male-dominated aspect. The best way to fight a male-dominated industry is to just not be dominated. If you act like a businesswoman, people treat you like a businesswoman. I carry myself pretty well and, as a result, I rarely feel disrespected by anyone. Being around the big studios is tough sometimes. I find myself getting jealous and frustrated by the amount of money they all seem to have. I really hope we have a fancy office one day and can put out hundreds of movies a year where people jump out of helicopters and light buildings on fire and stuff, but I try not to focus too much on what other people are doing and just try to be the best at what I’m doing.
Where do you see BurningAngel going in the next five years?
I think we’ll be doing everything we’re currently doing, just on a bigger and better scale. I hope we can put out more movies, update all of our websites more often and add a whole lot more community features to the main site so everyone can just live on BurningAngel.com and be addicted to it the way I’m addicted to Twitter (@JoannaAngel)!
What does a typical day involve for you?
My days are always different! Some days I do a lot of interviews, some days I’m on set directing or performing or both, and some days – like today – I sit in my pyjamas at my computer answering the never-ending sea of emails.
Do you prefer acting, directing or scriptwriting?
My favourite movies are the ones where I’ve done all three, like my latest feature, Joanna’s Angels 3. I spent about a month writing the script, then I spent another month putting everything together – booking talent, organising sets, shopping for wardrobe, etc. On set, I switched back and forth from being in front to behind the camera. It’s exhausting but so exciting, and I wouldn’t be able to pull it off if I didn’t have such an amazing crew working for me.
Where do you find your sexy starlets? Could an Aussie girl become one?
We have a model application on BurningAngel.com, so it’s just like any other job. We pick our girls based on their looks and personalities. If someone is super hot but sucks as a person, chances are I won’t be hiring them. An Aussie girl can apply to be on BurningAngel.com, however, we would have to physically go to Australia to shoot her. Who knows, if a whole bunch of hot Australians apply, we could make a trip over there and shoot them all at once – you never know!
You like humour in your movies. Do you think laughter and sex naturally go together?
I think porn makes a lot of people uncomfortable, so I try to make them feel more comfortable with laughter. It’s a good way to ease people in who either haven’t watched porn before or have watched in the past but were turned off by it for some reason. Plus I like to watch my own movies and I love comedies, so if I can’t entertain myself, then what the hell is the point of all this!
What’s been your proudest moment so far?
I was so incredibly happy when I won my first AVN Award in 2005 for Most Outrageous Sex Scene in the movie Re-Penetrator. We were such a small company back then, and we had produced only two movies ourselves. I was so amazed we won and it was the greatest feeling ever.
Your website features band interviews and album reviews. Do you see porn and music as complementary forms of entertainment?
I think most people who like BurningAngel porn are also into music. I really love music, and the fact that I have a website showing a bunch of people banging is a good way for me to get people’s attention!
Do you have a favourite tattoo? If so, why?
I have a zombie-looking stiletto heel on my back with teeth and claws. Right now, that’s my favourite. It’s unique and colourful, and sexy and scary at the same time. It’s like all the different elements of myself are in that tattoo!
Tell us about your most memorable fuck, either on film or in your personal life.
Me, another porn star who shall remain nameless, James Deen and Steve Holmes had a little orgy in my hotel room during the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas. It was one of the few times I’ve been DPd that had nothing to do with a movie, and the other girl involved tried it for the first time. It was like doing a porn scene without all the make-up, high heels and hot lights.
If you could pick any two people, living or dead, for a fantasy three-way, who would you choose and why?
Iggy Pop and David Bowie… but they have to be resurrected from the late ’70s, with the same outfits, the same make-up, and the same drug problems. I’m just assuming it would be a lot of fun, and I would feel like I’m banging guys and girls at the same time! Either that or a three-way with Barack Obama and Lady Gaga that’s secretly being filmed on my phone. I’m pretty sure they’re the two most famous people in the world right now, so I could live off that celebrity sex tape for the rest of my life… and so could my kids… and my grandkids. Hey, I’m a businesswoman – I have to incorporate business into my fantasy threesome, right? I have no doubt that Lady Gaga is really good in the sack. I’m not so sure about Barack Obama, but I’m sure Gaga and I could think of some fun things to do to him…
FIVE FAVOURITES
Animal: KOALA!
Fast food: Egg McMuffin
Sex toy: Hitachi Magic Wand
Band: Fugazi
Fictional character: Lolita
HBO and Mark Wahlberg plan TV show about porn industry
by Suzan Ryan on Aug.23, 2010, under News
American cable station HBO is developing a show about the porn industry in California in conjunction with Entourage and Boardwalk Empire executive producers Mark Wahlberg and Steve Levinson.
The series will follow the trials of an adult film company as it fights to stay solvent as seen through the eyes of an ingenue adult actress.
James Frey is writing the pilot for the show, which he describes as: “…a sprawling epic about the porn business in LA. We’re going to tell the type of stories no one else has told before, and go places no one has gone before.”
POLICE RAIDS CLOSE SEX SHOPS
by Meg on Jun.15, 2010, under News
NEW South Wales police raids on Sydney adult stores across the long weekend is proof that the Federal Government is beholden to the interests of the Christian right, according to Australian Sex Party President, Fiona Patten.
“I challenge the Premier, the Police Commissioner and Independents in the parliament to deny that their religious beliefs are contributing to this moral crusade,” said Ms Patten.
In the past three weeks, police raids have been carried out on two Kings Cross adult shops and an X-rated DVD warehouse in the Sydney inner west suburb of Marrickville. The raids closed the shops, and 90 per cent of stock was seized. Though the sale of X-rated material has been illegal in NSW for some time, it is a ban that has rarely been enforced by authorities.
Fifteen officers spent a day breaking open tills and safes and commandeering shop records, at an estimated cost of $100,000 to the taxpayer. The raids are the most recent move in an intensifying backlash against adult entertainment.
A Sydney adult shop owner was sentenced to jail in May for selling federally classified X rated films judged by Commonwealth censors as suitable for all Australians.
“The NSW police have spent millions of dollars this year pursuing adult retailers, where this money should have been spent on solving murders and dealing with assault and property crimes,” claims Ms Patten.
Greens MLC Lee Rhiannon has also spoken out against the current state of legislation in NSW. “I struggle to think of a less productive use of NSW Police’s valuable time than having fifteen officers spend an entire day confiscating material that is legal for the public to own,” she said.
Ms Rhiannon said the currently ambiguous regulation of X-rated material was needless, and forced the material out of adults-only premises and into places like newsagents and petrol stations. “It doesn’t make sense for the sale of non-violent erotica to be illegal, given that it is legal to possess it. Non-violent erotica is classified as containing consensual sexually explicit activity between adults. It does not contain violence or coercion, nor does it depict people under 18 years of age,” she said.
But the Attorney-General’s office, and the Christian Democrats MLC Fred Nile, do not consider the ban to be ambiguous or unnecessary.
“This approach maintains the position against pornography, but avoids the outcome of criminalising visitors from the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory,” an Attorney-General spokesperson said.
Mr Nile said he wanted to take it a step further.
“Pornography, especially material that is currently illegal, is exploitative, disempowering and degrading to women and children, not to mention the significant harm it can inflict as a conditioning catalyst for sexual assault,” he said.
Mr Nile said he would be introducing a Bill to have the possession of X-rated material banned.
AVN Award nominations
by admin on Dec.10, 2009, under News
The 2010 AVN Awards, to be presented on January 9, 2010, at the Palms Resort Casino in Las Vegas, have released the nominations for the year, and the big winners include Sasha Grey, Manuel Ferrara, Jenna Haze and Tori Black. Continue reading “AVN Award nominations” »
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