INTERVIEW

• What led you to work as a cameraman for a pornographic company? What was it like, and did they have any specific focus?

That job suited me because it was very narrowly focused. The director had a specific vision of what he wanted to shoot, and I think the good thing about it was that we would discuss other productions that filmed different types of content and use those as examples of the "bad" side of what can happen in the porn industry. The producer, or whoever funded it, had different teams for different kinds of content. It’s just that classic development model where you have multiple teams, each with a different focus. Or, it’s that typical approach where you try to cover as much of the audience as possible to make the most money.

Our team mostly shot softer stuff, which I personally liked a lot. But under the same producer, there were other teams shooting much harder content. Our work was more like hotel room scenes with massages, while those other teams were filming at motels with much rougher themes, like someone getting really roughed up.

Our director was absolutely amazing, which is why I stuck with the job longer than I originally thought I would. I also enjoyed experiencing it from the perspective of someone who isn’t really… well, I’m quite an asexual person, so doing this kind of work was actually pretty funny from my point of view.

• How long did you do this job?

It’s totally crazy to say, right? I initially thought I’d just go for one shoot because I needed money during COVID, when you don’t have any work, and it pushes you to do things you normally wouldn’t. :D A friend of mine had started out editing gay porn and then looked for another job and found this one. After about six months of him working there and reassuring me that the people were decent, I decided to give it a shot. In the end, it was actually so chill that I stuck with it for a year. Which is unbelievable.

• Was the filming every week?

The filming was every month for an entire week. The studio was set up outside Prague in a satellite town in a villa, and I would go there every day during that particular week. My working hours were from around 12:00 to 16:00, which was perfect for me. From my perspective, I really didn’t do much. In the first half-hour, I would set up the cameras, then I’d snack on donuts and chocolate, and then I’d shoot for maybe 40 minutes. I got paid around 100 euros for that, which was great! :D Each day, only one scene was shot, so the production arranged a different model for each day, but the guy was the same for the entire week.

• How many cameramen were needed for one scene?

They were quite financially limited, so even the director was involved in shooting with us, and there was a second cameraman as well. It was usually arranged so that the director shot close-up shots, and then there was a cameraman for wide shots. I was the cameraman who focused on medium-wide shots, not full wide shots that captured the entire scene but positioned between them. I was specifically tasked with shooting softer shots, known as UK soft. These shots were tailored for countries with strict regulations on what can be shown. A special edit was made of my shots, which included close-ups of the face that the director filmed. 

I couldn’t see penetration in my camera. I always had to find the right angle, and I didn’t necessarily have to achieve the perfect composition or narratively tell the scene visually. My goal was to never see the vulva directly.

They have their own website where you pay for membership, and you can access their content exclusively. The porn isn’t free; on PornHub, there’s only a portion of what’s actually shot. The exclusive content, all of that production’s material, you have to pay for on their own site

• So, do you think paying for pornography is common?

I think it’s pretty common. Free porn is often just a small part of larger productions—like a side component. The most typical example, like PornHub, has everything on one site, which makes it really difficult. The content there is often very unregulated, which is why it’s so problematic. But the production I worked for was strictly controlled content.

• I primarily focus on ethical pornography, which should be paid for, and everyone is surprised that it operates this way. What you’re telling me sounds like it’s completely normal everywhere.

It's like premium content that you pay for because you want to have quality material. But when you go to PornHub or other sites to… let’s say, satisfy yourself, the content isn’t really high quality. It’s more like trash, and that’s why it’s… I don’t want to sound harsh, but it feels like trash, really. Or it comes from older concepts, and of course, the free content kind of muddles things.

• What was your team like?

I did quite a bit of research into the team. I found it interesting why these specific people do this kind of work and why they shoot these specific things. What they are trying to achieve, because it’s not just about the money—because the money isn’t as big as people say. Our director used to shoot fashion in the 90s and gradually transitioned to shooting more and more explicit content until he became involved in the porn subculture. At first, he didn’t want to do it, but for him, the porn industry was much cleaner in the sense that people performed in front of the camera, not behind it. In the 90s fashion world, it was quite common for things to happen behind the scenes to get somewhere. And what he liked about porn was that people were just having sex in front of the camera and everyone knew what it was about.

And that’s what fascinated me about it—that it was in a way quite clean. Everyone knew what was going on, but no one was trying to screw anyone behind their back. I liked that. But it could be specific to this particular production because the director set it up really well. Everyone was really nice, and it was well-organised; otherwise, I wouldn’t have done it.

• How else would you describe how the job was beneficial for you?

It was definitely beneficial in terms of production. I got to practice professional work in a production environment—handling lighting, equipment, and everything was very well managed. Then there was working with people, learning how to create a comfortable environment for everyone, fostering inclusivity and safety. The director really tried to make sure the model felt as comfortable as possible because that’s what matters. It’s a very specific example because I don’t think this happens everywhere. Or maybe it does, I’m not sure.

For instance, when an anal scene was being shot—which didn’t happen often—the director made sure the model wanted to do it, which was quite considerate. The model was always comfortable with it, but generally, there was a lot of attention paid to how she felt during it.

• As a cameraman, were you able to contribute to the filming process or suggest changes?

It was quite flexible because I felt like I was in a safe space. I felt comfortable voicing my thoughts, but things were also heavily adjusted based on what the model wanted. If a scene wasn’t fully thought out or wasn’t working at that moment, we all contributed, even those of us lower in the hierarchy than the director. But overall, it was mostly very well planned. 

• Did any complications arise during filming from the performers’ side?

They brought extremely professional people, including some well-known ones. I don’t really know these people because I don’t watch it, but there was someone like Little Caprice, a Czech model known internationally. Everyone was filming frequently, sometimes multiple scenes a week, so they were very prepared for what was happening. It was never a situation where they struggled outright.

The performers generally knew each other or had worked together before. Especially the men, since there aren’t as many men as women in the porn industry. So, one man might shoot with six different models in one week. There were a couple of Czech guys who filmed quite often, and whenever they were told who they would be working with, they seemed excited, saying they were looking forward to her and it would be fun with that model. :D

The models seemed like rockstars who came specifically for the guy. The guy was also a rockstar, but to a lesser extent compared to the models. It was clearly heterosexual porn, so it was focused entirely on the woman. The men were also featured, but it was predominantly about her. Although the filming itself was great, from a camera perspective, it was extremely heteronormative.

• Did you receive specific instructions on whom to focus on during filming, or did that happen during the editing process?

The instructions were clear from the beginning that the focus was on the woman. I filmed the guy too, but primarily his face when he was pleasuring himself. We even faked the come shot because the guy, who often works in the industry, can’t ejaculate anymore because there’s nothing left. I prepared fake semen mixed in a certain sugar-water ratio, waited for it to thicken, and checked if the consistency was right. It’s a very specific consistency, and it took me a while to get the hang of it. We first filmed his face while he was masturbating, and then captured either the moment he ejaculates or, if it didn’t go as planned, placed it on the model’s stomach. Often, a photoshoot was done before filming, where the fake cum shot was primarily made, and the actor would ejaculate during the main shoot. Not always, but usually, the actors ejaculated during filming. If it didn’t happen during filming, the actor would dip his penis into the fake semen, making it look like it splattered a little. But it wasn’t faked in a way where I would toss fake cum shots with a spoon in the background; that would definitely be funny. :D But that was never the priority of the shoot.

What I found entertaining was filming with an Italian actor who had been in the industry for around 30 years. The scenes we shot with him were some of his last. He was really struggling, having to masturbate for about 15 minutes, so we had to wait, and then we had to finish the shoot very quickly to make it in time. 

• When you're behind the camera and observing someone having sex, how do you feel about it? Or would you say that you're so used to seeing naked people engaging in intimate acts that it's the same as shooting any other type of film?

Until you're behind the camera, you might not fully understand what's going on in that process. The fact that I had to remain somewhat detached from the actual sex—isolated from the main action—didn't bother me as I mentioned earlier. It's kind of funny because something is happening right in front of you, and you're trying to hide what's really going on. I also did something called "porn magic," which involves placing objects like a rolled-up blanket, towel, or pillow in front of the camera lens to obscure penetration. I was actually an expert at this :D I could see someone moving, I saw faces and maybe hands, but not when the hand was near the genitals. This entire process was quite technical and important, keeping me focused on capturing the right shots without getting too close to the main action. Sometimes you get into angles that are not very pleasant, or the people don't look good, but your goal is not to see what's happening. Usually, this is covered up with a thigh or a hand, but when they move too quickly, I have to reposition and do it differently. It was quite challenging. 

Answering your question, as a cameraman who was about 3 meters away from the situation, I mainly had to make sure I wasn’t where I shouldn’t be—avoiding obstructing the sound technician, other cameras, or running into the shot at the wrong moment. I had to be mindful of the director’s framing so I could pass through the wide shot. Since you only get one take for a scene like this, you must be very careful. I could have said 'stop,' but you really don’t want to do that. When the actors are in the middle of something—some pleasure, and it’s building up—it's a key moment you want to capture, not disrupt. 

• The common perception is that porn is shot for a very long time, scenes are repeated, and people are used to stopping at any moment and picking up where they left off. Did it not work that way for you then?

That certainly didn't happen with us, and those people were just professionals who have been doing it basically every day for several years. The idea of filming for hours and doing retakes seems like it was more common in the past, and that’s where those stigmas and archetypes were developed. At least that’s how it seems to me now. It feels like things have changed, and generally, we tried the most to minimise the editing work, so you want to get it right during the filming. The actors also wanted to enjoy it.

In the past, scenes were filmed separately with and without a condom because there was a need to promote condom use and protected sex against sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy. I think that’s still done now. The director said that in the past, they might have had to film maybe three different versions of one scene, and having me there with the UK soft filming actually saved them time because otherwise, they would have had to do it all over again. That’s why we were able to focus on pleasure – a quality scene was created, and it saved time.

• Any secrets you'd like to reveal in the end?

It is not a secret, but it was pretty fun that the production manager cooked us meals there. It was quite funny that we all gathered after filming and had, for example, spaghetti carbonara or Italian risotto. And we all sat down at a family table and ate with all the actors and everyone. The food was really good, and it was an aspect I always appreciated.