LOS ANGELES — Jenkem Magazine has taken a look at one of the most iconic camcorders of all time — Sony’s watershed VX1000 — and the impact it has had on porn production, through the lens of the equally iconic John Stagliano of Evil Angel.
In the article for Jenkem Magazine, entitled, “How The VX1000 Infiltrated Porn,” author James Lee looked beyond the VX1000’s role in creating “some of the all-time greatest skate videos,” to its legacy on the porn front, calling it “a game changer for many pornographers.”
“For most skaters, the VX1000 is the only camera that matters,” Lee wrote. “Today, 20 years after the camera was made, skaters still seek out this relic of skateboarding’s golden age to make their videos seem more raw and legit than anything filmed in HD.”
Lee points to Stagliano (a.k.a. Buttman)’s use of the VX1000 for filming “gonzo” POV style porn, which he is credited with popularizing and which relies on many of the same shooting techniques as capturing skateboarding videos; and so Lee sought this view of how the VX changed porn in the 90’s and how new tech continues changing it today.
For his part, Stagliano says the VX1000 “looked like way better quality” and allowed him more flexibility and speed to move around and set up the dialogue.
“With the quality and ease of use, people who had been actors could shoot and people who had good ideas could shoot,” Stagliano explains. “So you had people who were into porn shooting porn.”
Lee says skateboarding videos benefit from high-quality audio, such as that captured by the VX1000’s onboard microphone, which is also useful for porn production.
“I liked the mic on the VX1000 because it was more omnidirectional which was way better for me as Buttman because I’m talking from behind the camera a lot of the time,” Stagliano says, noting that “Boom guys are always in the way.”
“You actually get better sound on average with the sound on the camera because you’re looking at their face with the camera, whereas a boom guy has to come in from the side,” Stagliano adds. “Maybe he can get better sound sometimes, but the trade-off to have one or two more people on set while I’m trying to shoot hurts the vibe. It’s expensive and it doesn’t yield much better sound because you have to be in the action.”
In the interview, Stagliano expounded on the topic of what gonzo really is.
“It’s recognition that there is a camera there and you’re performing for it,” Stagliano says. “It’s intimate, it’s real, and it was huge for porn.”
As for whether folks still shoot porn with VX1000’s for the rawness or nostalgia, as skateboarding filmmakers do, Stagliano says the camera was replaced by the VX2000, which in turn became the adult industry workhorse, before being replaced by newer systems.
Lee says independent skate video DVDs still sell, but wonders how the adult DVD market is doing.
“We make like 25-30 percent of our total gross on a particular movie from DVDs. We maybe have the best sales on average,” Stagliano says. “I don’t think there are any young people going in and buying DVDs. So our market is much smaller and it might just be the collectors.”
Lee notes that skate videos used to feature more of a story, but says that today’s content is “more little bite-sized Instagram clips” — a trend Stagliano sees echoed in adult with tube sites and the evolution towards shorter viewing — especially online, where so many other viewing options exist.
“Tube sites have tapped into this desire to see just the good stuff or just a small clip a user uploaded because they think it’s the best part,” Stagliano says. “That works, as opposed to looking at a whole story and a narrative and a ‘Fashionista’ movie that goes on for 4 hours and fucking 38 minutes. Why would anyone sit through that anymore?!”
Also noted was how the invention of camera phones have changed everything today.
“Now you have a small camera on you at all times, and people that aren’t as skilled with a camera can now make porn and they don’t have to spend thousands and thousands of dollars for good quality,” Stagliano says, adding this made consumer’s viewing habits totally different. “The VX1000 was the first major step in competition with the professional quality videos you could see on television, and now with your phone, anyone can make a video and put it on the tube sites.”
“But we’re fighting back,” Stagliano concludes. “We’ll get better.”
The full article can be read here.
