Tag Archives: Alex Chance

A Dirty Little Secret?

by Rich Moreland, August 2014

 

Recently, Assembly Bill 1576 requiring the use of protective barriers in adult film was tabled by the California State Senate. As a result, the adult industry will avoid further government oversight statewide except for Los Angeles County where a similar ordinance remains on the books.

The story of AB 1576’s demise as reported by XBIZ can be found here and Adult Video News’ version is referenced here.

The following commentary is about AB 1576’s unanticipated impact on the industry.

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Casey Calvert sends the message. Photo courtesy of Casey Calvert

Casey Calvert sends the message.
Photo courtesy of Casey Calvert

“Here’s the dirty little secret about porn production in California: it’s just work,” says Assemblyman Isadore Hall, whose effort to require condoms in adult film has just expired in a Senate committee.

The Honorable Mr. Hall confirms what everyone connected with the adult industry has known all along, porn people are entertainers who pick up a paycheck. Their job is hardly “a dirty little secret.”

What is missing from Assemblyman Halls’ sardonic comment is the acknowledgment that an effective industry wide blood testing protocol is already in place, and has been for years, to take care of what AB 1576 purports to address: worker safety. Adult entertainment can take care of its own and do it without burdening the taxpayers of a state rife with financial problems.

From California’s standpoint, money is the issue. Driving a multi-billion dollar industry underground or into the friendlier neighborhoods of Nevada, Florida, and New Hampshire (yes, it is legal to shoot porn in “The Granite State”) makes little sense. Enforcement of any protective barrier law demands more government spending, a difficult prospect in tough economic times, and increases unemployment as businesses move elsewhere.

Unfortunately, for LA county the expenditure already exists and state coffers are taking a hit anyway. Segments of the porn industry have vacated California as indicated by dwindling film permits.

Better Equipped

Having said that, only the naive are persuaded that the protective barrier fight is over. Michael Weinstein of the AIDS Health Foundation (AHF) will carry on his private war with the industry. It’s a moral imperative for him just as it may be for Isadore Hall, though both claim performer safety is their concern, an astounding assertion since the public has traditionally cared little for people who make their living selling sexuality in any form.

But for now, the issue is tabled and it’s time to assess the benefits from an industry standpoint. Here’s a quick review.

A degree of political unity is emerging. In the condom debate, the Free Speech Coalition led a vanguard of concerned groups that stood against AB 1576. The Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club, the Transgender Law Center, the Los Angeles LGBT Law Center, Project Inform of San Francisco, and the AIDS Project Los Angeles, are among the associations who voiced their opposition. And, the valuable support of the business oriented Valley Industry & Commerce Association cannot be overlooked. It has a stake in keeping porn dollars in the LA economy.

While this is a beginning, other longer term developments are taking shape.

The latex controversy has revealed that performers, always known for their renegade attitudes, can organize to express their opinions. The earliest, most primitive rumblings occurred in raucous protests before Measure B became law in LA county an election cycle ago. At the time, it was too little, too late and haphazard, at best. But as reality settled in and the battle moved to Sacramento, performer interest intensified. Stars like Chanel Preston, James Deen, Casey Calvert, Lorelei Lee, Jiz Lee, Nina Hartley, Annika Albright, Alex Chance, and others lobbied legislators.

Bottom line? Porn performers can advance their agenda and may have more political clout than they realize.

A performer organization, the nascent APAC (Adult Performer Advocacy Committee), is emerging. Among APAC’s successes is Porn 101, a video educating talent about STDs. Porn people are sex workers foremost, just as Isadore Hall suggests, and where better to help than with health issues. As APAC grows, the political entanglement over condoms adds to its importance and performers are now better equipped to fight the next round.

In the meantime, two gutsy industry executives are creating their own political dust ups with AHF. First, Vivid’s Steven Hirsch has filed an appeal in the 9th U. S. Circuit Court involving the enforcement of Measure B. Second, Peter Acworth of Kink.com is taking on Michael Weinstein in a direct confrontation. In Acworth’s view, the company was unfairly fined over $78,000 for OSHA “violations” in San Francisco. When he moved some production to Las Vegas, AHF tailed him into town and initiated legal complaints over unprotected oral sex. “Baseless” is Acworth’s word for their accusation (this has gotten irritatingly personal) and Nevada, which envisions a porn biz financial windfall, is stepping around AHF for the moment.

At present, Peter Acworth is ahead in his fight; Steven Hirsch’s efforts remain in limbo.

So, where are we now? The condom push fell victim to state funding, the oft-cited reason for failures to increase government regulation. But, in this case, the aftermath is bringing together an industry willing to wrestle for its life. The message is awareness coupled with united action, ingredients for an effective voice in every political scrum.

Simply put, the porn world is not what it used to be. The people who are committed to adult entertainment understand that porn is a career and are better educated and more professional than ever before. They safeguard their working conditions and have a blood testing protocol to protect against STDs.

All the while, shooting scenes remains what they have always been. In this case, Isadore Hall is right on target, “it’s just work.”

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After posting Isadore Hall’s comment on porn and work, I decided to clarify that many performers enjoy their profession and believe it is an artistic expression that goes beyond making a living. With that in mind, I will quote awarding winning director Jacky St. James:

“Sex at work can feel very good, but at the end of the day, it’s still work. There do not have to be emotions involved…and having sex with a variety of people does not invalidate what you feel for your partner. Most of the long-term, stable relationships in adult are between two individuals that possess a strong sense of self and can see their profession for what it is – a job.”

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A Spark of Activism

by Rich Moreland, July 2014

In her recent Huffington Post article “Why I Don’t Want Condoms: A Porn Performer’s Perspective,” Casey Calvert explains the irony of AB 1576, the condom legislation that will alter California’s porn production landscape should it become law. Casey argues that the bill would lessen her sexual well-being at work because its provisions are less rigorous than the current industry requirements. At present, she points out, the Free Speech Coalition’s Performer Availability Scheduling Services (PASS) updates an actor’s status and protects everyone by identifying those who are not cleared to shoot. The system is based on a fourteen-day protocol that tests for seven infections including HIV, gonorrhea, and Chlamydia.

Casey goes on to discuss the realities of condom use. The downside of lengthy penetrations can negatively affect female talent’s availability if condoms are required, a fact apparently ignored by Michael Weinstein and the AIDS Health Foundation. Friction creates soreness and irritated vaginal and anal corridors can limit a girl’s work schedule.

In her argument, Casey repeats what everyone connected with the business fears if AB 1576 becomes a legal reality. Some companies will go underground to avoid compliance while others will depart for friendlier confines (Las Vegas heading the list), or go out of business altogether.

Self-Explanatory Photo Courtesy of Casey Calver

Self-Explanatory!
Photo courtesy of Casey Calvert

It’s not so much what Casey has to say that is the attention-getter. Rather, it is what her article reveals about performers that could spell changes for the future.

Michael Weinstein’s machinations aimed at curtailing adult film production is a call to action. He has pushed to the industry to the wall and there are hints that moving forward in a political way is more than just a discussion board topic. The testimony against AB 1576 in Sacramento is an indication of what porn people can do when they demonstrate a modicum of organization.

Some performers with sex-positive feminist leanings—Casey, Nina Hartley, Tasha Reign, Jiz Lee, Chanel Preston, and Lorelei Lee to name a few—have never shied away from their political opinions. Now we have the addition of a delegation that recently visited the Compton offices of Assemblyman Isadore Hall, the bill’s sponsor. Led by Nina Hartley, the group, which included Alex Chance, Anikka Albright, Mia Li, and Charli Piper, made the performer case against AB 1576 to a staff aide representing Hall. The account of their appearance can be found here.

Performers are learning that activism is possible in an industry unaccustomed to touting its political side beyond the work of the Free Speech Coalition (FSC).

Incidentally, should AB 1576 become law, the studios may be forced to regard performers as employees rather than independent contractors. If defined as employees, porn talent would then have organizational options. How much of a political voice they can muster may determine outcomes that are beneficial to them.

Organization demands leadership and its vital components, intelligence and commitment. Performers are exploring that scenario now with a new entity, the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee (APAC). Using education as its tool, APAC has established worthy goals that include the creation of a safe, professional work environment and a knowledgeable, respected performer.

Will APAC consider a more formal direction in giving porn talent a greater voice? The discussion has come up before. Industry vets will remember performer, director, and producer Ona Zee and her support for unionization some years ago.

Of course, talk of formal organization is problematic in an industry that tends toward libertarianism; porn performers value their unwavering independence and in the end, APAC may amount to nothing. But the specter of Sacramento, with its rules and regs, now looms over everyone and unless there is a dramatic shift in direction, the future is going to demand greater political involvement.

With a law on the books enacted under the auspices of AB 1576, would not performers be better off with a strong organization that would exclusively represent them? How, for example, is the law to be enforced on the set, who takes the blame if condoms are ignored, and how would workman’s comp issues be handled?

Nina Hartley, who believes organization is a good thing, once told me in a moment of frustration that performers lack an institutional memory about the business. They often assume that the way things are now in adult film is the way they have always been. Some performers do seem to get it, however. Like the outspoken Casey Calvert, they can become powerful activists if they choose to explore that possibility.

Here’s an example of the attitude needed for success. Casey says in her article that if studios “stay in California and flaunt the law,” AB 1576 will result in unsafe working conditions. Underground production is the easiest way out and sets up a scenario in which testing protocol evaporates and a host of problems can arise, endangering everyone.

“We self-regulate very well right now, but that’s bound to fall apart if we have to do it in secret. I’m not going to work if I don’t feel safe,” she declares.

What a feisty Casey does not say is she’ll leave the industry and she is adamant that she’ll not shoot underground. The Florida native and others will fight for all porn performers and their spirit of activism, evident in Sacramento’s legislative halls and in online articles and social media, will take up residence in APAC.

Positive changes begin with a spark, an attitude, and almost always a fed-up person. Remember Norma Rae and Erin Brockovich? Porn women are just as gutsy.

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Postscript

At the hearing from left to right, Sid, Owen Gray, Jiz Lee, Chanel Preston, Casey Calvert, and Lorelei Lee Photo courtesy of Casey Calvert

Performers making a statement by attending the hearing. From left to right:  Sid, Owen Gray, Jiz Lee, Chanel Preston, Casey Calvert, and Lorelei Lee
Photo courtesy of Casey Calvert

On the day of the Senate hearing, Casey and others from the industry appeared in the chamber to offer their views. Though each person was recognized, Casey reports, only designated speakers were allowed to make statements. The FSC’s Diane Duke and Kink.com-based performer and director Lorelei Lee presented arguments against the bill; the remaining interested parties were allowed a brief individual moment.

“We all got a chance to go up to the microphone, but all we were allowed to say was our name and that we oppose,” Casey states. As for the other side, “There were some people there to support the bill, but not as many as we had,” she adds. “The oddest one was Jessie Rodgers, who was literally in tears because she got herpes on set.”

Casey later mentions that herpes is “fairly common” in the industry and is often considered a “nothing disease” whose danger is hyped by drug companies. “It can’t hurt you at all,” she says and questions why Jessie was so over-the-top about it.

Former performers Sophia Delgado and Cameron Bay endorsed the bill along with Jessie Rogers, whose personal view on AB 1576 and the industry abuses she perceives harms all porn talent can be found here.

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Thirty Hours

by Rich Moreland, February 2014

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Southern Hospitality is a B. Skow film about accommodatin’ love and marriage hillbilly style, Appalachian sociability fueled by homemade liquor and outfoxin’ the law. Jon Jo (Evan Stone) is a landowner of little note who collects female property he passes off as wives. As the movie opens, he’s marrying mate number three, “Small” (Alex Chance). After the informal ceremony, JJ gives his newest wife over to his other honeys, a somewhat disenchanted “Large” (Ash Hollywood) and a bored “Medium” (Dillion Harper). They’ll warm her up in a classic Girlfriends Films all-girl scene before Jon Jo collects his husbandly due, her virginity. At least, that’s the plan. It’s the second part that gets mucked up.

Unbeknownst to this happy group is the arrival of the Fuggs, a lawless family of Mama (Darla Crane) and her three sons: Tiny (Richie Calhoun), Teeny (Billy Glide), and Mighty (Tommy Pistol).

Jon Jo consumes too much moonshine to keep his thinking cap on so Mama and the boys squat on his land, set up a still, and percolate trouble.

In the meantime, Tiny and Medium fall in love (after she sneaks peeks of him in the shower) and hide out to avoid family entanglements. Suddenly, lightning strikes. Ash and Small go searching for Medium and Small falls victim to sexual assault from the leftover Fuggs.

The rest of the story is about revenge and final reconciliation with all the Hillbilly grace one film can muster. Bodies are buried and plans changed in an entertaining tale that is carried to its success by two performers, Ash Hollywood and Alex Chance.

A throuoghly enjoyable film, Southern Hospitality is brimming with B. Skow ingredients: good acting, humor, a dark side typical of Skow, and a heavy dose of social satire.

The Voiceover

Let’s take a further look at the film through a discussion with B. Skow, one of Porn Valley’s directing elite.

B. Skow Photo courtesy of Bill Knight

B. Skow
Photo courtesy of Bill Knight

Southern Hospitality survives and moves forward through the voiceover narrative. Ash Hollywood is the chronicler and as an actress faces formidable tasks. She must convince the audience her character, Large, is coming into her own as the story progresses and do it with a southern drawl that sells the tale.

In talking about Ash, Skow reminds everyone that his films are “just like Hollywood” where good actors (he mentions Meryl Streep and George Clooney) are going to create winning roles.

“There are certain people that perform,” the director says. “Ash is just a great performer [and] she has an interesting look.”

Commenting that Ash had “so much dialogue” along with the voiceover, Skow describes hours of one-on-one directing that were “relaxing” rather than tedious and, from a director’s standpoint, creatively challenging. “You can really work with an actor to give you what you need,” he says, adding in this case it was the dialogue that made the story convincing. “We were in the room for hours with her [Ash] trying to get that stuff down. It was so hard to keep the accent [going].”

Ash Hollywood Photo courtesy of Rick Garcia and AVN

Ash Hollywood
Photo courtesy of Rick Garcia and AVN

B. Skow affirms that despite the demands and hard work, the film was completed on time. “You know, I had thirty hours to do that movie,” he says.

Ash Hollywood also plays the one character that develops during the film. She is the movie’s central focus. In the end she stands up to Jon Jo and leads the final getaway, completing her empowerment image.

Loved the Part

Asked about Alex Chance, Skow says, she “has a specific look in her.” She’s “young, cheery, great girl” and a good actress.

Alex is perfectly cast as the innocent third wife whose future, according the rules of Hillbilly Haven, is shattered when she’s molested and penetrated in a modified gang bang with Teeny and Mighty. Her sadness and hopelessness at the loss of her virginity is powerfully portrayed as the film moves toward its climax. If Ash Holloway is the narrative’s driving force, Alex Chance is the emotional glue that holds the story together.

B. Skow describes what he loves about the native Virginian.

“In the movie she really held the accent, really loved the part,” he says. Alex appreciates being in a feature, he notes, a circumstance not always true of other performers.

Alex Chance Photo courtesy of Rick Garcia and AVN

Alex Chance
Photo courtesy of Rick Garcia and AVN

“Some girls come on the set and make their money, got their underwear in a zip lock bag,” Skow begins. “Then you have an Alex Chance who comes in. She’s printed out the script not only for herself, but in case someone else needs it. She highlights her lines.”

He remembers Alex telling him she watched a media presentation to get the accent down.

For her efforts, the buxom lass gets the highest of compliments. “She appreciates the business,” Skow explains. “There are certain people who accept what we do and appreciate it and enjoy it.”

Pausing in a reflective moment, B. Skow compliments Girlfriends for giving him “full freedom” to explore his creative mind. In this case, Alex Chance accommodated his fantasy.

“The way she took the cum shot on her face,” he says, was important. “Instead of [the typical] porno where you’re doing a scene like that [and] all of a sudden the girl jumps up and rubs the cum on her face and smiles,” he declares, Alex made the shoot “more realistic.”

Working with Alex Chance was rewarding because Skow wanted to film the scene as it would happen naturally, or as he suggests, unimpeded. Many directors look for chemistry first among performers, but that’s not always what motivates B. Skow. It’s the scene as it is embedded in the feature that counts. In the case of Southern Hospitality, “everyone understood it and did it,” he says.

In fact, sexual connections among performers may not always be good for a feature, he insists. “During the fucking, chemistry should be there, they need it,” Skow admits, but “they also need to remember what they’re doing. You need to be able to get them into a character.”

He returns to Alex Chance, describing what she faced as an actress. “You’re in a situation [the molestation] with two dirty hillbillies who haven’t bathed, you’re not swallowing their cum and enjoying it. You’re letting it hit your face because you’re scared of being slapped.”

“In my head I want to see how that girl’s going to react in that moment,” Skow says. He wanted a realistic response from Alex. He was not disappointed. “She was awesome!” he says.

Our Way

Southern Hospitality has good sex. For the viewer who wants to sit back and enjoy a scene, Richie Calhoun and Dillion Harper are a “can’t miss.” For fans of older woman/younger woman, the predator theme that Girlfriends values so highly, Darla Crane and Ash Hollywood fill the bill.

But it’s the satire and social commentary that makes this version of Hillbilly Haven a winner.

When Large tries to explain to Mama Fugg how the wives of Jon Jo are arranged in a familial way, Mama responds, “No offense girly, but ain’t you a little too far from Utah to have such an arrangement?”

Large defends the Hillbilly ethos. “We ain’t Mormons or nothin’. We have our way of livin’.” The implication that “our way” is somewhere in Kentucky makes this Appalachian social zinger too good to miss.

B. Skow does not deny part of his work is satire. “I wouldn’t want to generalize,” he begins, but “I definitely have that in me, I’ve always had that weird way of looking at what I like. I’m very observant and my mind goes into very unusual places.”

Is he politically correct? Perhaps not and he doesn’t see that as an issue.

“I think it’s fun to be comfortable and do things where people are going to be like, ‘Oh my God,’” he says. Then in a  moment of social commentary, Skow observes, “We’re in a time when people are putting everything about themselves everywhere.”

Personally, it’s not something he can do. “I’m not comfortable with it,” he says, “it would take me a half hour to write a sentence on twitter. I have nothing to say about myself.”

Geniuses often don’t, their art is their expression.

But the implication is clear. When putting yourself out there for all to see, political correctness is difficult to maintain.

Perhaps that is B. Skow’s message in Southern Hospitality, a hilariously dark and funny film that is a satirical gem.

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