You can probably characterize me as one of the most cynical people you’ll ever meet. There could be a 100 people telling me that the sky is falling and I won’t believe it till shit starts hitting me in the head. Whether the hysteria is political, religious, or media driven, it takes a lot to get me wound up.
That brings me to today. I can’t remember another time in my career where I had so many friends and colleagues tell me how poorly they’re doing financially. I’m not talking about the traditional Chatsworth studio system that’s currently struggling. I’m talking about the people I know who work in mainstream. It’s the equivalent of survival of the fittest or a strong armed robbery over there.
I had lunch with a popular fashion photographer on Saturday who has a contract with a well-known magazine to shoot their feature actresses every month. His usual $1300.00 shoot fee was suddenly reduced to $150.00 overnight when he received his latest check. When he complained to the publisher, he was told that he gets enough publicity from their shoots, and that he should walk out the fucking door if he doesn’t like it. Unfortunately, publicity doesn’t pay bills. From office administrators to directors, I can’t believe how many stories I’ve heard recently about this strong armed entertainment industry bullshit that’s going on from Van Nuys to Wilshire Blvd.
I guess I have a pretty good perspective to compare porn to mainstream showbiz because I’m still riding the fence between both as “Steve Lick” here in pornoland. In taking into consideration what I see on both sides of the hill, I truly feel like we’re experiencing “earthquake weather”. A calm before the storm. I think by nature everything has to reset eventually and start over. The old guard seems to be hanging on for dear life. As more foreign money is pumped into the Hollywood establishment, the business negotiating climate is becoming more and more like a third world village market. When it comes to porn, the Chatsworth studio system is proving itself to be less and less relevant as the calendar months flip by. Kind of like your corner record store. Remember record stores?
This isn’t the first time I’ve written about “change”. I just can’t believe the shit I see evolving in front of my eyes. I’m not one of those types of people that relishes in people losing their asses. I don’t want to see that. It all goes back to the eventual reset that I mentioned in the last paragraph. These past couple of months have really opened my eyes. I’m watching a 21 year old girl with tattoo’s and a lip ring sit at her laptop computer in a one bedroom apartment and generate more publicity for her “porn company” than your average Canoga Park warehouse studio can muster with a three issue advertising contract with AVN. I never would have predicted before that the old man guard of porn company ownership would eventually transfer into the hands of women, but I’m seeing it occur right in front of my face.
Whatever side of the industry you’re in, I just can’t imagine launching any new types of content deals in this climate unless you get your money up front. My advice: Stay independent till we figure our where this ship is headed.
