It’s the season again….
We have LOTS of porn awards shows, too many really. Way too many. Most are about shameless promotion, vote for your favorite blah blah blah. All are rigged and the truth is if you have seen one of them you have seen all of them. The same stuff gets nominated in pretty much every one unless its a niche specific awards show But lets just focus on the biggies.
AVN
XBiz
and the new gorilla on the block, the SexAwards, who normally wouldn’t get a mention except that this one is spearheaded by Paul Fishbein, former owner of AVN.
OK despite what XBiz would want you to believe The AVN awards are regarded as the most prestigious, nobody really argues that, they are likened to the Academy Awards and pretty much everyone wants one.
In reality the nominations across all three shows are pretty much the same….squeeze in as many noms as you can so you can make advertisers happy, get the companies and the performers to participate so that you can make money with it.
The SexAwards are apparently already sold to Showtime. AVN sells tickets for ungodly prices and XBiz keeps the advertisers happy, actually they all do.
What interests me the most about them is in all honesty every single one is worthless, they are cheap plastic…But in return for that cheap plastic performers will spends LOTS of money to show up in their best dress, hair and make up, buy WAY overpriced drinks and go on stage and make money for (pick 3) AVN, XBiz, X3Sixty (The Sex Awards)
I kinda had higher hopes for The Sex Awards but when they hooked up with AVN it became clear that they would just be another “mirror” awards show pimping out talent with a plastic trophy in exchange for a cable TV deal.
Personally I kinda think we deserve better really.
23 Responses
What Porn Awards are Really About http://t.co/kwhWLY73yG
“get the companies and the performers to participate so that you can make money with it.” . .. . .please explain how performers can make money with it. If a porn show on Showtime translates into video shows then please explain Seymore Butts? Being on Showtime didnt help him and it sure in the hell didnt help Mariposa who later returned to porn shooting for anyone with cash. I really dont understand how people say things without citing references or examples or at the very least explain the logic behind the statement!!!
The the AVN’s use to be really fun, I still like going. The awards are unless though. I don’t see why any girl would want to win the female performer of the year award, that thing is the kiss of death.
You misunderstood the talent and the directors dont get shit the show makes the money thats my point.
@Billy:
*useless* 🙂
I’m waiting for the porn awards show for the best porn awards show.
@Billy:
Are you saying you’re female???
What award are you nominated for??
You sound bitter. 🙂
Isn’t this every award show in every industry? It’s kinda silly, but nominations and winning could give you some leverage? It’s some level of validation as any award is. Calling out award shows of any type for being self promoting and self aggrandizing seems kinda tired. We get that they aren’t an important event in any “real” way. People spend money on all sorts of things. Spending money to have an industry get together and maybe receive an award (plastic or otherwise) is fairly normal. Not liking this practice is fine, but let’s not act like this anywhere outside the norm for any industry.
Well, yes. If a organizer puts on an event, they would get most of the money. This isn’t exclusive to this industry. It seems to me that is how it would work.
I have lots of awards including AVN awards if i melted them all down they wouldnt be worth ten cents in materials. The sad part is that ten cents would be ten cents more than winning the award brought me in any kind of extra revenue.
does it give you some degree of bragging rights…sure but in the end it isnt really worth anything
Kate. If you look up all the girls who have won Female performer of the year you would see that most disappear, quit or are no longer active after winning. Audrey Hollander, Hillary Scott, Sasha Grey, Jenna Haze, Tori Black, Bobbi Starr.
Again, why in the world is this something new? People aren’t going to sell the award the next day (not most at least). It is a get together and a ego boost. It’s sorta silly, but it isn’t exclusive to this industry. To be given a plastic award and feel some sense of accomplishment is a human reaction not a porn reaction. We get that it is for the most part unimportant, but it isn’t that terrible to have a big party and stroke each others egos. My main point is that it is fairly natural. Not really news that handing out awards like this is a bit silly.
Who is melting them down though? You take the word “worth” when it comes to awards too literally. It is purely a ego boost or validation. Again, not specific to this industry.
RT @MikeSouth1226: What Porn Awards are Really About http://t.co/kwhWLY73yG
RT @MikeSouth1226: What Porn Awards are Really About http://t.co/kwhWLY73yG
Shit why the long faces? An award show porn or otherwise is just a fun night out on the town. What’s not to like about having a few drinks surrounded by some friendly industry peeps and some beautiful girls? I always make sure that I have a fantastic time at the XRCO, AVN, NightMoves and XBiz awards and will do the same at the Sex Awards. Winning is still better than losing but the point is to have some fun and I for one, am grateful for every single trophy I have received be it glass, plastic, metal or wood.
I keep a few trophies like my director of the year
and best parody awards nearby and I have some of the others on permanent display in my closet. Once in a while I do bring out all 50 of them for special occasions such as when the Pope comes to visit me or just in case Charlize Theron might drop into my office unexpected.
Heres the thing Jeff and I didnt mention it in the article, maybe I should have. These Shows produce a LOT of revenue and I understand that capitalism is a good thing and all of that but what I am suggesting is that the talent in particular should be treated better at these shows….Do you know how many first hand accounts I have of girls who spent a LOT of money on make up and dresses and what not, all excited about the AVN Awards and then were told they couldnt walk the red carpet? Many of these girls were even NOMINATED.
We all know that very little in porn is award worthy, For the most part there is no creativity in it, no hard work, no art, no special skills its all about patting ourselves on the back for what really isnt even mediocrity.
I remember when the AVN Awards were fun and I like to think that when I won them the industry had higher standards but in reality we both know that they are meaningless but at least back then it didn’t cost me a big pile of money just to go and then get turned away from the red carpet.
We CAN do better and we really need to start addressing that, or at least that is what i would like to think but then I look at the fact that Diane Duke is still employed and then I think….well …maybe not.
“no creativity in it, no hard work, no art, no special skills ” Wow Mike. Your so wrong on so many levels here.
Mike, have you been to the Grammy’s recently or the American Music Awards? You can say the same thing about those award shows when you actually look at many of the categories. Listen I hear what you are saying and all performers should be allowed to walk the red carpet especially if they are nominated so that is strange and something I have not heard before that people have been denied in recent years.
I think you have an angst brewing and that is fine and applauded when you tackle the real issues but to have a beef with porn award shows to me is silly. I look forward to each award show because to me they are a fun night and who gives a rat’s ass if the industry is patting itself on the back? Of course it is. Isn’t that what the Academy Awards do each year? Sure they use better cameras and are more elegant in their speeches but the point is the same. Some producer risks a lot of money to make a shit load of money and bestow some recognition onto some people that still put in the effort to be as good as they possibly can. If people attend and have a good time I see nothing wrong with any of these shows and I support them all.
Mike, one more thing I take issue when you write;
“We all know that very little in porn is award worthy, For the most part there is no creativity in it, no hard work, no art, no special skills its all about patting ourselves on the back for what really isnt even mediocrity.”
I do not agree one bit with that from my perspective. I totally understand that we are not Hollywood but hard work is exactly what enabled my little company X-Play to kick ass for years on some of the biggest companies in the business and lead a trend for the past 8 years. As a matter of fact, I’m still here working in my office at 12:30AM because I need to do everything I can to outdo the competition and complete Grease XXX tomorrow. I have had my best year yet as far as quality movie productions are concerned and I look forward to these award shows and if I win something big and have a little more bounce in my step when I hit the after parties so be it. Why would anybody have an issue with that?
Jeff its not so much a beef as an observation, believe me the porn awards dont even rank on my radar of bad shit in porn…but people come here for the truth and for honest opinion this is one you damn sure wont read anyplace else and its just a small part of the bigger picture in these changing times.
As for Billy you will note I said most. If you want to believe that you are one of the very few go for it, Im not calling anyone out specifically.
But ask yourself when was the last time we did something along the lines of The Opening of Misty Beethoven or Dixie Ray Hollywood star or even Cafe Flesh
“We all know that very little in porn is award worthy, For the most part there is no creativity in it, no hard work, no art, no special skills its all about patting ourselves on the back for what really isnt even mediocrity.”
Working at WalMart doesn’t involve a ton of super important skills, but we don’t take time to call out how silly “Employee of the Month” is. This is because it isn’t really negative. At the best it’s a nice pat on the back and at worst it is unnecessary. They give out awards in tons of industries, it’s not worth being negative over. Also, if they are screwing people over then people shouldn’t go. If that is the case, you should be arguing about the execution. Instead you say how “worthless” the awards are. It sounds grumpy and complaining for complaints sake. Almost no industry deserves awards in some sort of big picture, save the world sorta way. I think as a commenter who has been to the awards said, it’s just having some “fun”.
Somebody give fuckin Kristina Rose a award.