Adult film legend Steve Holmes treats fans to a look ”Behind The Porn Scenes” on his YouTube channel.
Since this spring, AVN’s Male Foreign Performer of the Year for 2005 and 2006 and Hall of Fame member has been bringing his camera on set to show viewers what really goes on behind the scenes at his YouTube channel.
Holmes’ casual conversations with performers and filmmakers draw back the curtain to both entertain and help dispel misconceptions about what working in porn is really like, and what actually takes place on an adult film set.
“The fans I meet at shows usually have an okay understanding of the business. The funniest stuff is on Twitter or Instagram, how people think the business works: ‘Hey, I want to be a porn star — I’m from Indonesia.’ Not even a picture, as if I would just send them a ticket to come perform in the next porn movie,” Holmes laughed.
“A lot of people ask me questions, they write on Twitter: ‘Hey, can you take me to a set? I want to see how porn is shot, I want to be live with it.’ And of course I cannot take [them], because it’s like any other job… when you’re an accountant you cannot just take your friends to the office to watch you work. But I can virtually take you on set with my camera.”
The videos are a way to interact with fans beyond a 140-character social media post, while unpacking the intricacies of consent, power exchange, and sexual pleasure within the context of adult movie production. “It’s a great job if you have the right mindset, but it’s not for everybody,” Holmes said.
Holmes, 57, began his performing career in Europe in 1996. His stage name was suggested by a reporter “because I was really skinny, and tall, with a big dick, and he said I reminded him of John Holmes,” Holmes said. A veteran of over 2500 scenes, Holmes has been living and working in Los Angeles and Budapest since 2002. In 2015 he began producing and directing for Kink.com’s Public Disgrace website.
One of Holmes’ biggest boosters is adult superstar performer and porn mogul Joanna Angel. “If everyone looked at sex the same way he does the world would be a better place,” said Angel, who cast Holmes as the titular Dirty Grandpa in her taboo family role-play comedy in June.
“Steve is the kindest, smartest, and sexiest dirty old man in the world. His relationship with sex and sexuality is beautiful, and he truly enjoys every aspect of the industry. I don’t think viewers understand how smart and charming he really is from just watching him fuck, and I think his YouTube channel really shows him for who he is.”
The “Behind The Porn Scenes” series gives viewers an insider’s perspective of what it’s really like being on films sets for PureTaboo, Burning Angel, Facial Abuse, Evil Angel, New Sensations, Mile High, Devil’s Film, Dogfart, Teen Fidelity, Zero Tolerance and others.
The videos feature adult personalities such as AVN Hall of Famer Joanna Angel, Female Performer of the Year Angela White, award-winning directors Jacky St. James and Bree Mills, starlets Valentina Nappi, Della Dane, Jade Nile, Paige Owens, Ariana Marie, Lexi Lore, Gia Derza, Candice Care, Lena Paul, Ivy Lebelle, Gina Valentina and many more.
Fantasy and reality
“Most people are aware when they watch a mainstream movie that Superman doesn’t really fly, but in porn some people have difficulty understanding that it’s a fantasy being played out by professionals,” Holmes noted. “However I don’t want to ruin the fantasy completely.”
Holmes’ latest YouTube video features a chat with AVN-nominated performer Violet Monroe on set for Facial Abuse director Just Dave. Interviewed before and after her scene with Holmes, Monroe discusses the pleasure she derives from extreme sex.
“I definitely enjoy rough sex. For me, it’s more just because I’m very naturally submissive, and I like somebody else to take complete control of me,” Monroe reveals.
“A lot of people would watch a scene like that and feel sorry for you, and would not understand why somebody is doing it and maybe think we force you,” says Holmes. “How would you explain to these people that a violent rough scene can be totally consensual?”
“Everybody is into different things, and I imagine everybody has a different reason for what they like, whether it’s violent or whatever else. With me I think it’s just like, I guess I’m very independent, and I’ve been since a very young age, just always doing my own thing, in charge of my own life, and sometimes — with the people around me — taking care of other people…. So, I think when it comes to sex I like it to be the opposite. . . . It’s about letting somebody else take control for a little while. Ultimately you’re still controlling the situation, because at any point you can say ‘Hey, that’s too much’, but at the same time it’s fun to be pushed to those limits.”
Holmes said that one of the goals of his “Behind The Porn Scenes with Steve Holmes” YouTube series is, “when it comes to a set like Just Dave’s, where the girls can look like poor abused victims, to show that we’re all professionals and work as a team.”
“I’m covering the area I’m involved in,” Holmes stated. “Many different niches, from features to gonzo to more extreme stuff. I work in various countries — and every set is different.
Joanna Angel agrees. “I think the biggest misconception mainstream has about porn is that we are all the same,” she said. “People don’t assume all actors or musicians to be the same but people assume all porn stars have the same struggles, the same story, the same income, and the same motives and personality. I think Steve and his BTS shows him as a true individual, along with all the different types of people you meet on a porn set. There is not just one type of girl in porn — we are all vastly different in our looks and our ages and our personalities.”
Asked what prompted his journey into documentary work, Holmes deadpanned: “Boredom”.
“I work a lot in America, but my family is in Europe. So, I play golf a lot, and I shoot these YouTube videos and edit them. It’s fun.”
“I like to talk about the art of pornography,” Holmes says in the introductory video on his YouTube channel. “I think pornography is art. And like any other art — like painting, sculptures, theatre, movies, music — there’s better and worse; there’s great and there is rubbish. But generally I think pornography is a great art form, it’s probably the oldest.”
Now approaching 2,000 subscribers, Holmes’ YouTube channel recently won entry to the YouTube Partner Program, which requires at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time within 12 months. “I’m happy that I got accepted within 6 months, thanks to you.”
“If you’re interested in pornography,” Holmes added, “if you’re interested in how we do it — a little look behind the scenes — then subscribe.”
Keep up with Steve Holmes’ exploits on Twitter: @SteveHolmesPorn
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