Twenty Questions with AVN Hall of Fame Director James Avalon

James Avalon Captures Dirty, Emotional Beauty

AVN Hall of Fame director James Avalon is loved by readers for the features that he has directed and produced for Sweet Sinner. He has started directing for Erotica X as well, and his first Erotica X feature titled "Polyamory" came out earlier this month. Previous award-winning, gorgeous work of his that should be on your erotic radar include Metro's "Les Vampyres", "Taboo 2001", and Adam & Eve/Zero Tolerance's "Roller Dollz". Here are his answers to twenty questions about his life and work:

What kind of guy were you back in high school? Did you always love using cameras?

"Not in high school. Before. I did some photography. I joined the Boy Scouts a year early, at 11 (12 was a minimum age back then). One of the first merit badges I did was photography. Our leader was a chemistry professor at the local university, and he took me into the lab and showed me how to develop black/white photos. I used a brownie camera back then with 120-roll film. I got back into photography/cinematography in college, and taught the b/w lab work and basic b/w photography, composition, exposure, etc. as an undergraduate, in a work/study program."

Were you a porn fan before you got into the industry? Who were your favorite porn stars/favorite porn movies?

"Yes. Annette Haven was an early favorite. Constance Money from "Opening of Misty Beethoven" fame, which is one of my favorite films. Linda Lovelace too. Saw "Deep Throat", another favorite movie, and was actually surprised how much fun it was after hearing about how awful and perverted it was. I got into porn as an on-set still photographer, shooting still while the cameras were rolling. I used a sound blimp so the cameras didn't make any noise. Got incredible action photos. From there I went into publications, and did on-set articles, interviews with porn stars, and reviewed porn for all the major adult mags: Hustler, Velvet, Chic, Adam Film World, etc. I was even a mainstream film reviewer for CompuServ when the Internet first started. I worked there for a couple of years. Another anecdote from the reviewing period: "Café Flesh" was another favorite movie, and I was working for Adam Film World at the time and did an annual round-up of the best movies of the year. I picked "Café Flesh" as the No. 1, but the stills were so bad the publishers said they couldn't run the best movie with such shitty photos, so we ran another movie instead."

What do you think shaped you into the director that you are today?

"Definitely being a movie reviewer, both of porn and mainstream movies, because I had to break then down into what worked and didn't work. I had to learn to separate art direction from cinematography, editing from script, acting vs. writing, etc. Most porn reviewers today have no clue as to the different components. They'll give a Best Cinematography award to a film that has great art direction but shitty cinematography and best editing to a film that has a good script but is poorly edited, etc. Plus I worked as an editor for 5 or 6 years before getting into direction. Editing is where you learn to put all the components together and make a successful film. I was even what you call a "fixit" editor, someone a producer would bring a poorly edited film to have re-cut to make it work."

How would you describe your new work for Erotica X?

"Fun!"

Who is your favorite male performer/female performer to shoot and why?

"Just about anyone I book is great. I've had a great run of leading ladies: Adriana Chechik, Aidra Fox, Marley Brinx, Alli Rae, Carter Cruise, Jade Nile, Anikka Albrite, and Mia Malkova. As for guys, it's always a blast having Evan Stone on set. I've been booking him since he started. Steven St. Croix is great. New guy Tyler Nixon is another go-to performer, as is Seth Gamble and Logan Pierce. Tommy Pistol just might be the best young actor out there now. I just shot a light BDSM movie with him, and he was sensational. I use them all the time because they're dependable and always give a great performance, acting and sexual."

What can you share about your upcoming BDSM feature, "Shades of Kink 6"?

"It was fun to shoot. Tommy Pistol was fantastic and Marley Brinx as a complicated sub was fun and very interesting to watch. We shot two days in a row and she was in 95 percent of the scenes. And she hung in there like a champ. I think it was the best female performance I've shot this past year."

What have you seen change most within the industry in your ten plus years directing porn?

"More people are accepting porn as a form of art and entertainment. It's carved a niche in our culture."

What fetishes do you have that you haven’t yet shot? Is there a particular kink that you want to put in a future release?

"I don't think I have a fetish, per se, other than female body worship. I find it endlessly fascinating."

What is one thing that you think that a lot of porn directors get wrong about the way that they create a scene?

"They worry about the wrong things. They need to focus on the emotional realism of sexual interaction. Too many directors get hung up on the perfect shot, lighting, etc., and lose the sexual energy. I've seen some real emotion out of the performers." 

What are the best things about being a porn director?

"I have to admit, it has a sexual intrigue to it. It's fun. And having creative control over the shoot is both challenging and rewarding. I try to experiment a lot, and that's fun, especially when things work out."

What do you think are “must-own” DVDs for fans of your work?

"I've lost count. But I always try to do my best work on the project I'm currently working on. Check out "Brothers and Sisters 2". The scene between Aidra Fox and Tyler Nixon might be one of the best scenes I've ever shot. Here's a promo clip I put up on vimeo." 

What goes into casting your Sweet Sinner releases?

"I keep up with all the talent agencies and get feedback from various girls performing." 

What do you like most about directing for Sweet Sinner and Erotica X?

"The creativity. I try to play around with a lot of the themes and set ups. We have fun, and I try not to make everything cookie-cutter. You know, do the same thing over and over." 

Who are your role models in porn and how/why do they inspire you?

"I don't know if I have any role models, as you say. But I've always admired the work of Andrew Blake and Michael Ninn. Both have incredible eyes. My role models are photographers like Helmut Newton, Richard Avedon." 

What can we look for in your upcoming releases?

"A lot of fun scripts, characters, and super hot girls and guys, and fun, energetic sexual encounters." 

What is the best mainstream movie you have seen recently?

"I don't get to watch a lot of mainstream movies, but the last fun one I really liked was Guardians of the Galaxy. I've been watching series mostly. Love Penny Dreadful, Game of Thrones (of course), Banshee, The Newsroom," 

How about the best porno movie? Is there someone whose movies you like to watch who is working now?

"I don't really watch other porn movies or directors. Mostly because I don't have time. And when I have a little time, I like to watch a great series. In the middle of Jessica Jones now. Great stuff."

What do you like to do for fun?

"Surf. Play hockey." 

If you could cast any celebrities to do an epic sex scene for you, who would you cast? Give us your male and female choices and tell us what you would ask of them.

"Scarlett Johansson and Jake Gyllenhaal. First, I'd like to see Scarlet Johansson riding a white horse complexly nude except for a red scarf flying behind her as she gallops across some foggy marshes in Wales’s countryside. A moment later we see her being chased by a man (Jake G.) riding a shiny black horse and wearing a full-on tux. He slowly catches up. She smiles and laughs as she sees him. She's not afraid. It's some kind of game. After a moment, he catches up and leaps off his horse, wraps his arms around her and they fall into a lake that they are now racing beside. Now we see them underwater, kissing and hugging. She rips his clothes off. And then she starts handling his penis, getting it hard. She holds her breath underwater for a really long time. Then she gives him head, and after a while turns around, and they start having sex, and they slowly rise to the surface. Next we see them break the water, and they roll to the sand and continue making love. Ghostly fog, a glimmering lake and a dark forest behind them as the silky, sensual mud starts to cover their bodies as they roll around the dark, foreboding shore." 

Is there anything you want to say to your fans here at Fleshbot?

"Peace, love, and don't be afraid to do what you desire."

All of the images here appear courtesy of Erotica X.  Click right here to go check out Avalon's latest work for Erotica X by clicking here.