Once upon a time, shooting porn was like a license to print money, and it took a combination of skill and shamelessness to cash in. Some people even got by on shamelessness alone. Now it’s harder to make money but easier to make cheap porn; the market is glutted with inexpensive or free product. The solution involves making material that’s harder to copy utilizing a style that is not easily duplicated.
Still, the people who persist in making a living from porn in these uncertain times do so by a special cocktail of attitude, work ethic, skill, being in the right place at the right time, loyalty, and humility that goes beyond capturing sex on camera.
Over the next few months I’ll be profiling several directors, company owners, below-the-line production staff, performers, and other male porn industry personnel who have somehow managed to stay employed despite the fact that they don’t have vaginas.
Andre Madness is the owner of Madness Pictures and a prolific director for other companies, including Adam & Eve.
Gram Ponante: People say that the porn industry is going to Hell. I feel like they have always said this. But now that things feel especially tough, I’m wondering what keeps some people afloat where others can’t stay up. When and how did you start your porn career?
Andre Madness: I got my first opportunity on a Buck Adams production. That led to working with Stuart Canterbury for a number of years. During this time I began to network and started producing for a few different directors that led to a three year stint at Elegant Angel working for Patrick Collins. It was under the watchful eye of Mr. Patrick Collins, a man I have always admired as one of the industry’s leaders to this day, where I began to direct and shoot. However, New Sensations gave me even more opportunity to fine tune my skills as a cameraman and shoot both hard and softcore projects. Since then it’s been a series of career progressions, including directing for New Sensations, Kickass Pictures, Pleasure Productions, Hustler and now ultimately with Adam & Eve Pictures.
GP: Is it possible for porn to be a full-time gig?
AM: It’s possible but takes a lot of luck, some skill and tons of ambition. It also depends what side of the camera you’re planning on for your career, and so much factors into that as well.
GP: Can you recall a time in the business when things seemed to be firing on all cylinders? What was going on that made you feel that way?
AM: I think several people experience this at some point in their career where they feel like they are at the top of their game, popular, or everybody seems to want them. For me, it was being offered new movie deals from top companies at the same time, while I already had a full-time production schedule. I couldn’t make movies fast enough and more companies wanted more.That was a point in my career that lasted five years, when I shot an average of five days a week and had 11 series to maintain, and on my days off I shot feature movies. That was my firing on all cylinders moment.
GP: Do you do things differently from other people in a way that has allowed you to survive?
AM: I don’t know how other people do it, but for me it’s been knowing the right people who can help get the opportunities that may lead to bigger and better things. I’ve been very fortunate to have met exactly those people along the way and have been extremely grateful and humbled to make movies with and for them. For the past four years, I’ve had the fortune to work for one of the industry’s fastest
heads of production at Adam & Eve Pictures, MAC [Meredith Christopher]. MAC has been one of those vital people in my life that has given me the opportunity to make bigger and better projects. With Adam & Eve Pictures, MAC, and their stable of contract stars, Bree Olson and Kayden Kross, I recently had the opportunity to make “Rawhide II: Dirty Deeds,” my largest project ever. I’d call that thriving.
GP: Do you treat people professionally the way you’d like to be treated?
AM: I try to treat everyone with respect and professionalism.
GP: How would you define a professional attitude in porn?
AM: I heard it best defined as doing your J-O-B! That’s a direct quote from one of the industry’s best producers and my friend, Brah Bones.
GP: Are there things that are encouraged or tolerated in porn that wouldn’t fly anywhere else?
AM: Giving 110% seems like it would fit into both worlds. However the specifics of what that means in front of the camera may not fly.
GP: So success equals effort in porn?
AM: This is a business like any other. It’s what people not working in porn don’t seem to understand about it.
GP: What are you most proud of in the business?
AM: I’m proud to have met the people that I have known for so long in this business. I admire many people for their perseverance and accomplishments over the years. There are a great bunch of
individuals in this industry.
GP: Describe something you failed at, whether by some other asshole, your own naivete or bad attitude, a sad turn of events, or a combination of these. What I’m getting at, I think, is that people who succeed are ones who learn from mistakes.
AM: I’m still learning.
Previously on Porn Valley Observed: Getting physical with Bree Olson; Aloha spirit on the Vazquez Rocks; The Soft and tumescent parts of Ashlynn Brooke and Sadie West: A Military perspective
See also: Madness Pictures
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