Adult stars answer questions about porn

Manvitha Marni | Staff reporter
Courtesy of Kate Cygan

“As St. Francis said, where there is hate f—, let there be love,” porn star Lance Hart declared, to the amusement of a crowd of students that filled Graham Chapel Friday evening.

Hart and fellow adult film stars Tori Black and James Deen answered questions as a part of a Sex Week panel event, moderated by Susan Stiritz, a professor of sexuality studies.

Hart, a former software salesman, both acts in and films pornography usually targeted at specific fetishes and kinks. Black, currently expecting her second child, is more known for mainstream porn. She is the first performer ever to win two Adult Video News Female Performer of  Year Awards. Much of Deen’s work is popular with women and teenagers, earning him the moniker “the Ryan Gosling of porn.”

Despite the absence of retired porn star Sasha Grey, whom the Student Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) initially booked to speak on the panel, students arriving late were turned away because the event had reached capacity.

The questions, selected from a predetermined list submitted by both students and sexual health experts contacted by Stiritz, ranged from whether porn sets unrealistic standards for its viewers to the most interesting sexual experience each of the panelists has had. The latter was the source of Hart’s St. Francis remark, which referred to a personal experience with “hate sex.” Deen, smiling rakishly, revealed that he once tied a naked woman to a water tower.

Not among the topics discussed, however, was Deen’s public opposition to Los Angeles County’s Measure B, passed in November, which requires adult film actors to wear condoms while performing sex acts.

SHAC declined to comment on the planning of the panel, but according to the Sex Week FAQ on the organization’s website, the purpose of the panel was to foster dialogue about aspects of the porn industry that are not typically discussed, such as sexual health.

In response to a question about how the porn industry addresses the topic of race, Black, a white woman, recounted her own experience being encouraged to delay filming scenes in which she was performing with a black man so that she could charge a higher fee for interracial scenes.

“It’s pretty incredible that there are a lot of girls in the industry that do charge more [for interracial scenes], and I think that’s disgusting,” Black said.

Black’s fiance, African-American porn director Lyndell Anderson, was also present and addressed the audience twice during the panel.

“In a nutshell, we turn the lights off—we’re all black anyway…I don’t think there’s an all-white type of porn or an all-black type of porn. It’s what you like,” Anderson said.

The final question of the night, seeking advice from the panelists about getting involved in the adult film industry, caused a stir among students in the audience.

When Deen asked students who might be interested in becoming porn stars to stand up, only three students did so. Black cautioned against rushing into the industry, noting the difficulty of keeping a career in adult entertainment a secret.

“I thought most of the questions were really good except for the last one. That’s not very applicable to…most people there [at the panel], considering there were three people who raised their hands, and most of them were probably joking,” junior Varun Sablok said.

Most students seemed to enjoy the panel as most of the panelists’ responses were punctuated by applause and laughter from the audience.

“I really liked the panelists. They played off of each other really well, and they told entertaining stories,” junior Colin Rice said.

Motivations for attending the panel varied among students in the audience.

“I have a lot of friends [involved] in Sex Week planning, and they told me to come,” Rice said.

“I don’t know anything about the porn industry,” said sophomore Nicole Ahmed, “so I was curious.”

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