Al Kikuras: How did you first get involved in the porn business?

James DiGiorgio: I was doing stand-up comedy for about three years. Man, talk about depressing! But anyway, I was doing a gig at this club in Hollywood one night, and there's this large, lesbian, comedian up on the stage (pretty unusual, huh: a woman doing standup who's both fat and gay!). So, I'm listening to her try to suck a laugh out of the room, and she's talking about editing porno. She's doing all the obvious jokes, like "people ask me what parts of a porno I cut out--the plot and dialogue, of course!" I kind of perked up because I had a lot of experience editing, so when she finally gives up and comes off the stage, I sit down next to her at the bar and begin talking to her about editing. Turns out she worked for Sin City and was both the head editor, as well as the only editor. She told me there was more work than she could handle, and wondered if I might be interested in coming in at night and doing some freelance. Since most comedians are pretty much strangers to paychecks, her offer sounded good. Next thing I know, I'm there editing smut, and to make a long, boring story short, three months later I was the head, as well as only, editor at Sin City. I worked there for a couple of years. Edited a lot of Buck Adams movies. Sin City went into a growth period, and before long, I had a few extra editors working for me, and I was named "head of post-production." This, of course, was a completely thankless job that required me to be there about 70 to 100 hours a week... mostly becuase half my time, as well as the other editor's time, was spent fixing fuck-ups that occured in production. I weathered more than a few changes in management at Sin City: Mickey Blank, Ed Powers, Luc Wylder, Steve Karmelin. And although the names changed, the production problems remained the same: fucked up! I convinced them that I couldn't possibly fuck up any worse (from a production standpoint) than anyone else had or could, and they let me direct my first project: Boobwatch. I did, by the way, possess a lot or production skills and background, such as film school and working in mainstream, so it wasn't like I didn't have a clue. Boobwatch did really well; I did two more installments of it and I'm told it's one of Sin City's most successful series, if not the most, ever. They still air Boobwatch on cable almost three years later. Anyway, after a while my directing began to get in the way of my duties in post-production, so I bailed out of the company. In fact, I was going to be partners with Gigi Appleton and Luc Wylder at Fallen Angel, but, well, two's company, and three's... you get the picture. I started my own company, orginally "Shocking Entertainment," which became "Blue Light Pictures." We are a production and post-production company. we don't distribute product. We just make the shit.

That's what I call a spread...

A: If you had never become involved in the porn industry, what would you be doing right now?

J: I'd like to think I'd be doing the almost the same thing, only in mainstream. I had some minor success as a writer years ago: an NBC sitcom I created, and a number of film scripts that were optioned, turned around, and sadly, never produced. I've done a lot of writing, directing, and producing in the corporate, industrial, and educational worlds as well. So making movies is pretty much what I know how to do, so I guess that's what I'd be doing. If I knew how to do rocket science, maybe I'd do that instead.

A: Which of your films is your personal fave?

J: My personal favorites are Boobwatch (the first one), Nightshift (the first one), PsychoSexxx" (the first one), Naked Lust (the only one), and the just released Shooting Sex. (my number one personal fave).

A: Least fave?

J: Which do I like the least? Probably all the rest of them, although I sorta liked Coed Carwash. Kind of...

A: Are there any films you are currently working on?

J: I'm always working on something. I've recently done a few gonzo for VCA's new VCA Explicit line, and am hoping to snag a feature from them. I'm partnered up with Rob Spallone (of Starworld) on the VCA projects. I also have a partnership (non-exclusive) with Rebecca Lord Productions. We jointly produced a very couples-friendly, perfect-cable, feature called Unfaithful Hearts. We're now in production on another, Le Femme Rebecca.

A: To go back a ways, you were discharged from the Armed Forces, correct? What happened?

J: I was your basic mal-adjusted, refuse-to-accept-authority, kid. The military and I didn't see eye-to-eye on a lot of things. I was pretty active in the anti-war movement while in the military, and they didn't like my relationships with people like Vanessa Redgrave, Dr. Spock, Angela Cleaver, and others. At one point, my fellow conspirators and I published an anti-authority, anti-war, rag that had world-wide curculation of almost ten thousand copies a month. We used to get our buddies who worked on cargo jets to take thousands of copies all over the world. The military finally conceded defeat and discharged me - under honorable conditions.

A: You recently launched your own web site, www.jamesdigiorgio.com. Obviously, the audience of a porn site on the web would mostly be comprised of men, looking for naked women. Do you plan to cater to that audience on the site at all?

J: Well, "Duh!!!!" Of course my site will have content suitable for monkey spanking!. I also plan to include a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff. It's already up and running, albeit it's still rather small. But hold onto your testicals, boys, I have access to a ton of content to put up there. Everything from straight, american-style porn, to asian, to... well, you'll have to wait and see.

A: What kind of music do you listen to?

J: Mostly classic rock: Beatles, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Traffic, Cream, Vanilla Fudge... you get the picture. But I pretty much enjoy everything from punk to heavy metal. I can pass on country western and rap. Industrial, techno, sounds good to me. Ska and that sort of stuff? Pass.

A: What are your three all-time favorite albums?

J: Oh shit, hmmm....I truly don't think I have anything I could categorize as "all-time" favorites. I keep changing my mind all the time. One day I might tell you it's any number of Pink Floyd albums, the next I might say almost anything.

A: Do you actually perform in any pornos?

J: I perform in many of my porns, i.e., in non-sexual roles. I have a fair amount of performance background (comedy, theater), why not use it? My dick stays in my pants, though. I mean, I really don't think anyone wants to see some long-haired, out of shape, middle-aged hippy biker, getting his cock sucked. Well, no one but me, of course.

A: As a director, do you get a lot of pussy?

J: As a director I COULD get a lot of pussy if I was so inclined. Let's put it this way, although I get enough pussy outside of the biz, and I must tell you I have a soft-spot for strippers, my attitude about getting inside-the-biz pussy is basically "you don't shit where you eat." That's not to say it's never happened, but that was only during very weak moments... mostly cannabis induced!

A: The industry is envisioned as one big party by most fans and outsiders. Wild orgies, drug fests... you get the idea. In your experience, does it at all live up to that belief?

J: Shit, you really want me to burst some bubbles here. Well, sorry folks, the lives of people in porn aren't all that disimilar than yours. I mean, there are occassional orgies, drug fests, etc, but they're more the exception than the rule. Most porn sets are pretty business-like. You have a lot get done in a short period of time with not enough money to do it, so you figure it out. One of my sets did evolve into that sort of thing once. I had rented this club, a strip club, and was shooting scenes for two movies. I had a lot of extras, three camera crews, a lot of talent there, and before I knew it, someone got me totally fucked up (stoned), and I kind of lost control. The next thing I knew, everyone was either getting laid or their dicks sucked. Extras were directing dialogue scenes, it was cinematic and sexual anarchy. Here's the funniest part. I'm the director, right? Ok, I'm sitting there with one my best friends, a comic named Vinny Marz. And Vinny and I fucked up, laughing our asses off at the whole scene. What were we mostly laughing at? The fact that I'm the director, and probably the only guy in the room NOT getting his dick sucked! How's that happen??? That was the last time I ever got fucked-up wasted on one of my sets.

Jim and the lovely Candy Hill.

A: Is drug use very prevalent in the porn industry, in your experience?

J: Drug use certainly exists. To say it's "prevalent" would not be accurate.

A: Have you ever had performers show up to a shoot too high to perform?

J: Yes, I've had to send people home because they were too fucked up to work. And having done so, it was like shooting myself in the foot. We lost hours and hours replacing the talent. But sometimes you have to make those kinds of decisions.

A: From my experience in the porn industry, it seems there is a definite barrier between "insiders" and "outsiders."

J: Most porners see themselves as societal outlaws. We usually refer to people outside the biz as "civilians." It's a very bizzarre business. Most people would not fit in, nor would they want to.

A: Who makes better cash? Johnny Porn Star or Johnny Director?

J: That depends on who you are. I certainly make more money than a whole slew of Johnny Porn Stars, but theres more than a few who make more money than me. Hey! Since when is this all about making money?? I thought we're artists? I think in the long run, Johnny Director, if he's doing the right sort of projects, is going to make more money than most porn studs. And if Johnny Porn Star also directs, and he's any good, he's going to make bank.

A: As you are aware, our review of Dark Secrets wasn't the best... there is mention made in the review of "some woman who shows up randomly through these various sexual interludes." Our reviewer said "I know that pornos aren't necessarily known for their plots, but her existence is never explained and that really bothers me." Care to shed some light on her place in the film?

"First I grab the dog, then I choke him, then I kick the shit out of him!!"

J: First off, I really don't hold grudges when I get bad reviews, you motherfucking cocksuckers! And that's because I fully understand that most people who review porn are competely unqualified to do so. Oh sure, reviewing the sex is easy because it's so subjective. One person's opinion in that area is as good as anyone's. What I'm really talking about here is that most reviewers don't understand what we, as the makers of smut, were tasked with doing in any given project. Let's take most features, for instance. I'm going to make a feature, and the people who hire me to do so tell me to make a really good cable piece, i.e., a soft piece. Ok, I can do that. But which version gets reviewed? The hard core. Now since most reviewers focus on the sex, and how nasty, intense, or whatever it is, they're usually going to be a bit less impressed with the hard version of a feature that was designed to play on Playboy or Spice, or was designed to knock 'em out at Adam and Eve, or was supposed to be very couples-friendly, or appeal to a middle-of-the-road feminine audience. I have to get really lucky to manage to produce a piece that generates enough heat to be a kick ass hardcore flick, and still get by the content censors and buyers at Playboy and other cable outlets. These aren't excuses, it's just reality. It's tough to accomplish a flick that's a really good hardcore, softcore, and also foreign piece. i have trouble doing it, everyone does. So next time you're all impressed with Rob Black's latest piece of shocking smut, as if there's a softcore version suitable for cable, there's not. And, by the way, I'd rather direct features any day. Why? Becuase the budgets are bigger, I get paid more, the movie ultimately makes more money for it's financiers, and they, therefore, keep hiring me! It certainly makes more money in total revenues than most Rob Black, Elegant Angel, Tommy Byron, or Evil Angel piece, at least, the hardcore-only pieces. I haven't even touched on the credentials that almost any reviewers might have to critique the filmmaking process: cinematography, editing, music, art direction, yada yada yada.

James and Kimi, just returned from the 24-hour-clothes-optional-all-you-can-eat chinese buffet. Can you believe the things they have in California??

As for the convoluted story line in Dark Secrets, well, I hired Brooke April to play this IRS investigator (the mystery chic who you sometimes see in the backgroung spying on the scenes). Brooke did all those scenes on Day One of shooting, and then she flakes on me for Day Two. So, I had to completely try to reinvent the story in post....which included shooting more footage a few weeks later (took a $ loss on that one), and to be honest, no matter what I did it still came out fucked up. There's dialogue in there (Sharon Kane's dialogue) that explains off the mystery girl, but then, how many of you actually listen to the dialogue. I caught a lot of shit from Sin City over that one. They didn't really care that the girl flaked on me. All they cared about was that it fucked up the show. But in the end, I understand it sold ok, it made it's cable sale, and it's now forgotten. It's, after all, easy to forget and forgive when you still ended up making money off it.

A: So, the bottom line: what is your opinon of Dark Secrets overall?

J: It could've been okay, but Brooke flaking on me really fucked things up. But then, I'll take the blame. It did have some pretty decent editing, was lit and shot well, and a few of the sex scenes played just fine, I thought.

Jim pleads with the cameraman, Bernie, to give him a big manly bear hug.

A: You shoot for Sin City, VCA, Empire, Shocking... if each offered you a contract with equal pay, which would you go with and why?

J: I'd go with Sin City because I have a history there and I feel as if I'm family there. I know how that company operates. I know what turns them on and off. I know their strengths and weaknesses. And I have a great relationship with the company's owner, as well as other key staffers. He's the man who gave me a shot. He's always been good to me, and I've always strived to do him right.

A: In general, is there more green in the X or R rated films you have done?

J: The R rated stuff I've done has mostly been of the Playboy-style, pretty-girl undressed, ilk. The money's okay... about on a par with doing a medium-high budget X rated feature.

A: Sin City hasn't had the best reputation of late within the industry. Are things falling apart there, as rumor has it?

J: Things will never fall apart there because Sin City is one of the strongest companies in the marketplace, if not THE strongest, because of who and what is behind it. Sin City reports to GVA, the largest distributor of adult videos, possibly in the world. If Sin City were to crumble, I'd be looking for the whole industry to crumble.

A: I understand VCA Explicit forbids facials. What the fuck is up with that??

J: That's Russ's call. I don't question it. Rob Spallone and I are really pleased to be providing product to VCA. So far, they've been nothing short of great to work with. I know that Russ feels that facials are degrading to women, and he doesn't want anything in VCA movies that smack of misogyny or degradation to women. VCA is a bona fide success story in this biz. They've been around a very long time, and they don't look like they're going anywhere soon. I wish I knew all the things Russ has forgotten about regarding this biz. You can't argue with that kind of success. I don't think that decision is affecting VCA sales at all. There are many different segments of porn consumers out there. Not all of them are disappointed by not seeing cum dripping off a beautiful woman's face. By the way, remember what I spoke of earlier about hard vs. soft versions? You're not likely to see a facial, or any other cum shot, in a cable piece anyway.

A: What is your opinion of Luke Ford?

J: Luke is great! He's great for this industry. Ok, maybe he doens't always do his homework. Big fucking deal. Luke is entertainment. Luke is controversy. All those pussy-ass pornographers who take exception with Luke should rethink their positions. Luke's brought some fun and vitality back to this business. Everyone who is anyone reads Luke first thing every morning. I've gotten more personal publicity, as well as publicity for my flicks FOR FREE than anything AVN, or any other rag has done, with the possible exception of Unchain the Underground after you publish this interview.

A: What was Luke's reaction to your road trip to Vegas?

J: Luke said it was the first time in his entire life that he felt like he doing some genuine male-bonding, being truly one of the guys, on the trip out there. He was a bit taken back with the drinking, pot smoking, shouting, etc. in the car, but he got over that. He also loved being in a really large hotel suite, I think we have over three thousand square feet, and he had his first ride in a limo. We did consider filling a hole in the desert with him, but what would PornUtopia be without Luke Ford?

A: Do you prefer small real tits or big, fake tits?

J: Me, personally, I like natural tits, small to medium sized. I'm actually more a leg and butt guy!

A: The "Boobwatch" series is up to 3 now, correct? Is there a fourth planned?

J: I'm planning on doing a fourth installment this spring. The series was very successful, they still play it on cable... it's very nearly a guaranteed hit. And guaranteed hits don't come easy in this biz. I'm hoping I can work it out with Sin City to have Nikki Lynn play the lead. We've even spoken of possibly shooting it in Hawaii. Boobwatch Goes Hawaiian?

A: Your new feature, Shooting Sex, includes 46 minutes of non-sex. WOW!! How much actual sex is there and what goes on in all that dry time?

J: Where is it fucking written in stone that all pornos must utilize the same or similar blueprints? You call it "dry time." I call it "other entertainment time." Mainstream and porn are moving closer and closer together. Have you checked out Showtime or The Movie Channel lately? I think there's room for a whole new breed of sex flick: one that includes sex, as well as genuine entertainment. I think in the next few years, with mainstream cable companies becoming more daring, the internet becoming more popular as a provider of streaming entertainment, DVD and other technologies taking over, we're in for some major changes. I'd like to be positioned at the front of the line, not be the last guy to jump on the train. I'd like to be the first guy to shoot an X-rated piece on High-Def. I want to be the guy who finally produces some stuff for HBO and the others that contain some genuine heat, as well as being a decently crafted movie. You watch, you'll soon see some of the more forward-looking producers/companies taking risks with shows that fall competely outside the realm of "what has been" adult erotica.

"Yo, man!! She just farted!!"

A: I have heard that for a guy to break into porn (performing) he has to bring a woman in with him. Is that true?

J: Yep, pretty much that's true. I have people ask me all the time (guys, that is) how they can get in. That's what I advise them to do. Rarely, do any of them manage to do so. It takes more than a big dick to make it as a porn stud. Time is money, and neither myself, or most other directors are going to risk their production on untried male talent. Of course, if they're there with some hottie who I absolutely MUST shoot... well, I'll take a bit of a chance there.

A: What did you think of the AVN awards this year?

J: I don't go to the AVN awards. Personally, I think it's all done above-board and all, but I also think it's a bit absurd to give trophies to people for things like getting fucked in the ass. That's just my take on it.

A: A number of people were shocked that Chloe beat out Jill Kelly for Best Female Performer of the Year. Personally, I think she deserved it. Are you among the surprised?

J: I think Chloe is a dynamite performer. But then, Jill Kelly ain't exactly chopped liver either. Will Chloe suddenly become rich and Jill Kelly destitute over this? I don't think so. These things are more about ego than money. That's not to put down ego, I certainly have a healthy one, but I'd rather have a happy ego and a flush bank account, than just a happy ego. Was I surprised? Nothing surprises me anymore... especially when it has to do with this business. I guess I've become a bit jaded.

A: The general consensus nowadays seems to be that friends of AVN win AVN awards. What is your opinion?

J: Aren't friends SUPPOSED to be loyal to friends? I know I am to mine. And I expect them to be so to me. You take care of your friends. I don't know if that's the case at AVN or not. I'm pretty neutral about them and them about me. But if it is true, well, it certainly doesn't violate any of my personal convictions.

A: Any upcoming films you'd like to tell us about?

J: Yeah....Star Wars, Episode 1, coming out in May. I can't wait! I'm guessing it will be a hit. You think so? Heheheheh.

Let's hope he's carrying her to the bedroom, or at least to the kitchen for some pizza.

A: Thanks very much for the interview!!

J: You're very welcome!

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