So, you want to be a porn-star?
The rise of amateur-content sites like OnlyFans, JustFor.Fans and – my personal favourite – XTUBE, has allowed the consumer to take control of the adult industry. The audience now decides who gets to make it in porn, rather than leaving it to the discretion of the studios. One happy consequence of this shift has been increased diversity. People of all ages, shapes, sizes, ethnicities and positions on the gender spectrum are now making content and gaining followers that only a year ago might not have had the same opportunities.
Even though I’m a cis-gendered white Hispanic twink who has been making porn for four years, I am super excited to see these changes! Porn is now beginning to more accurately reflect modern sex. Stereotypes are being smashed and boundaries being moved. More opportunities and a whole new audience mean more work and a fairer industry. Gone are the days of competition between actors to get standard paid scenes. We now live in a world of collaboration and cross-promotion.
For those of you who don’t know, I live in Spain. Spain has many wonderful qualities but being up to date with the latest trends isn’t one of them. People are only just beginning to wake up to the possibilities of amateur-content sites. Luckily, my colleagues and long-time friends over at Querell cruising bar – in the famous town of Torremolinos – came up with an exciting new project to help bring more diversity to the gay adult industry in Spain.
My history with Querell goes back to my first ever month in porn. To celebrate their fifth anniversary, I was booked to do a live bondage show – three weeks after my first scene came out. Four long, hard years later, and I’m still good friends with the amazing owners of Querell. So much so that they asked me to be a part of their new project!
The project that we’ve been working on together is called Querell Porno Star. It’s a competition to find the next big name in porn and hopefully launch some new careers. The competition is made up of two teams, I coach the “tops/top vers team” team and my rival Yah Jil coaches the bottoms. Each contestant has a live show with their team coach and the public gives them a score. At the final, the winner will be offered a special scene for a major Spanish porn company, while stand-out contestants will be allowed to return for future shows and to film content in the amazing space at Querell.
The key focus of this competition has been to increase diversity in the Spanish porn industry. We managed to achieve a broad range of spectacular contestants. Our age range goes from 21 to over 40. We have cis and trans contestants, as well as Latin American contestants. No matter what their objectives, whether they want to become porn actors or just fulfil the fantasy of a live sex-show, each of our contestants has brought something unique to the competition. They have been a great example of how increased diversity creates a more interesting end result. The competition began at the start of the year and will continue on through to April for the grand final.
When I began my career, I had no support system. The industry of four years ago bears almost no resemblance to the world of today. Competition was fiercer, young actors had less control over their careers, and there was a lot less money involved. I’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way and learnt a lot of lessons. This competition has given me an opportunity to make friends but also help out others just starting. Being team captain hasn’t just been a job for me – I wanted to prepare not just my team but all of the contestants for the tricky world of adult content creation. Finances, image, social media, bookings, professional standards – the world of an adult actor is complicated.
If any of you are going to visit Malaga or Torremolinos this spring, please come along! Querell is an incredibly fun safe space where you can have a drink and meet interesting guys. The club has a range of interesting spaces for fun and some of the hottest live shows in Europe. If you’re lucky enough to come during one of our shows, feel free to say hi!
If you’re interested in the competition or supporting our contestants on their journey, please follow them on social media. Likes, comments, and followers are a big part of what we do now. Feel free to follow me for further updates!
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