Two-thirds of Pornography: A Thriller take place in NYC. We’re, of course, faking that for the most part, with the exception of some 2nd unit stuff to be shot after principal photography.

But there are some crucial props that we need to use during the main shoot. Part of the plot concerns a former porn model stalking, and snapping photos of, his costar from Manhattan Video Boys on the streets of New York. We see these photos frequently during the first third of the film.

Our budget won’t allow us to bring the director, photographer, wardrobe supervisor and actor to NYC for a photo shoot, so we have to fake some of the shots here in L.A. I can’t remember who suggested it, but we decided to use a building over on Vermont Ave. near Fred 62 (one of the few 24 hour restaurants in the city, and one of my favorites).

This segment of the film takes place in winter, and while the current season is technically winter, in L.A. the temparature hovers in the high 70s most of the time.

Because the photos are supposed to be stalkery and surveillancey, they had to be shot from across the street.

So we put our actor, Dylan Vox (you may have watched him in The Lair, or read his blog - 21st Century Vox), in costume and sent him across Vermont Ave.

Most of the pedestrians ignored Dylan in his winter parka, but shooting around people in tshirts and shorts was a challenge.

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We have some new key art. This is temporary, mainly for postcards and early publicity purposes. The eventual distributor will most likely change it once they decide on a marketing campaign. But for the moment, we have:

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We had a production meeting last night, highlighting everything that we don’t have in place for the shoot in 3 weeks. Although I’ve been thru this many times and know it will all work out, the process can still be stressful. The result is insomnia, for which I’ve been self-medicating with bong hits before bed. Which I realize is unhealthy. So tonight I’m taking half a Xanax instead.

Dark Blue Films PORNOGRAPHY: A THRILLER page
Triple Fire Productions PORNOGRAPHY: A THRILLER page

Last night we brought all the guys together for a photo shoot. We need several fake porn box covers featuring the guys playing porn stars as props in the film, and as we’re shooting in just a couple weeks (Holy shit, really?), we need to get this done ASAPorn.

So out went the email to the actors:

For the MANHATTAN VIDEO BOYS box cover (Jared and Dylan) - Jeans, tight shirts, jock strap, baseball caps if you have one without a logo, good sexy underwear, and anything you might have that you think might work. If you don’t have a jock strap and or sexy underwear, buy some and we’re reimburse you. We’ll then keep them for use during the film. We’re gonna see your naked backside for some of these shots FYI.

For the MUCH ADO ABOUT FUCKING box cover (Pete and Bret) - see above, plus anything that says ‘Shakespeare’ to you.

And my favorite response:

i can’t wait to shop for my jock strap. see ya tomorrow.
oh - should i shave my chest, trim my pubes, etc?

(For the record, no shaving, yes trimming.)

Graham Kolbeins is our set photographer. We met Graham thru our mutual friends Dave (Exile in Guyville: How a Punk-Rock Redneck Faggot Texan Moved to West Hollywood And Refused to Be Shiny And Happy) White and Alonso (101 Must-see Movies for Gay Men) Duralde who also appeared in a one of his films.

One of the characters in the film is a photographer, and we thought Graham’s work would be perfect for the film, as well as the various props like the video box covers.

So cut to last night in director Dave Kittredge’s apartment, white sheet taped to the wall, enough lights to possibly blow a circuit, and five naked dudes of mixed sexuality. We were nervous at first, worried that the guys would feel uncomfortable nuding up for the camera in front of the crew (me, Vegan Production Designer Doug, Graham, Kittredge, Gary Cotti shooting the “Behind the Scenes” footage, Gage and Liz - The Makeup Goths, and Kittredge’s husband Rob, whose job was, I believe, to drink wine.)

This is Kittredge and I standing in for one of the box covers while Graham set the lights.

We needn’t have worried. Our first model of the evening, one of the straight actors, walked onto the “set”, posed in his underwear and Much Ado About Fucking Shakespearean puffy shirt for a few shots, then pulled off his plumb smugglers, put his hands on hips, and asked “What’s next?” What was next was two hours of naked and mostly naked actors being posed by Kittredge and Vegan Production Designer Doug, laughing, our two porn stars coaching the porn noobs in how to make the most of their assets, and sighs of relief that our actors had a chance to get comfortable with each other before the actual film shoot.

Socket is now available for pre-order!

You can reserve your copy for the sale price of $16.99 via the TLA website (normal price $20).

You can also buy it thru Amazon.com, but the price is higher there. And we’d like to show the TLA folks that peeps are lining up for their copy.

The extras include a commentary (with me, the Vegan Producers, and our two leads), a 30-minute “Behind the Scenes” featurette, and a photo gallery.

Also, check out our new dvd cover art!

As of today I need to hit the ground running, sprinting to February 4 and the beginning of principal photography.

TO DO:

Cast the final roles in the film, including a pivotal supporting role.

Find our locations. I found a great resource at the California Film Commission called Cinema Scout which is a free, searchable database of state, county and privately owned locations for filming. The cool thing about state owned properties is that they’re free for use, and county owned properties are really cheap. We’re also thinking of using what was once called Entertainium, now called United Pacific Studios (or UPS). This is a standing set warehouse used by tons of low budget films, and porn companies. They’ve moved into a new location, and supposedly done away with the straight swinger parties they hosted on weekends, so we’re hoping they’ll be easier to deal with than when we shot with them for Socket. If the new facility turns out how they’ve told us, we’ll be able to shoot a good half of the film there, which would be a godsend. The only downside is they’re still constructing the new warehouse sets, so we’re not sure if they’ll be done by the time we need to shoot. Fingers crossed.

Turn in the Screen Actors’ Guild paperwork. This is a mountain of forms, and SAG could make this whole process MUCH easier with a minimum of effort. But until they do I’m stuck with my nightmare - tons of little pieces of information that need to be collated, triple checked, and turned in.

Press release announcing production.

Production meeting with all department heads to make sure we’re all heading in the same direction.

Interview and hire the remaining crew members.

Distribute the final version of the script to the company.

Arrange porn set visit for director, two actors and myself.

Find a payroll company.

And one billion other things TBD.