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Dirty Work: Reframing Western Acting Techniques in Contemporary Adult Film Performance
Ruis, David Lorenzo
Ruis, David Lorenzo
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Abstract
My research examines the adult film industry’s approach to technique in actor-training including the commodification and fetishization of people of color, queer-identifying performers, and other marginalized bodies who occupy a limited space in the porn business. I argue that there is room for acting theory in the practice of pornography and ask: Why are acting theorists such as Konstantin Stanislavski and others generally ignored or dismissed among porn actors when many of these acting theories and training techniques can help with their performances? How can a porn actor of color utilize these tools when porn (as well as the mainstream entertainment industry) presupposes people of color as objects, not actors? Having a sense of identity and knowing where you are factored into the industry is crucial for success. A porn actor can piece together various exercises and training techniques from many acting instructors such as Stanislavski, Uta Hagen, Lee Strasberg, Sanford Meisner, and Stella Adler. I also include Sharrell D. Luckett and Freddie Hendricks into this group as I find their work instrumental for actors of color to have their own representation in the majorly white represented Western canon of acting theorists. Little attention is paid to the stigmatization and racialization actors of color have to survive in order to gain a place at the table. I use my own embodied experience as a Mexican and queer-identifying man, turning the camera around on myself, in order to find my way into the porn conversation. Isn’t there always a sense of performance once the camera is turned on? I also examine porn actor-training schools (Nicola La Fleur’s Porn Academy for Men, Rocco Siffredi’s University of Porn in Italy, and Samantha Mack’s Porno Bootcamp) and examine how they use specific theoretical and practical tools for porn actor-training. This dissertation attempts to answer these questions while at the same time demonstrating why porn is an important aspect of our cultural experiences.
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Date
2021-05-31
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University of Kansas
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Keywords
Performing arts, Acting Techniques, Film, Performance, Pornography, Race, Sexuality