Porn Star Agents: Inside Their Risky Business
Mark Spiegler
On a late-summer afternoon in a dingy San Fernando Valley apartment  talent agent  Mark Spiegler  is having  it  out with a producer. Pacing the length of the living room that for the past nine years has doubled as his office  Spiegler  portly with thinning brown hair and a graying 5 o'clock shadow  sets out his demands: If his client  a top actress  is going to agree to a project  certain accommodations must be made. "You want her ready at 8  you should do the makeup " Spiegler barks as he stomps past a bookcase filled with framed photos of himself with various women. "If you want her later  she'll do her own makeup."
 Spiegler 's spat over the call time might seem familiar to agents at the CAAs and WMEs of Hollywood who often find themselves protecting their star clients from producer demands. But  Spiegler  has a particular reason for being concerned about the 8 a.m. shoot:  It  would require  his  client to get up around 4:30 a.m. to receive an enema. Because the scene calls for the woman to perform anal sex.
Yes   Spiegler  54   represents porn stars -- and  he 's one of the biggest agents in Los Angeles' $1 billion adult entertainment industry. As the Ari Emanuel or Kevin Huvane of hardcore   he  handles such top performers as Skin Diamond  Chanel Preston and Asa Akira  the client for whom  Spiegler  is arguing.
Ultimately  the production company  New Sensations  will agree to delay the shoot for Akira  27  who will do her own makeup and be paid about $2 000 for the scene. "That's the whole reason for us being here " says  Spiegler   whose boutique firm  Spiegler Girls  represents a small group of elite women and is known as one of the adult industry's top agencies. "We are the buffer -- so the girl doesn't look bad. We take the heat."
At the same time  shrinking porn profits and a talent supply-and-demand imbalance have caused performers' salaries to decline. Whatever the moral qualms Americans have (40 million to 50 million people in the U.S. regularly watch pornography on the Internet  according to studies) about the proliferation of movies with such titles as Orgasmic Oralists  Damn  She's a Lesbian and Dong of the Dead  the tough U.S. economy has led to an explosion in the number of people hoping to find work in porn -- some perhaps emboldened by the dream they too could become crossover stars like Sasha Grey (Entourage) and James Deen ( the forthcoming Lindsay Lohan starrer The Canyons) . While a decade ago the average female performer would make about $100 000 a year   Spiegler  says  she  now might make as little as $50 000 -- all while juggling responsibilities such as social-media outreach and personal appearances.
And where there were only two or three reputable adult agencies 10 years ago  now 14 agencies are licensed and bonded  though top shops L.A. Direct Models  101 Modeling and  Spiegler  Girls dominate the upper echelon of performers. None would discuss how much money they make  but observers say that top agents can pull down $250 000 a year from their 10 to 15 percent takes. "It's very competitive  and the well-known agencies do control most of the talent " says Dan Miller  executive managing editor of industry trade magazine XBIZ. "It's just like Hollywood in that regard."
But there is an actual skill and finesse to the real porn agents  even if negotiating deals is relatively straightforward. Unlike in Hollywood  most adult performers charge set rates  so the conversation often centers on the availability of an actor. Still  agents also help clients set up personal websites  arrange for transportation and even make sure performers are staying on top of their mandatory drug-testing regimens. As if to illustrate this point  during an interview   Spiegler  interrupts the conversation to answer  his  phone and discuss the scheduling of a blood test at Cutting Edge Testing in Sherman Oaks  a facility popular with adult entertainers.
According to  Spiegler   there is a relatively straightforward scale for performances: An in-demand actress is paid about $800 for a girl-girl scene  $1 000 for a guy-girl scene  $1 200 or more for anal sex and $4 000 or more for double penetration (guy-on-guy pornography has a separate pay scale; most agents in the mainstream straight porn world  including  Spiegler   do not represent gay men).  Spiegler  takes 10 to 15 percent  receiving the larger percentage if  he  handles transportation for the client. In an effort to ferret out rogue agents and discourage actors from working with them  several agencies  led by L.A. Direct  banded together to form Licensed Adult Talent Agency Trade Association (LATATA) in 2009. All member agencies -- there are seven  including Spiegler Girls -- meet once a month  are licensed by the state and adhere to standard practices.
Meanwhile  San Dimas appeared in the 2011 Ryan Gosling crime drama Drive after  Spiegler  secured her an audition. And there always will be bit parts in shows like Entourage  roles as strippers and prostitutes in R-rated movies or other offers  like the one Akira recently got to appear in a G-Unit music video.
The business is lucrative for Akira  though she declines to say how much money she makes.  Spiegler  helped her land a deal with Interactive Life Forms  the makers of the Fleshlight sex toy.  The company  has sold tens of thousands of $67.96 interactive rubber devices that simulate Akira's vagina  mouth and anus. "I definitely love getting my Fleshlight check " she says. "These are the deals you work toward."
For porn agents  deciding which clients to take on is a task akin to a traditional film agent scouring Sundance or Cannes in search of a breakout star.  Spiegler  for example   receives at least 500 solicitations a year  often several a day. And because most agents refuse to work with women who use drugs or are believed to be unstable  there are prying questions. The queries don't just center on the aspiring stars' mental states -- agents want to know about performers' sexual boundaries. "I have to ask these girls  'Do you do anal?' " says  Spiegler . On an ordinary weeknight in November 2011  a young woman's mother called  Spiegler  from West Virginia to ask whether he would represent her daughter once she turned 18. "The mom wanted to get off to a head start " he recalls.  Spiegler  asked his standard questions about sex  prompting the mother to shout: "Tiffany  do you do anal? Do you have sex with girls?"  Spiegler  told the mother to ring  him  again when Tiffany turned 18.  He  never heard back from her.
 Spiegler 's frank  homespun style has made him a popular figure in L.A.'s adult entertainment community. But not every agent is like him. At the other end of the spectrum is Derek Hay  founder and owner of L.A. Direct Models  one of the industry's top agencies.
The World Modeling hegemony was broken by a spate of new agencies that formed in the early 2000s in an effort to capitalize on the rise of the Internet. (South did not respond to a request for comment.) Both Hay and  Spiegler  launched their firms in this era. However  the two agents  considered by many in the business to be tops in terms of clout  client rosters and success  couldn't be more different.
That both  Spiegler  and Hay are succeeding as porn agents says a lot about the business' roots and where it is headed.
 Spiegler  grew up in Los Angeles and attended Hollywood High before going to Cal State Northridge. After graduating with a degree in economics   he  had a lucrative run trading stocks.  He  first got a whiff of adult entertainment in the 1980s  when  he  worked as a production assistant on a few films. In the '90s   he  was approached by an acquaintance who asked to borrow money to finance porn movies. The films were poorly made  but  Spiegler   intrigued by the possibilities  pursued more production work and ultimately wound up producing 96 films in the mid-'90s.  He  stopped in 1999 -- around the time digital production saturated the market with amateur pornographers -- and transitioned to the representation business. That year   Spiegler  teamed up with a porn actor associate to start Topp Models but grew dissatisfied with  his  partner when  he  learned that this person also was performing in films. "I don't think agents should be doing scenes  working with the talent  on or off camera "  he  says. "It's just not good business."
In 2003   Spiegler  broke away to form  his  current firm. Spiegler Girls is known for representing just 25 women; performers such as Akira (Girls Kissing Girls 9)  San Dimas (Katwoman XXX) and Rose (Caught From Behind) are part of the current roster. In 2006  he signed Grey  the brunette star known for her ultra-hardcore performances and later for appearing on Entourage and in Steven Soderbergh's 2009 experimental drama The Girlfriend Experience.
On a late-summer afternoon in a dingy San Fernando Valley apartment  talent agent   [TGT] is having   [TGT]   out with a producer. Pacing the length of the living room that for the past nine years has doubled as his office  Spiegler  portly with thinning brown hair and a graying 5 o'clock shadow  sets out his demands: If his client  a top actress  is going to agree to a project  certain accommodations must be made. "You want her ready at 8  you should do the makeup " Spiegler barks as he stomps past a bookcase filled with framed photos of himself with various women. "If you want her later  she'll do her own makeup."
 Spiegler 's spat over the call time might seem familiar to agents at the CAAs and WMEs of Hollywood who often find themselves protecting their star clients from producer demands. But   [TGT] has a particular reason for being concerned about the 8 a.m. shoot:   [TGT]   would require  his  client to get up around 4:30 a.m. to receive an enema. Because the scene calls for the woman to perform anal sex.
Yes   Spiegler  54   represents porn stars -- and  he 's one of the biggest agents in Los Angeles' $1 billion adult entertainment industry. As the Ari Emanuel or Kevin Huvane of hardcore   he  handles such top performers as Skin Diamond  Chanel Preston and Asa Akira  the client for whom   [TGT] is arguing.
Ultimately  the production company  New Sensations  will agree to delay the shoot for Akira  27  who will do her own makeup and be paid about $2 000 for the scene. "That's the whole reason for us being here " says  Spiegler   whose boutique firm  Spiegler Girls  represents a small group of elite women and is known as one of the adult industry's top agencies. "We are the buffer -- so the girl doesn't look bad. We take the heat."
At the same time  shrinking porn profits and a talent supply-and-demand imbalance have caused performers' salaries to decline. Whatever the moral qualms Americans have (40 million to 50 million people in the U.S. regularly watch pornography on the Internet  according to studies) about the proliferation of movies with such titles as Orgasmic Oralists  Damn  She's a Lesbian and Dong of the Dead  the tough U.S. economy has led to an explosion in the number of people hoping to find work in porn -- some perhaps emboldened by the dream they too could become crossover stars like Sasha Grey (Entourage) and James Deen ( the forthcoming Lindsay Lohan starrer The Canyons) . While a decade ago the average female performer would make about $100 000 a year   Spiegler  says  she  now might make as little as $50 000 -- all while juggling responsibilities such as social-media outreach and personal appearances.
And where there were only two or three reputable adult agencies 10 years ago  now 14 agencies are licensed and bonded  though top shops L.A. Direct Models  101 Modeling and  Spiegler  Girls dominate the upper echelon of performers. None would discuss how much money they make  but observers say that top agents can pull down $250 000 a year from their 10 to 15 percent takes. "It's very competitive  and the well-known agencies do control most of the talent " says Dan Miller  executive managing editor of industry trade magazine XBIZ. "It's just like Hollywood in that regard."
But there is an actual skill and finesse to the real porn agents  even if negotiating deals is relatively straightforward. Unlike in Hollywood  most adult performers charge set rates  so the conversation often centers on the availability of an actor. Still  agents also help clients set up personal websites  arrange for transportation and even make sure performers are staying on top of their mandatory drug-testing regimens. As if to illustrate this point  during an interview   Spiegler  interrupts the conversation to answer  his  phone and discuss the scheduling of a blood test at Cutting Edge Testing in Sherman Oaks  a facility popular with adult entertainers.
According to  Spiegler   there is a relatively straightforward scale for performances: An in-demand actress is paid about $800 for a girl-girl scene  $1 000 for a guy-girl scene  $1 200 or more for anal sex and $4 000 or more for double penetration (guy-on-guy pornography has a separate pay scale; most agents in the mainstream straight porn world  including  Spiegler   do not represent gay men).  Spiegler  takes 10 to 15 percent  receiving the larger percentage if  he  handles transportation for the client. In an effort to ferret out rogue agents and discourage actors from working with them  several agencies  led by L.A. Direct  banded together to form Licensed Adult Talent Agency Trade Association (LATATA) in 2009. All member agencies -- there are seven  including Spiegler Girls -- meet once a month  are licensed by the state and adhere to standard practices.
Meanwhile  San Dimas appeared in the 2011 Ryan Gosling crime drama Drive after  Spiegler  secured her an audition. And there always will be bit parts in shows like Entourage  roles as strippers and prostitutes in R-rated movies or other offers  like the one Akira recently got to appear in a G-Unit music video.
The business is lucrative for Akira  though she declines to say how much money she makes.  Spiegler  helped her land a deal with Interactive Life Forms  the makers of the Fleshlight sex toy.  The company  has sold tens of thousands of $67.96 interactive rubber devices that simulate Akira's vagina  mouth and anus. "I definitely love getting my Fleshlight check " she says. "These are the deals you work toward."
For porn agents  deciding which clients to take on is a task akin to a traditional film agent scouring Sundance or Cannes in search of a breakout star.  Spiegler  for example   receives at least 500 solicitations a year  often several a day. And because most agents refuse to work with women who use drugs or are believed to be unstable  there are prying questions. The queries don't just center on the aspiring stars' mental states -- agents want to know about performers' sexual boundaries. "I have to ask these girls  'Do you do anal?' " says  Spiegler . On an ordinary weeknight in November 2011  a young woman's mother called  Spiegler  from West Virginia to ask whether he would represent her daughter once she turned 18. "The mom wanted to get off to a head start " he recalls.  Spiegler  asked his standard questions about sex  prompting the mother to shout: "Tiffany  do you do anal? Do you have sex with girls?"  Spiegler  told the mother to ring  him  again when Tiffany turned 18.  He  never heard back from her.
 Spiegler 's frank  homespun style has made him a popular figure in L.A.'s adult entertainment community. But not every agent is like him. At the other end of the spectrum is Derek Hay  founder and owner of L.A. Direct Models  one of the industry's top agencies.
The World Modeling hegemony was broken by a spate of new agencies that formed in the early 2000s in an effort to capitalize on the rise of the Internet. (South did not respond to a request for comment.) Both Hay and  Spiegler  launched their firms in this era. However  the two agents  considered by many in the business to be tops in terms of clout  client rosters and success  couldn't be more different.
That both  Spiegler  and Hay are succeeding as porn agents says a lot about the business' roots and where it is headed.
 Spiegler  grew up in Los Angeles and attended Hollywood High before going to Cal State Northridge. After graduating with a degree in economics   he  had a lucrative run trading stocks.  He  first got a whiff of adult entertainment in the 1980s  when  he  worked as a production assistant on a few films. In the '90s   he  was approached by an acquaintance who asked to borrow money to finance porn movies. The films were poorly made  but  Spiegler   intrigued by the possibilities  pursued more production work and ultimately wound up producing 96 films in the mid-'90s.  He  stopped in 1999 -- around the time digital production saturated the market with amateur pornographers -- and transitioned to the representation business. That year   Spiegler  teamed up with a porn actor associate to start Topp Models but grew dissatisfied with  his  partner when  he  learned that this person also was performing in films. "I don't think agents should be doing scenes  working with the talent  on or off camera "  he  says. "It's just not good business."
In 2003   Spiegler  broke away to form  his  current firm. Spiegler Girls is known for representing just 25 women; performers such as Akira (Girls Kissing Girls 9)  San Dimas (Katwoman XXX) and Rose (Caught From Behind) are part of the current roster. In 2006  he signed Grey  the brunette star known for her ultra-hardcore performances and later for appearing on Entourage and in Steven Soderbergh's 2009 experimental drama The Girlfriend Experience.