Industry News

Will Ryder on Porn Parties & Promo

Will Ryder Says:
The main reason that there is a lack of enthusiasm to attend industry events and specifically porn parties is because the adult movie industry is dying. That combined with the fact that a bunch of so called promoters came out of the woodwork to host shitty parties over the past few years totally watered down the landscape where most of the events sucked and nobody wanted to go out anymore.

There was a recent time however that my other company All Media Play threw some of the biggest porn industry bashes ever seen like the time we rented that converted aircraft hanger in Burbank and packed in 1000 people and offered free drinks all night long. We promoted movies like Britney Rears, Dark Angels and Not the Bradys XXX through our parties and had a lot of fun doing it. We used to also team up with Bo Kenney and SexZ Pictures quite a bit and host some truly crazy bashes to promote movies like Corruption and Upload but with the rise of free porn and the diminished return on investment for most in the porn business those fun days are gone.

A few years ago, magazines actually covered the events and published stories and photos which helped set a product apart from the masses and sell units but even many of the magazines are going out of business now or merging. Promotion was the main reason to throw an event (BTW- what were some of the biggest porn movies of those past years? Answer: Britney Rears, Not the Bradys XXX, Corruption and Upload) but somewhere along the way it all got over-saturated with promo parties getting watered down and thrown into the discount bin. It’s sad too because I used to have a lot of fun at those big events and our movie sales results were great. The industry has totally changed in the past year or so and sadly enough it will be just about gone in 2 years if my crystal ball is correct.

I still venture out from time to time to various events like the XPeeps/AEBN Porno Dan bashes (because he is a maniac) and other events when I know some friends will be there. I also have to mention that the art of self-promotion by porn actresses is almost lost these days. I guess I really can’t blame them when there is not much work anymore to get for a new girl in the industry just coming in. She doesn’t really have the incentive to get out on the scene and network like she did a few short years ago when meeting the right person could result in five jobs. Old Hollywood used to be a much more exciting place too but times are a changing in the porn business and although many of you might put down some of the people on the red carpet at today’s events, I truly believe that to sell more units than your competitor you have to have a superior product and get people talking about it. Plus you never know who that person taking that photo is or will become. When I first started in this business as a publicist back in 2001, there was a small magazine and I had to convince some company owners to keep him on the DVD screener list even though that small publication only covered very little of what was ever sent. That editor/reporter really appreciated that I kept him on the list and a couple of years later he was named editor/publisher of AVN Magazine (has since departed) and his daughter went to work for me in my office. Moral of the story? You never know who that asshole is on the red carpet so treat him fairly. Lastly, as a marketer of my own X-Play product, I really appreciate all of the “small guys” that write blogs, post photos and keep our product in the limelight. Not everybody is Dan Davis of Genesis, Larry Flynt of Hustler Magazine or one of the other “big” publishers. That is why we are throwing a Halloween Bash in Hollywood that hopefully will be like a blast from the past and a return to the good old days when porn was fun. Keep Halloween night open because we are promoting Not Married with Children XXX, Not the Bradys XXX #3, Not Monday Night Football XXX and our upcoming feature comedy Flight Attendants at a bash that should be packed with chicks and something to remember.

You Might Also Like