Babylon
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 5, 2009
- 1,332
- 82
Hundreds of youths try to escape poverty by going into Africa's porn industry. Few realize how difficult and unsafe it can be.
I love all that goes with eroticism, sex and seduction," says Fela, who lives in Lomé, the capital of neighboring Togo. "It is like second nature. My friends circulate amateur sex videos of me free of charge, and I hope that one day, someone will pay attention to me and call me for a shoot."
Hers may not be the best approach. "I spoke several times by email with so-called directors who had seen my ads," says André. "In the end, they asked for pictures of my penis. I sent them and never heard from them again ... "
Diana, 28, has managed to avoid such tricks. Just like Fela, she is a single mother struggling to make a decent living for her 11-year-old child. Just like Fela, she wants to work in pornography "for pleasure and money." Still, the Cameroonian, living in Bata, the second-largest city in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea, is determined to wait for a better opportunity -- and it may not be in Africa. "I remember an Ivorian film shot in the bush," she says. "Everything looked dirty. There were flies everywhere ... Western movies look classier to me."
Koh Bela, who is the author of Mon Combat Contre La Prostitution ("My Battle Against Prostitution"), confirms that observation. She has reviewed hundreds of African sex films, some of which are sold in Château Rouge, a neighborhood of Paris with a strong African presence. "The rare movies with African actors that have good production values have been directed by European producers -- among others, French, Dutch and German," she says. "After having flooded the Internet, these movies are finding a place in the DVD market, while African-produced movies are usually so poor at every level that big producers will never distribute them."
This may explain why some youths attend informal pornographic classes. "There are initiation circles in Douala and Abidjan," Koh Bela reveals. "In dedicated apartments, young women watch movies to learn every kind of caress, sexual positions and Western-style pornographic techniques. The 'teachers' do not hesitate to show the girls how to do things right. ... They also test men's and women's abilities."
Is this the best way to enter the sector? Not necessarily, according to Philippe Di Folco. "The amateur quality is what buyers want," he says. "Today, consumers value the effect of realism because it is like they are voyeurs of private scenes, present in the bedroom or in the spot where the sexual intercourse is taking place."
Meanwhile, André relies on the visual experience he got perusing movies and magazines. He also counts on luck. When he shares his aspirations with his male friends who also want to become porn actors, they find hope in their fellow Africans who have had the opportunity to perform in adult movies in France.
I love all that goes with eroticism, sex and seduction," says Fela, who lives in Lomé, the capital of neighboring Togo. "It is like second nature. My friends circulate amateur sex videos of me free of charge, and I hope that one day, someone will pay attention to me and call me for a shoot."
Hers may not be the best approach. "I spoke several times by email with so-called directors who had seen my ads," says André. "In the end, they asked for pictures of my penis. I sent them and never heard from them again ... "
Diana, 28, has managed to avoid such tricks. Just like Fela, she is a single mother struggling to make a decent living for her 11-year-old child. Just like Fela, she wants to work in pornography "for pleasure and money." Still, the Cameroonian, living in Bata, the second-largest city in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea, is determined to wait for a better opportunity -- and it may not be in Africa. "I remember an Ivorian film shot in the bush," she says. "Everything looked dirty. There were flies everywhere ... Western movies look classier to me."
Koh Bela, who is the author of Mon Combat Contre La Prostitution ("My Battle Against Prostitution"), confirms that observation. She has reviewed hundreds of African sex films, some of which are sold in Château Rouge, a neighborhood of Paris with a strong African presence. "The rare movies with African actors that have good production values have been directed by European producers -- among others, French, Dutch and German," she says. "After having flooded the Internet, these movies are finding a place in the DVD market, while African-produced movies are usually so poor at every level that big producers will never distribute them."
This may explain why some youths attend informal pornographic classes. "There are initiation circles in Douala and Abidjan," Koh Bela reveals. "In dedicated apartments, young women watch movies to learn every kind of caress, sexual positions and Western-style pornographic techniques. The 'teachers' do not hesitate to show the girls how to do things right. ... They also test men's and women's abilities."
Is this the best way to enter the sector? Not necessarily, according to Philippe Di Folco. "The amateur quality is what buyers want," he says. "Today, consumers value the effect of realism because it is like they are voyeurs of private scenes, present in the bedroom or in the spot where the sexual intercourse is taking place."
Meanwhile, André relies on the visual experience he got perusing movies and magazines. He also counts on luck. When he shares his aspirations with his male friends who also want to become porn actors, they find hope in their fellow Africans who have had the opportunity to perform in adult movies in France.
