Tag Archive for: Photos

A lot of people ask me what a typical day on the TitanMen set is like, and many are surprised by what I tell them… so I thought it would be fun to take you through a typical shoot from start to finish. There’s actually a whole bunch of mundane stuff at the beginning, but stick with me… it gets a lot more interesting toward the end!

I’ve been on over 25 shoots, and most of them follow pretty much the same pattern. In the most general sense, the reality is that it’s like any other job. Since I fly out to California to film — I live in Boston — Titan either puts me up in a hotel (if we’re filming in Los Angeles) or I stay at the “Titan House” (if we’re in Palm Springs). And here are a couple pictures of that Titan House. Pretty sweet, huh? It’s almost like being on vacation! Titan VP Keith Webb cooks for us, too… and boy does he like to cook.

Everyone arrives on set at 9 am (although that’s sometimes pushed back a bit if we’re filming in a more remote location). While the crew gets set up, each actor fills out a “model release form” that gives Titan the right to use whatever images they take of us that day.

Next come the ID photos. A collection of United States laws — collectively called the 2257 Regulations because they’re in Chapter 12, Section 2257 of the U.S. Code — require all porn studios to keep photos of their performers’ IDs in order to ensure that everyone they work with is at least 18 years old. That’s why you see a link to something like “18 U.S.C. 2257 Record-Keeping Requirements Compliance Statement” at the bottom of all reputable U.S.-based porn sites. So Titan lead director Jasun Mark takes photos of us holding up our ID cards… and sometimes those photos can be kind of unflattering:

Jesse Jackman’s ID Photo

Dirk Caber’s ID Photo

Yikes.

Okay, now for the good stuff. Once the crew — usually 3 or 4 people, lead by Jasun — is ready, we move on to still photography. This is where the Jasun takes the pictures that are used on Titan’s website, in any printed material, and for the DVDs. This is actually a pretty challenging part of the day (which is why we tackle it early on). Think about it: to get a good photo, we have to stand up straight, tense every muscle in our bodies, exhale all the way to show off our abs better… and smile! And look relaxed! And keep a hard-on! Fortunately our fellow actors are on hand to help us with that last part.

We typically finish with photos by around 11:30 am. Because the equipment used for taking still photographs is very different from what’s used for video, the crew goes back to work, setting up lights and ladders and whatever else they’re going to need for filming. The actors get about an hour of downtime here, giving us a chance to grab a bite to eat or “clean out” (i.e. douche) if we’re bottoming. (The crew grabs food here and there as they work.) Then at around 12:30, we meet with Jasun to figure out how the scene is going to go, a process called “blocking.” We discuss positions, transitions, and who’s going to be where for the final “cum shot” sequence. It can be pretty challenging to figure out how we get from one position to another as smoothly as possible without making it look like some sort of bizarre ritual mating dance.

At around 1 pm, filming begins. It’s not quite as seamless a process as the final product would have you believe; there is, in fact, a pretty good amount of stopping and starting. We film each segment — typically some B-roll, kissing, oral, rimming, and then anal sex in 3 or 4 positions — for about 20 minutes each, stopping between each segment to reposition the cameras (typically two or three of them) and lights as needed. This also gives us actors a chance to hydrate. And as we’re getting into position, Jasun takes a few posed photos to use as the film’s official “action” promo pics.

Interesting side note: Until last year, Titan used to only create action pics by taking screen captures from the final video. The quality of a screen grab pales in comparison to a high-resolution photograph, though (see below), so about nine months ago we started taking posed photos too. Unfortunately, photography requires a separate set of equipment — lights, reflectors, and the like — than what’s used during filming, hence the need to take the photos when the cameras aren’t rolling. Incidentally, because we’re between positions, there’s no actual penetration in these shots (despite how it may sometimes appear). This also gives the bottom a much-needed break!

Here’s an example of the old-style screen capture on the left vs. the newer, sharper staged photo on the right:

Screen Capture

Staged Photograph

Finally, it’s time for cum shots! We plan this out carefully, because Jasun wants to capture the big moment from as many angles as possible. The crew also needs some sort of warning that the money shot is imminent so they can be focused on the right place; that’s why you hear a lot of actors yelling out “I’m gonna cum!” right before they shoot their load. (Yeah, I know a lot of guys who do this anyway in their personal lives, but on a porn set it serves an actual purpose.) The Titan guys know my body language well enough to understand exactly when my cum shot is imminent… that’s why I rarely shout those not-so-magic words.

That’s a wrap! We actors go get cleaned up while the crew breaks down the set. I always offer to help but they have the routine down to a science, so my help is rarely needed. Keith, who’s usually on set filming content for Titan’s awesome “making of” featurettes, hands us our checks. In most cases, we’re done by about 4 or 4:30 pm, and have the rest of the day to explore Los Angeles, or if we’re in Palm Springs, hang around the pool.

Hunter Marx, Dirk Caber, Max Sargent, Eric Nero, and Matthew Bosch

Eric Nero, Matthew Bosch, and Sonny Bono in downtown Palm Springs

Dirk Caber in Palm Springs

As you can see, a hell of a lot of work goes into filming a TitanMen scene, and I haven’t even touched on the editing process! Needless to say, the whole cast and crew is extremely proud of the finished product. (Which is why you should buy porn instead of pirating it, by the way… it makes sure that Titan and other major studios can keep producing such kick-ass content.) At the end of the day, we’re exhausted but happy, knowing that we’ve made a great scene with an amazing group of guys all working together… and we get to come back the next day and do it all over again! How cool is that??

Jesse Jackman in TitanMen’s ICONS (Behind the Scenes)

Taken by Dallas Steele

Dirk and Me

One final thought: If you want access to thousands of scenes for streaming and/or download, plus access to Keith’s exclusive “making of” featurette and other bonus content, you can join Titan here and get instant access for as little as 32 cents a day, and help us keep producing great content. Speaking of which… we have some really fun stuff in the pipeline through the end of the year, including a gorgeous new fetish film that’s reminiscent of the classic Fallen Angel series. And just wait until you see what else we’ve got planned for you guys!