Classic JAV Sets - Which Studio Did Them Best?

The devil is in the details. The sex is in the setting. Yes, the actress and her performance are very important too. But nobody wants to watch two people fuck in a solid white room. The set-up, the teasing, and the scenario - all of that culminates in the setting where the magic happens. This is why JAV studios take the effort to make realistic and aesthetically pleasing sets. 

Of course, each viewer's scenario of choice is a largely personal choice. But some settings just seem universal. Here are some of the common JAV settings and the studios who make them the best. 

The living room

What is it about these swanky living rooms that made many directors decide to shoot JAV debuts in them? One possible answer is that these light-colored, brightly-lit rooms represent the fresh and virginal status of the debutantes. It's like a metaphor of stepping into a new home and first seeing the plush and presentable sofa. The newbie actresses are first inaugurated in the living room before they get 'deeper' into the industry (the bedroom) and do more unusual stuff (the bathroom, the kitchen, etc), until they get crazy (the toilet) and break all taboos (outdoors). 

Be that as it may, not all studios put the same effort with regards to debuts, and it shows in the sets. S1, for instance, consistently delivers squeaky clean and gorgeous debuts. Naturally, they really make it a point to make their living room sets colorful and tasteful. They also make sure to match the set with the actress' projected personality. Check out the variety of pastel colors in Saika Kawakit's debut. 

Saika Kawakita's first debut, SSNI-190

Compare it to Miru Sakamichi's debut which has more earthy colors, matching her hair color and spunky predisposition. 

SOD also stands out in terms of living room sets. Every now and then, however, they mix it up and does their debut in some luxury resort, as they did with Karen Lauren in STARS-437. Check out our feature on Karen written by vienna, one of our writers. 

Suzu Honjo's debut, for instance, is very special. It was hyped for a long-time, and the video itself was really a slow burn before it showed Suzu-chan half-naked in a spacious room. The space they dedicated also shows their regard for the actress and her career. 

The classroom

Another classic, like the Japanese people's obsession with school uniforms. There is nothing more that speaks of youth more than a classroom. I personally remember that the first JAV video I have ever watched is also in a classroom. This setting has been a staple since the beginning of JAV and will most likely remain as such in the future. 

A classic Sora Aoi video

I Want To Be Sandwiched In Black Tights, DVDMS-797

Alice JAPAN has nice fully-equipped classroom sets, especially one that is featured in Teacher's Bukkake Class. The one with Tsukasa Aoi, DV-1593, is a total gem. Here, they use every corner of the set to feature Tsukasa-chan as she sucks the cum out of every living male in her sight. 

But my favorite classroom sets are those by Idea Pocket. Idea Pocket's sets are bright, colorful, cheery, and detailed. They also have completely furnished hallways and age-appropriate male actors. They also mix it up with realistic uniforms and lively music. Just check out Aino Kishi's "Let's Do It At School" video, IPTD-575.

The gang hideout

What's the best way to set up a captivity scenario? The writers have come up with many creative ideas, such as putting actresses inside boxes and fridges. But nothing beats the classic gang slavery situation. Just shoot in the office basement, clear out the rats and cockroaches, and you're good to go. 

Premium has a more mafia-den kind of a situation, with a mafia couch, random whiskey glasses, and boxes containing god knows what. 

PRTD-029 with Honoka Tsuji

MOODY's criminal nest also looks similar, this one coupled with tattered shirts and suspiciously clean-looking mattresses:

MIDV-070 with Nozomi Ishihara

S1 knows to pull it off as their sets are equipped with LED lights, some shiny toys, sexy lingerie, and freaking barrel (don't forget the barrels, guys, they're mafia as fuck). This one with Marin Hinata is great to watch - absolute confinement, masked freaks, lots of pissing, and great camera angles. It's a perfect mixture of gangland bareness and excess. 

The dungeon

Darkly-lit and menacing rooms, with cold metal contraptions and jail cells - there is no better way to set the vibe for some hardcore BDSM.

Many studios have their own version of the torture dungeon. Not many, however, give a lot of effort. It's just so easy to set-up. This is why studios like Glory Quest make it up with insane gadgets and gimmicks, such as in GVH-380 featuring Himari Kinoshita. 

MINIMUM is also quite also brutal despite its chosen niche. Check out the dungeon scene in MUM-064's with Rina Hatsume.

Another studio, Dogma, has made it bread with its stark confinement fetish videos. This one video titled "8 Hours of the The Maddest Torture Ever " starring Miyuki Arisaka, Kana Tsuruta, Rin Momose and others,  is particularly mindblowing. DDT-635 has everything from bondage, spanking, pain play, pissing, enemas, and other depravities. This is peak dungeon slavery for the hardcore psychos out there. 

These guys are straight-up welding steel on top of the actress, jeezus

We'll let you guess what's inside that barrel. 

Watch the fucking trailer. 

The onsen hot spring

The appeal of the onsen genre may be missed by non-Japanese audiences, but it certainly is one of the more popular JAV settings. After all, communal baths are a huge part of Japanese culture. Communal bathing is one of the few times wherein typically modest Japanese people get to be naked with others. It's just natural for people to have a dirty thought or two when in one. 

Mind you, onsen hot springs are typically quite strict. Some establishments even do not allow people with tattoos. Mixed-gender onsens called konyoku are also reportedly becoming less common. Needless to say, it would be scandalous to have a full-on orgy in a traditional Japanese bath, so the JAV companies lean on these fantasies to break societal taboos.

Melody Marks in YMDD-216

Many studios prefer to rent random onsen places. Natural High uses real (or at least, very real-looking) onsen sets. In NHDTB-558, we get to see an onsen bath with a mini gym, a rec room, an elegant looking hot spring, and an indoor bath. They also shot some sex action both during day and night, so we get to feel the whole vibe of the establishment. NHDTB-558 features Mei Satsuki as a slutty bitch who likes meeting lucky old men in the bath, it's worth the watch. 

Meanwhile, SOD has multiple sets dedicated to onsen, and most of them include the bath itself and the traditional Japanese rooms. They have tons of titles under the genre that are worth checking out. 

Hikari Aozara in STARS-380, "A Trip to the Naughty Hot Spring"

Prestige also has a popular onsen series shot in perfect POV. It's the typical "onsen trip with your girlfriend" kind of videos but they were shot beautifully in high resolution video. Plus the actresses are hella hot. This one features Meguri Minoshima, ABW-188.

The public transport

Trains are hot, right? Ask the Japanese. The physical contact with strangers, the seriousness of everybody who only want to get to their destinations, and the risk of running into a pervert. It has become a real societal issue among them, however. Fortunately, the Japanese adult industry is trying its best to let off some of their viewers' pent-up sexual energies. Guys, they are doing society a service. 

Sumire Kuramoto in DANDY-788

It's rare for studios to do their scenes on actual moving vehicles, much less a public train which is downright illegal. Most shoot brief scenes in a real public train and then cut to a studio replica of the train.  

TYD-003 fulfills your fantasy of being involved in a bus harem full of pretty girls. Pretty sure this is a real moving bus. 

But some studios push the limits by doing the most despicable acts on their innocent commuter-actresses. Early Natural High videos pulled it off with crammed trains full of smelly men, claustrophobic angles, and bonus shots where they drag the poor actress from the train into the hotel for another round. In one scene, we can see a shocked bystander look with concern as a gang of old men carry Ruka Kanae in school uniform in the middle of the night. NHDTA-665 is another gem of this genre. 

The office

The typical Japanese salary man has no time to bullshit around. He spends most of his waking hours grinding at his desk, drinking in his off time, and ogling at his co-workers. The stiff, cut-throat nature of the actual Japanese workplace is bound to create monsters who only finds a bit of respite in checking out their workmates' asses. There's no easier explanation for the popularity of the genre.

Kaho Imai in KTB-047

This is why some studios go out of their way to make their sets look as realistic as possible. Coupled with hot office lady outfits and pasty-faced co-workers, these office sets will remind you of the place you hate the most - except that your hot co-worker is interested in your cock, or your bossy lady superior is frustrated with her husband and is on the hunt for some sex-filled affair. 

Married Woman Secretary's Sweat, Kissing, Creampie Fucks In Her Boss's Office, Ai Yano in JUL-542

Attackers has some nice stories. ATID-421 featuring Akari Tsumugi sets up an employee and her boss trapped in the office. Their sets, though sparse, are quite realistic.

SOD, of course, likes to one-up things, so they tend shoot in a fake 'actual' office which is quite large and well-staffed. They even dedicated an entire series that features their 'real' office employees who decided to get a side gig as an actress.

Rin Miyazaki in SDJS-066

Idea Pocket also has some nice office sets. This one with Momo Sakura, IPX-868, is finely-paced. It has great lighting, fully furnished desks and conference rooms, a pantry, and some extra actors as coworkers. Momo-chan's acting in this video, however, seals the deal. 

The swimming pool

Ah, the swimming pool. Tight clothings, a wet environment, and half-naked girls. Who wouldn't think about getting some action in them? It's no wonder that JAV has seen countless pools since its inception. 

Swimmers learning about a new kind of swimming stroke in NHDT-676

A classic from the small studio, Big Mocal, D-100

A fairly typical pool set with a real swimmer of a goddess, Miyu Yanagi, in S1's SSNI-082

We have already written about JAV's most famous swimming pool, but there are many other pools in the industry that producers seem to love. 

For instance, the swimming pool in Prestige's Sports Cosplay series is less posh, but it does the job, and it has been featured in most of their pool-related releases. It's featured in ABP-916 with the crazy-hot Amiri Saito.  

We haven't seen a lot of great-looking swimming pools in the recent decade, and most opt for the typical swimming pools due to stricter rules about shooting adult films in public facilities. But SOD upped the ante in STARS-120 where they got a huge ass pool, a bubble machine, some party music, and tons of girls.  This pool is huge and has lots of multi-colored lights and whatnot to give it a bit of umph.

But SOD's bubble party would seem tame compared to NHDTB-155's straight-up orgy with Rena Aoi and her gang. The Night Pool Pervert goes on a rampage and fucks every girl in every corner of the resort, from the changing rooms to the jacuzzi. What I really like about this title are the underwater shots. We get to see sneaky fondling, underwater blowjobs, and poolside bukkakes. 

Natural High seems to have mastered the swimming pool genre, and they have generated countless titles under it. Here in NHDTA-724, they used another pool - an entire resort, in fact - to its limits. 

So, what do you think of our list? What are some of your favorite JAV sets? Share with us your thoughts and other ideas!