How can I become a JAV actor?
How can I work in the JAV industry?
What we get asked about most at ZENRA and what we often see posted online by foreign fans of JAV (outside of movie ID requests of course) is how foreigners can enter the industry. In other words, how a foreigner can appear in a JAV movie and have sex with a famous actress. Sometimes we hear cries of racism and that Japan has extreme xenophobia issues. Sometimes we hear about people who say they've emailed or reached out to studios on Twitter about acting and since they never heard back, the studio obviously wants nothing to do with non-Japanese. It's all bullocks. Allow me now to list what you, as a foreigner, need to have and need to be OK with if you wish to appear in JAV (some of the below also applies to those who also work in 'behind the camera' jobs):
Visa. Most larger JAV studios are as legal as they come. Sure, if you're simply appearing in a non-paid/low-paid role like a bukkake juice man, you may not need to supply your working papers, but when it comes to major screen time, if you don't have an appropriate work visa, you probably will have major issues finding serious work. There sadly is no 'porn actor' visa. A famous western star, for example, flying into Japan to shoot is probably coming over on a tourist visa and potentially skirting the law. Your two options if you're not a Japanese citizen are having PR (permanent residency aka a "green card") or being married to a Japanese national ("spouse visa") because both do not have any work-related restrictions.
Hygiene. On top of not having any STDs including having recent test results you bring to the shoot itself (on your own dime no less!), you should not be a slob. Yes, there are some JAV actors and regular background faces that may prove otherwise, but these are also guys who are OK with everything else I will cover in this editorial. You're foreign, you stand out. Make a good impression by looking and smelling your best. Also try to be physically fit even if you're just a wallflower in your first few gigs.
Communication. This may very well be the most important point. If you don't speak Japanese well, you probably will not find any studios willing to hire you. Just because you may have aced the N1 doesn't mean you can SPEAK the language. I've seen this in the past with people who study and study for a rather impractical test, but can't handle regular business exchanges. If in near flawless Japanese you are unable to pick up the phone and call a JAV studio and then at the interview present yourself well, you won't get hired. With sex on the table, the studio does not want any risk of miscommunication.
Have a portfolio. An idea courtesy of Covert Japan's own blog entry on this subject, having a portfolio of self-shot movies you bring to your first interview may help. This does not mean you should secretly film yourself having sex with your girlfriend or a delivery health worker. You still need permission of whomever you film (along with consent forms and her ID!). On top of speaking Japanese like a native, showing the studios that you're so gung-ho about appearing in JAV that you filmed your own to show off your abilities in various positions could be a plus. No studio will care how big your manhood is, but this is a unique way you can show that you at least know how to use it.
The pay. Don't go into being a JAV actor for hire thinking you will make bank. The top dogs in the industry may make $500USD or so for a day's work. That's good money, but not great money and it only happens after a gruelingly long day that may still leave you on the last train home with painful blue balls (we'll get to this in a bit). Go into JAV acting with the goal of having UNIQUE SEXUAL EXPERIENCES and nothing more. Set your bar there and you may have a great time. And by all means do NOT quit your day job!
Never saying no. This isn't about the issue of filming consent. That's another bag of worms. This is about you, a potential JAV actor, ever declining initial job offers. Don't ever, ever, ever decline your first offers. No matter how far it is from your apartment, no matter the pay, this is the time where you can show you're down to be a good actor. Eagerly say yes and get your ass to the set at least half an hour before everyone else. See if you can help out the assistant directors getting things ready. Help them again at 2AM when the shoot is done. Make a good impression!
Starting at the bottom. Your first gig as a JAV actor will not be having sex with famous A-rank actresses. My suggestion has always been to apply to be a juice man on a bukkake movie. Studios who shoot them often have open casting calls. The pay is usually non-existent (though you may get a bento!), but it is the easiest way to get on a set as a potential actor. Yes, your screen time may consist of you standing with a few other masturbating men who get 15 seconds of fame by walking up and cumming on the face of an actress, but it's a start! If you make a good impression, you may be asked back for more involved roles starting with foreplay (handjobs, blowjobs), and maybe eventually full-on intercourse.
Showing your face. While some JAV movies feature a 'hidden camera' theme where actors have their faces pixelated, this is done always due to the studio wanting it that way. Adding mosaic takes time and money and they aren't going to blur out one random guy's face because he doesn't want his family and friends finding out. If you wish to appear in JAV in the 21st century, expect your cover to blown eventually. We're in a WHEN situation now, not IF.
Not being able to get hard. Yes, there is a big difference—a mental wall, if you will—between being able to get hard when home alone in front of one’s computer or smartphone and doing the same surrounded by other people (including other men!). If one has never been in a threesome (MMF), then it’s impossible to tell whether this mental wall exists and if so, it would first need to be demolished. An actor who is unable to get hard even if he meets all other requirements is effectively useless.
Not being able to cum. The biggest travesty of the modern era of JAV is the over-reliance on (fake) creampies. I'm not at all happy with how so many studios push this in their movies. It totally screws with realism when every scene ends with nakadashi. If you're at the point where studios are OK with you having sex on camera, you still may not even be able to finish. You'd do your thing with the actress while the director gets all his positions and finally he'll have you pull out so fake cum can be squirted into the actress so you can fake your climax. There are no fluffers in JAV and no, the actress won't give you a 'service handjob' later. You will leave the set with blue balls unless a previous scene that day actually did finish with you getting off. That's the life of a JAV actor. Take it as you may.