When Private North America CEO Richard Arnold left his position to pursue other opportunities shortly after signing Ninnworx, AVN Hall of Famer Michael Ninn's production company, to a four-project deal, Ninn turned the tables on Arnold pursued him with a business plan of his own. Ninn had finally found the partner he had been looking for to set up a distribution company.rnrn
"I've made good money at it (adult production) - but all the money to be made in this business is in distribution. Not to own your pictures is a shame," Ninn told AVN.com. "My partners in Pure Play are incredible about dotting their 'I's and crossing their 'T's, which is important because I'm not. I'm a savant in bookkeeping. I know what I do well. The things that I don't do well are taking care of business details. I'm not a business man." rnrn
Arnold and other partners in Pure Play Media group, which is set up in a system similar to United Artists in days of old, each production company controlling the creation of content, with Pure Play providing the business savvy and sales force. rnrn
"I'll never be a Russ Hampshire or a Stevie at Vivid. Without the support of my partners in Pure Play I'd be broke. That's where Ninnworx was headed. Even though we did some great things at Private. I overspent on everything I did for Private. I didn't go over budget, but I went right to the hilt. Every penny was spent. There was not a lot of money put in pocket. It was definitely a labor of love and a great show to do. It felt good to get back in the saddle again and make a big picture again. I pushed the limits," Ninn admitted.rnrn
No longer burdened by the tedious matter of office operations, Ninn is excited by the opportunity his new venture provides him to shape the future of the adult industry. rnrn
"I want to develop Ninnworx into a place where young directors with a good eye, good chops, and talent come first. They're first stop will be us. If Ninnworx was around when Michael Raven came from Texas, the first place he would have stopped would have been us. Vivid develops their contract girls - I want to have a company that develops their directors," Ninn said.rnrn
"I want this to be a place of passion. I don't want it to turn into a mill. I don't want to even name companies but everyone in the business knows what and who the mills are. And the minute we become a mill is when I want to stop what I'm doing. If there's no passion in what I'm doing I don't want to do it - and if the director's don't have passion I don't want them working for us," said Ninn.rnrn
The first two videos released by Ninnworx are prime examples of the type of production company Ninn is trying to create: one that nurtures new directors. Fetish, the directorial debut of acclaimed photographer Laurent Sky, and Lost Angels, by newcomer Ethan Kane, are representative of Ninnworx not only because they were directed by fresh directors, but also because they were both shot in a style that Ninn refers to as "artcore", but may be better served by being referred to as "eroticore."rnrn
Ninn defines this style as, "Better lighting, more time spent on hair and makeup, and vision. It has a more artsy feel. It's a passionate form of porn. It's beautiful imagery and hot sex and just plain different."rnrn
Porn purists may object to the stylized lighting, shots, and editing done in both works - but that's nothing new to Ninn. "The big gaping asshole shots just don't work for me. There are people who claim that we're all frustrated, that directors like Andrew Blake and myself are just frustrated filmmakers, but that's not true. I love the freedom that adult gives me - I'm happy with what I do. We fit our niche - we take care of the people that want to see pictures like this. A lot of the people who appreciate my stuff are not the most vocal people in the industry, but there's a market for this. And it's not a small market. The reason Shock and Latex and pictures like that did 100,000 pieces is because they had a wide market appeal. As out as there as Fetish is, there's still a wide market for it. rnrn
Ninn's willingness to deviate from the proverbial beaten path in the past has had profound effects in the industry. One of Ninn's "deviations" was the invention of the "bj eyes" - footage where the fourth wall is broken, and the female performer looks directly into the camera. That technique is now standard fare for adult entertainment.rnrn
"When I first did that for a picture I did for Western Visuals called Black Orchid, the owner of the company through the tape at me and asked 'Why are the people looking at the camera? You can't do that'. I was sitting directing that picture and the girl look up for instructions from the camera, and it tweaked me so much I decided I wanted every blowjob shot that way. I want to break the wall; I want that wall to be broken between the viewer and the girl. I want the girl to tell the viewer that it is okay to be doing whatever they are doing on the other side of the screen. I want them to encourage that. There's no mystery about what is going on here. There's no mystery about what we are doing. I'm here to juice up their dreams, I'm here to turn them on, sex them up. Whether it's a couple, a guy by himself, or a girl by herself- we're here to juice up their dreams."rnrn
According to Ninn, his producing method is rather hands-off, allowing the directors to create their vision. However, his handprints are all over Ninnworx titles - the entire production crew are the same people that Ninn utilizes for titles he directs himself. Ninn points out that using the same crew helps maintain quality and lower costs.rnrn
"It all starts with the lighting and camera crew. When my crew comes on set there's not a lot of mediocrity going on. This is not just another shoot - people aren't just putting in their time and coming home. There's some enthusiasm about what we do and it shows in the end product," claimed Ninn.rnrn
Another Ninn hallmark that appears in Ninnworx titles is the soundtrack. Loren Alexander, who's score for the Private Media Group released Ninnwork title Perfect received an AVN Award nomination, regularly produces scores for Ninnworx that replace the sounds made the performers. rnrn
"Music is important. Music is as sexy as the whole thing. Music, dance, and sex - that's all one big blur. I try to make the music as sexy as I can to fit the texture of the scene," said Ninn.rnrn
"I'm getting better at this. I did it originally because audio was so bad. What most people don't realize is that when you see a mainstream movie is that every bit of dialogue has been replaced. They go into a small room and lip sync the dialogue. Street sounds are all taken out and redone. We don't have the time to do that. I started using the soundtrack to cover that up," Ninn confessed. rnrn
There's more to the soundtrack than most people know. Vocals from the performers are utilized in the creation of the score to create an aural erotic stimulation. rnrn
"Women have a natural pitch to their moaning and groaning. I actually take the sex scene and pitch it to the music. So if the woman has a natural pitch of an A flat, we'll pitch it up a half step to A so its in the key of the music. The moans and groans are all pitched to music. With DVDs we know let people listen to the tracks clean. We spend a meticulous amount of time on the music along with everything else. There's a lot of love and care. And the minute that that stops is the minute I don't want to do porn anymore." rnrn
Although he intends to produce 24 titles this year, Ninn won't step behind the camera himself until late February or March, when he'll beginning working on his last title not to be distributed by Pure Play Media. It's an as yet untitled project that he's working on with ClubJenna that will star Jenna Jameson, whom Ninn has never worked with, even though her boyfriend and business partner Jay Grdina is a long time friend.rnrn
"We've been friends for fifteen, sixteen years. Before I got with Pure Play, one of my commitments was to do a picture for ClubJenna. I already have a script for it, and before we both get to old I'd like to do one with her," said Ninn.rnrn
Not that fans will have to wait that long until his next release: Ninn's deal with Private Media Group, which called for him to produce two titles and direct two titles is now complete with the turning in of Acid Dreams, a Ninn directed feature. Acid Dreams, featuring Nikita Denise, Shay Sights, Heather Tristany, Michelle Michaels-Mercedes, and Ninnworx contract-performer Wanda Curtis will be released early in 2003.rnrn
"I think in five years I'll be ready to retire - but not completely. I think I'll make porn until the day I die. But not at this pace. Not at the pace I'm at right now," said Ninn.
