Platinum X Pictures has hired Red Light District head Dion Giarrusso to assist the company in setting up operations.
"Dion will be giving us advice on sales- he helped us hire (sales manager) Bonnie Kail- and he is also going to be training my father [Larry Schwarz] in how a porn company operates," Platinum X director/co-owner Jewel De'Nyle told AVN.com. De'Nyle co-owns the company with her husband (director Michael Stefano), and directors Manuel Ferrara, Steve Holmes and Brandon Iron.
"Dion is like family to Michael and I, he has a great reputation with all of the distributors, and he knows what he is doing. He has done so well with Red Light that we figured that we couldn't go wrong having his help," De'Nyle said.
"Everyone at Platinum X owns their own product and hiring Dion doesn't change that," she added..
"In this business, it's more than just buying a camera and shooting a video and thinking you are going to make it," Giarrusso said. "You have to have structure, you have to pay your taxes, have to have a bookkeeper, an accountant, people answering your phones
"You have to advertise and there are a lot of things that have to be done and none of these people have ever dealt with that kind of thing before. I am very close to Mike Stefano and Brandon Iron. I really wanted to bring Michael over to Red Light District but he wanted to own his own stuff so I said I would help them start their own company for a fee. I didn't want too much of a fee and I am not going to get paid until the company shows some profits."
"I am a big fan and friend of Michael and they are all good people. Jewel is a smart girl. I hope it works for these guys. I think they are going to make something better than a lot of the garbage that is out there," Giarrusso said.
On the subject of aiding a company that could potentially give his company some competition, Giarrusso said, "I have been in business for a little over a year and - not to toot my own horn, but - I don't think anyone else has done what I have done in a year with a gonzo company.
"I compare Red Light District with In-N-Out Burger - It's the best burger in town for the best price and I don't care how many hamburger stands are around In-N-Out Burger, In-N-Out is going to survive."
Platinum X Pictures' first release, Iron's I Love It Rough has an April 1 street date.
