Twenty years ago if you went into porn, you’d have to give up the idea that you could ever be taken seriously in mainstream cinema – at best you might be able to become a Traci Lords of Ron Jeremy type cult figure. However times have changed.
Over the last few years Frankie Valenti – under the suitably OTT name Johnny Hazzard – has become a big name in gay porn, winning numerous adult industry awards and legions of fans who love his sexual charms. However now he’s doing something rather different, as he’s taken a co-lead role in the gay-themed indie movie, Tiger Orange, which gets its world premiere tonight at LA’s Outfest.
The film sees Valenti playing Todd, one of a pair of gay brothers. Todd is brash and open about his sexuality, which causes friction with the closeted Chet when he returns to their home town following the death of their father.
We caught up with Frankie ahead of the premiere to talk about the movie and his transition from the adult to the indie film world.
How did you get involved with Tiger Orange?
They approached me and ask me if I’d like to do it.
Do you know what prompted them to approach you?
Mark (Strano – who plays Valenti’s brother and who co-wrote and produced the film) obviously knew who I was from previous engagements, and we also live in the same neighbourhood, so he just got to see me around in real life. And at the time I’d done a sizzle reel for a potential reality show, which didn’t go anywhere. But when he did his research about me he came across this sizzle reel, so he got to see me in a lot of different facets. He did enough stalking and realised it would be a good fit!
When you first read the script, was there anything that particularly attracted you to the project?
I think the amount of similarities it had to my life, it was kind of uncanny almost.
What sort of parallels did you see?
There was the issue with brothers. I mean my brother’s not gay, but the dynamic between my real and my on-screen brother were similar. And the fact that the father had died and he didn’t really know about me.
So you think you’re quite like Todd then?
You know Todd’s kind of fine on the surface and then underneath there’s longing for something, there’s pain there. Todd’s kind of wild and he’s very upfront about his sexuality, and I, being from the porn industry, am very upfront about my sexuality. Whether I want to or not, I think it’s just part of my personality, I just come across as being very swarthy and have this dark charm, so I think it was easy to relate to him.
It’s quite a challenging role, particularly as it’s a character who could easily come off a simply being obnoxious. Were you worried about being able to do it justice?
Yeah, of course, I think with every project you worry that you’re not going to be able to do it correctly or the way that people want you to do it, but I think I did it quite well. I took to it, I enjoyed it.
You’re pleased with the film then?
Yeah, absolutely!
Are you attending the Outfest screening?
Yes, I will, I’ll be at both the LA and New York premieres.
Are you nervous about how the audience will react?
Yes and no. I think it’s a natural feeling to be nervous, but how can they not like this film?
You’ve done other non-porn acting in the past, such as in The Lair. Is it something you’re hoping to do more of in the future?
Um, I don’t know, we’ll have to see how it’s received, what the response is. I do enjoy doing it. But I don’t know, we’ll have to see.
So you don’t have any grand plan to be the next Brad Pitt or anything?
Absolutely not, no.
https://vimeo.com/99100740
Was making Tiger Orange challenging – was it a very different process to what you’re used to?
Yeah, very much so. This was a very grassroots project, so our budget was non-existent. So four people were doing the jobs of 20. Things took a lot longer to set up and there was a saying that I learned after the movie was done, that in Hollywood they say ‘Hurry up and wait’, and that’s kind of how I felt. A shot would take an hour to set up and then be like 30 seconds to shoot. That’s just the way it goes.
You say there wasn’t much of a budget, but did you get to spend much time with Mark Strano beforehand, as obviously on-screen you need to have a connection to him? Or was it simply straight into the shooting?
No, no, not at all, we had met a few times before the project actually started. And then we had an opportunity to rehearse the parts together and we also got to just hang out and not worry about being in character. All those things combined lend themselves to a better performance.
There’s a stereotype that porn performers aren’t very good actors (in the traditional sense of the word). Do you think people will be surprised about what a good actor you are?
Yeah, without wanting to sound a little pompous and arrogant it, I think they will.
It is a good performance. There have been a few other gay porn stars who’ve done some mainstream roles, but it always comes across as a bit mannered and that they’re just there because they’ve done porn.
Yeah, I was thinking about that – who else I have, not to compete with, but who else is in this arena? I can’t think of anyone of off the top of my head who’s done anything worth watching.
Sean Paul Lockhart (aka Brent Corrigan), he’s done a couple of things. They weren’t bad, but they certainly weren’t great films. In terms of proper, legit indie cinema, I don’t think there’s anyone who’s done anything quite like this.
I might be the first!
Were you into drama when you were at school? Were you a drama geek?
Not at all, I couldn’t have been further from the drama club!
So how did you get from being Frankie Valenti to porn star Johnny Hazzard then?
Well, I was living in Boston at the time and I was a little bored with where my life was at. I knew a guy who was in the business, and I asked him if I could do it. I thought I’d just do one scene and that would be it. Cross it off the bucket list. Obviously that was not the case and it just took off.
And you’ve gone back to you birth name for this. Did you feel it was important to go back to do that to differentiate it from your porn work?
Yeah, it was a good opportunity to step out of one thing and into another.
What do you hope people will take away from the movie?
I hope people will think, ‘Wow, I haven’t seen a film with that kind of storyline’, I want them to think it was all done really well. Because there hasn’t been a movie that dealt with two gay brothers in a drama setting, and the production value on this movie is outstanding. So not only do I think it’ll be visually appealing, but I think the story is written well and it’s done well.
Do you think it’s difficult for people who are well known in porn to be able to stretch their wings beyond that?
I think my timing has been pretty good. I think if I’d done this before, it might not have been so easy or so well received. I think people in general, in culture and society, we’re all just relaxing a little bit, and that makes the life of someone like me a little bit easier. It’s not so taboo.
Do you think in some ways it might have helped that it was gay porn?
I’m not gonna lie, I do think the gay porn thing was a selling point. I think firstly it intrigues people, and they wanna see how bad I’m gonna do, or secondly they wanna see how well I’m gonna do. A lot of people have seen my prior work and have an interest in me, and have a genuine interest in what I’m bringing to the next venture.
I was wondering if you think social media has helped porn performers not only to sell themselves, but also to show they’re real people, with thoughts and feelings, who can do more than just have sex on camera?
Absolutely. It’s instrumental.
Do you enjoy that, to have that sort of interaction with your fans and people who know you from your on-screen work?
Enjoy? Yeah, I do. I think it’s a good opportunity to provide a personality to a fantasy, or this idea that people get. I’ll tell you what, because what they see on screen it’s always going to be something different to reality, no matter who they’re looking at.
Thank you, Frankie.
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