Page 39 - AVN December 2016

Opposite page, Gage on the set of Crossing the Line with Logan Robbins, Scott Wilde and Leah Wilde. This page, Gage on the Lifeguard shoot with
Brian Mills and Chad Leigh.
Gage says he can’t pick favorites among his films (“I love ’em all, for the most part”), and notes that he has
been blessed to work with some of the most iconic men the industry has seen: “Richard Locke, Fred Halsted in
the olden days, David Anthony and Andrew Justice today. They are all real, clear-eyed, no-bullshit men.”
He also cites a handful of men as being the most important to his professional career.
“Sam Gage was key, of course. He produced the original trilogy and several other movies early on. And Jerry
Douglas has been a great sounding board—he knew everybody in the business and pointed me in the right
direction,” Gage says. “Then there was the late, great Tony Alizzi, who helped me make the first of the Joe Gage
Sex Files gonzo movies for his MSR company— the little business with the big tag line, Men Are Pigs. Erik Schut
at TLA was also an early supporter when I came back into the scrum. Soon I was brushing shoulders with Bruce
Cam, the visionary founder of Titan, where their big-dog executive Keith Webb still has my back.”
He’s excited for Stopover in Bonds Corner (“I have good feelings about it…shot some stuff with a drone for the
first time”), and notes he is “proud…extremely” when he hears people describe his work as influential, iconic
and important.
”I’ve only worked with Ray Dragon and Titan for the
last decade, and both take a clear-eyed, down-to-
earth approach that I appreciate, as well as ‘got-your-
back’ support and encouragement.
—Joe Gage
“Joe Gage helped to create the modern-day aesthetic that is gay porn. He created the first story-driven gay
porn ‘movies.’ Prior to Joe, gay porn was basically loop scenes. He created masculine and powerful characters
that were at ease with their sexuality, which was something we had not seen before in gay porn. Along with Jim
French, founder of Colt Studios, Joe Gage is one of the most influential gay porn directors in the world,” says
Webb.
“He’s a real movie director. He actually makes a movie that happens to include sex. His signature is building
sexual tension and being able to say a lot without saying a word. His build-up of sexual tension in a scene is a
hallmark that others can learn from.”
Adds Dragon: “He still gets excited about his work and has the best life stories—he has done so much in his
lifetime. One of my favorite memories is being invited to Joe’s New Year’s Eve party. It was still early in our
relationship, so we had not had much time to spend together personally. We met his wife, children and dogs
and so many of his friends. It was a beautiful evening with the most amazing home-cooked food and interesting
people. You could see this man has lived a rich life filled with loving people. It was certainly one of the nicest
New Year’s Eve events I have been to.”
Webb, for one, concurs on the food: “He makes amazing enchiladas and fish tacos!” He says his fingers are
crossed for more Titan output from Gage in 2017. In the meantime, Gage will focus on trying to capture the
essence of a scene (“Seeing and experiencing two characters responding to one another in an honest, hot way…
it is sometimes difficult to pull off”) as he continues to truck along at Dragon Media.
“I’m wrapping up the Joe Gage Sex Files series with entry number 24—a nice round number.
Then perhaps another bukkake, a new hospital project and a title that came out of the blue—Damn, Dad! We’ll
see…”
Thankfully, so will his legion of fans.
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