One of the more illuminating of the many articles on vr porn that have appeared over the last few weeks, this ‘thenextweb‘ piece talks the company producing BadoinkVR‘s videos as to the extensive challenges of filming, as well as acting, in VR.

But filming in VR presents a number of challenges, both for the performers and directors.

That means for performers like Isiah Maxwell, they spend more time looking at ceilings than they do at the person they’re with. “I have to subtract myself from the equation because I’m not supposed to be present. I have to keep my focus on staying out the picture versus focusing on the girl,” Maxwell tells me.

“One of the biggest challenges is directing the models to work in a manner they’re not used to,” explains Dinorah Hernandez, BaDoink’s VR content manager.

“It’s a completely different way of shooting and it could be a little challenging for everyone involved. On the one hand, the male model’s movement is very restricted. He has a camera blocking his view. He needs to stay as quiet as possible and he has to remain aroused throughout the entire process.”

The women on the other hand, have to do the vast majority of the work.

“She has to take complete control of the scene, make a lot of eye contact with the camera, hit all of her cues and mind the framing along the X, Y and Z axis. If the framing is wrong, visual distortion can occur and she can end up completely cropped out of the picture. We’ve been able to correct these issues with proper casting and plenty of rehearsal.”

I asked Christie Stevens, the star of the video I watched about her experiences of shooting in VR.

“It’s a lot more limited as far as what positions we can do,” she explains.

“I also have to change how I pose and move because the angles look different through a VR lens. It also takes a lot more energy on my end because the male talent can’t move much or talk at all, so all the dirty talk is up to me. Normally there’s a flow between partners but with VR the majority of the performance is put on me, or the female performer. I also have to train myself exactly where to look into, at, or above the camera.”

Because of these restrictions, shoots often take twice as long as regular scenes to perform, which can put a strain on the performers.

“VR is definitely more difficult physically,” explains Stevens. “And the constant eye contact with the camera can be straining. I did a boy/girl/girl VR scene recently though and it was easier with another female performer there to share the work. When one of us got tired we’d just switch out.”

There’s also the increased cost. “A normal scene costs $3,000. A VR scene is $6,000 – but all of that extra cost is post-production,” says Gilder.

“In traditional porn filmmaking, one or more cameras move about the scene. This allows for a variety of options and camera angles in the editing room, as opposed to VR, where mistakes are slightly more obvious and can undermine the consumer’s viewing experience,” says Hernandez.

To keep the viewer engaged, there’s an entire production suite tucked away out of view.