What salary does a porn actress pull in?

Since the days of cellulose acetate film, it has been a question that has mystified many men: How much does a porn actress make? Thankfully, weekly tabloid Shukan Jitsuwa (Apr. 5) sets about providing an approximation by analyzing recent tweets by actress Anju Sana.

Perhaps with the tax deadline of March 15 in mind, the 23-year-old adult video (AV) actress, formerly known as Hina Kurumi until she debuted under her current handle in February of last year, utilized Twitter in late February and early March to convey her income and some of the downfalls in being a porn actress to her fans.

As Hina Kurumi, under which she starred in such AV features as “Max Girls 6” (she in “8”) and “School Days,” the actress picked up 6,381,500 yen between December 15, 2007 and July 15, 2009. Over a similar time period, from October 15, 2010 to February 15 of this year, she performed under her present name, whereby she deftly delivered the goods in a cage scene in “Deprived of dark desire: A woman and daughter in despair,” and her income nearly doubled to 11,853,000 yen.

Sana’s best month was August of last year, when she was the subject of uncensored filming and pulled in a whopping 3,120,000 yen. Of that accumulated 18,234,500 million yen, she estimates that 3,930,000 yen remains as savings.

After making her porn debut, Sana was forced to retire from making appearances on television variety programs, for which she made about one-quarter her current monthly wage in AV.

Of course, there are concessions, including frequent spats with her mother. Sana divulges that the mental state of the average AV actress is not exactly an example of stability. “For a few million yen at best, I get men aroused with my body,” she writes. “Putting those images onto a DVD for the purpose of sales, that’s my job. Women are turned into products in the the lowest, worst way. To be loved does not come first.”

Sana adds that general uneasiness and antagonism from family members are part of being an AV actress.

Shukan Jitsuwa wonders if it is all worth it, noting that her average salary per month (380,000 yen) over her four-year career is roughly equivalent to that of an office worker.

“In conclusion, working only for money won’t last long,” she says. “The money will always disappear. The important thing is is to find a desirable job.” (K.N.)

Source: “Gyara wo bokuro shita AV joyu no ‘shogai chingin,'” Shukan Jitsuwa (April 5)