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Casey Calvert is an American
pornographic actress A pornographic film actor or actress, pornographic performer, adult entertainer, or porn star is a person who performs sex acts on video that is usually characterized as a pornographic film. Such videos tend to be made in a number of distinc ...
and
film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
. She has won several awards in the pornographic film industry, and has written about it in mainstream media publications. Calvert entered the adult media industry with early work as an art model and
fetish model A fetish model is a Model (person), model who models fetish clothing or accessories that augment their body in a Sexual fetishism, fetish-like manner or in fetishistic situations. Fetish models do not necessarily work exclusively in that form of ...
at age 21. She chose her
stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
after one of her college professors,
Clay Calvert Clay Calvert is an American legal scholar. He is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and professor emeritus, Brechner Eminent Scholar of Mass Communication Emeritus and former Director of the Marion B. Brechner First Am ...
. She began working in adult film in 2012. She received an
XRCO Award The XRCO Awards are given by the American X-Rated Critics Organization annually to people working in adult entertainment and it is the only adult industry awards show reserved exclusively for industry members. Once every calendar year, XRCO m ...
for her film work in 2015. This was followed by an
AVN Award The AVN Awards are List of movie awards, film awards sponsored and presented by the American trade magazine ''AVN (magazine), AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') annually to honor achievements in the global Sex industry, adult entertainment industry. ...
in 2017, and another XRCO Award in 2018. In 2015, Calvert began writing for publications including GameLink and ''
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
''. She was a contributor to the 2015 book ''Coming Out Like a Porn Star'', edited by
Jiz Lee Jiz Lee (born October 30, 1980) is an American pornographic performer, considered a major star of queer porn. Lee is an advocate for the ethical production and consumption of pornography and for the labor rights and sexual autonomy of adult en ...
. Calvert expanded her film career, from acting to directing and producing. She was an actor, writer, and casting director on the Pure Taboo production, ''The Starlet: A Casey Calvert Story''.
Erika Lust Erika Lust (born 1977) is a Swedish feminist pornographic film director, screenwriter and producer. Since the debut of her first indie erotic film '' The Good Girl'' in 2004, Lust has been cited as one of the current leading participants in the ...
hired Calvert to direct a feature series ''Primary''. By 2020, she devoted half her career to her work as a film director.


Early life and education

Calvert was raised
Conservative Jewish Conservative Judaism, also known as Masorti Judaism, is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish religious movement that regards the authority of Jewish law and tradition as emanating primarily from the assent of the people through the generations ...
and attended
synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...
every
Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; , , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the seven-day week, week—i.e., Friday prayer, Friday–Saturday. On this day, religious Jews ...
(Saturday) morning until her
Bat Mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age, they a ...
. Her family switched to a
Reform synagogue Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its ethical aspects to its ceremonial ones, and belief in a continuous rev ...
and began attending only on
Jewish holidays Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' (, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed by Jews throughout the Hebrew calendar.This article focuses on practices of mainstream Rabbinic Judaism. ...
. She spent her early life in
Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...
. Calvert attended the
University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications The College of Journalism and Communications (CJC) is an academic college of the University of Florida. The centerpiece of the journalism programs at UF is WUFT, which consists of both a WUFT (TV) Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Public televi ...
, graduating with a degree in telecommunications with minors in anthropology and zoology. She chose her
stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
in honor of Professor
Clay Calvert Clay Calvert is an American legal scholar. He is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and professor emeritus, Brechner Eminent Scholar of Mass Communication Emeritus and former Director of the Marion B. Brechner First Am ...
after taking his class on Mass Media Law as a sophomore. She said, "It felt right because really if I hadn't taken his class, I wouldn't be where I am right now," referring to learning during his class that pornography was not illegal as she had initially thought. Pornography and legal case law related to the film industry were a focus of the media class. She also studied the
First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents Federal government of the United States, Congress from making laws respecting an Establishment Clause, establishment of religion; prohibiting the Free Exercise Cla ...
and learned that pornography is a form of protected freedom of speech in the United States. Calvert said that her first name, "Casey", is derived from the initials of her celebrity crush's children—K. and C.—but has not specified who they are.


Career


Modeling and acting

Before appearing in adult films, Calvert worked as a nude model, doing fetish and
art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...
modelling in the spring of her
junior year A junior is a person in the third year at an educational institution in the US and some other countries, usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. I ...
of college, at 21. She learned about the fetish scene from contacts in Orlando, Florida. Calvert features in ''The Mammoth Book of Erotic Photography''. She modeled for '' Hustler's Taboo''. She entered the adult film industry on November 5, 2012, with her first scene for SexArt studio. Calvert has described her career as: "just like having any other job, except you're naked on the Internet". Calvert launched her website in January 2014. She received a nomination for an
XRCO Award The XRCO Awards are given by the American X-Rated Critics Organization annually to people working in adult entertainment and it is the only adult industry awards show reserved exclusively for industry members. Once every calendar year, XRCO m ...
(X-Rated Critics Association) for Best New Starlet in 2014, the first year she was eligible. The XRCO recognized Calvert with an Unsung Siren Award in 2015 recognizing her as, "the female star who consistently demonstrates excellence without due recognition from the media". Sociologist and XRCO member,
Chauntelle Tibbals Chauntelle Tibbals is a sociologist from the United States. Her scholarly focus includes studies in gender, sexualities, work and organizations, media and new media, popular culture, and qualitative research methods. Early life Tibbals was b ...
, commented on Calvert's selection praising her "performance work in a variety of genres" and "her considerable contributions to the adult industry". Calvert made fetish and BDSM part of her niche as an actress in adult films, appearing in a featured performance ''Jessica Drake's Guide to Wicked Sex: BDSM for Beginners'' directed by
Jessica Drake Jessica Drake is an American pornographic actress and sex educator. Career Drake spent two years as a contract performer for the studio Sin City until May 31, 2002, when her contract expired. She gained her first AVN Award in 2001, winning "Be ...
in 2015. Writing for ''Bustle'', Amanda Chatel observed, "Unlike adult performers of the past, Calvert is an educated woman who didn't stumble into porn, but headed there because that's what she wanted." Calvert worked with
Bobbi Starr Bobbi Starr (born 1983) is an American pornographic film actress. She won the AVN Award for Female Performer of the Year in 2012. Early life and education Born in Santa Clara, California and raised in an upper-middle-class family, Starr was h ...
on
BDSM BDSM is a variety of often Eroticism, erotic practices or Sexual roleplay, roleplaying involving Bondage (BDSM), bondage, Discipline (BDSM), discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given ...
film shoots and appreciated her respect for performers. Calvert contributed to
virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a Simulation, simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video gam ...
pornography, where her likeness was digitally scanned and uploaded to an avatar. Calvert gained early experience directing by creating custom videos. She took requests from clients for selectively made films to make a profit in the face of online piracy. Priced at up to $10,000 per request, Calvert saw this as a way to interact directly with her fans and create her own content. She found billing them difficult because of restrictions by payment processors related to adult content. Calvert has tried to pursue a mainstream acting and modeling career, but potential employers have refused to hire her because of her work in porn. She says she has been recognized even while auditioning under her legal name.


Writing and directing

The
USC School of Cinematic Arts The USC School of Cinematic Arts is an academic unit of the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles. With a history that dates to the first years of Sound film, talkies, the school descends from America's first ...
at the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
featured Calvert in 2015 on a panel discussion, "50 Shades of Erotica: The Blurring of the Line Between Hollywood and Adult Entertainment". In September 2015, GameLink hired Calvert to write a BDSM and fetish-themed column for their ''The Naked Truth'' blog, and to answer readers' questions on their website. She contributed to GameLink in 2016 as an expert on topics related to fetish and BDSM, and won their 2016 Porn Star Madness Competition against 16 other adult stars. Calvert wrote for GameLink once a month sharing her knowledge of fetish and BDSM gained from her experiences with readers. The company's vice president Jeff Dillon called Calvert a "great advocate for the BDSM/fetish lifestyle". She has written about pornography for ''
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'', '' Cosmpolitan'', ''
UPROXX Uproxx Studios (stylized as ''UPROXX'') is an American music, entertainment and popular culture website and content studio. It was founded in 2008 by Jarret Myer and Brian Brater. The website was acquired in 2014 by Woven Digital (which later ...
'', ''
Mandatory.com Mandatory (formerly CraveOnline Media) is a lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York City, Chicago and San Francisco. The site is owned by media company Evolve Media, LLC. Mandatory focuses its contents into the male ...
'', ''
Refinery 29 Refinery29 (R29) is an American multinational digital media and entertainment website focused on young women. It is owned by Sundial Media Group. History Justin Stefano, Philippe von Borries, Piera Gelardi, and Christene Barberich co-founded Refi ...
'', ''
CraveOnline Mandatory (formerly CraveOnline Media) is a lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York City, Chicago and San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial D ...
'' and ''
The Daily Beast ''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. Founded in 2008, the website is owned by IAC Inc. It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief ...
''. She contributed an essay in ''Coming Out Like a Porn Star'', edited by
Jiz Lee Jiz Lee (born October 30, 1980) is an American pornographic performer, considered a major star of queer porn. Lee is an advocate for the ethical production and consumption of pornography and for the labor rights and sexual autonomy of adult en ...
, about her early introduction to pornography and why she chose a career in the industry. ''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...
'' included her essay in a 2015 discussion of
Internet pornography Internet pornography or online pornography is any pornography that is accessible over the Internet; primarily via websites, FTP connections, peer-to-peer file sharing, or Usenet newsgroups. The greater accessibility of the World Wide Web from t ...
, "Can porn be good for us?", featuring Calvert with advertising consultant
Cindy Gallop Lucinda Lee Gallop (born 1 February 1960) is an English advertising consultant, founder and former chair of the US branch of advertising firm Bartle Bogle Hegarty, and founder of the IfWeRanTheWorld and MakeLoveNotPorn companies. According to t ...
and
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
journalism professor
Robert Jensen Robert William Jensen (born July 14, 1958) is a former professor of journalism from the University of Texas at Austin. From 1992 to 2018 he taught graduate and undergraduate courses in media law, ethics, and politics. He has focused much of his ...
. In January 2016, Calvert gave a
sex education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, safe sex, birth ...
seminar, "BDSM: From Reel to Real", as part of the
XBIZ XBIZ is an American publisher of business news and business information for the sex industry founded in 1998 and based in Los Angeles. In addition to its flagship "Xbiz.com" website, XBIZ publishes two monthly trade magazines, hosts winter and ...
events series. She taught the seminar to educate attendees about how BDSM and fetish scenes are filmed, and the film editing process. Calvert also diversified her career by directing. In 2019, Gamma Entertainment hired Calvert and her husband Eli Cross to direct films for the Adult Time platform. Her directorial debut with Adult Time was the series ''Maid for Each Other''. Calvert worked with distributor Adult Time on a Pure Taboo production as actor, writer, and casting director, titled, ''The Starlet: A Casey Calvert Story''. Calvert and Gamma Entertainment's head of production,
Bree Mills Bree Mills (born July 15, 1981) is an American adult film director, screenwriter and producer. Head of production company Gamma Films and Chief Creative Officer for Gamma Entertainment. Having begun her career in Adult Entertainment in 2009 with ...
, worked on the script. Calvert wrote her character as an
antihero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero or two words anti hero) or anti-heroine is a character in a narrative (in literature, film, TV, etc.) who may lack some conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism and morality. Al ...
, exploring how fame and money have the potential to impact an individual's view of ethics. Mills described Calvert as "incredibly versatile, creative and intelligent as a writer and performer", who brought "a wealth of experience in writing, directing and producing from her own independent adult and mainstream projects" to the project. Calvert directed actresses
Riley Reid Riley Reid (born July 9, 1991) is an American pornographic film actress. She has won over 50 awards, including the 2014 XBIZ Award for Female Performer of the Year and the AVN Award for Female Performer of the Year in 2016. She was inducted i ...
and Aidra Fox, in the 2019 Girlsway series, ''Roleplay With Me'', and actress
Lauren Phillips Lauren Phillips (born 1981) is a Welsh television actress from Bridgend, Wales. She is best known for playing the no-nonsense character, Kelly Evans, in the Welsh TV soap ''Pobol y Cwm''. She originally played the character between 2003 and 2 ...
in ''Schooled!''.
Erika Lust Erika Lust (born 1977) is a Swedish feminist pornographic film director, screenwriter and producer. Since the debut of her first indie erotic film '' The Good Girl'' in 2004, Lust has been cited as one of the current leading participants in the ...
hired Calvert to direct a feature series for LustCinema called ''Primary''. Calvert also wrote the script. Inspired by the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
series, '' Easy'', Calvert wrote a script of about 20–30 pages for each episode. The storyline is about four people living in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
and dealing with
open relationship An open relationship is an intimate relationship that is sexually or romantically non-monogamous. An open relationship generally indicates a relationship where there is a primary emotional and intimate relationship between partners, who agree to ...
s. Calvert shot ''Primary'' as a six-episode series. She was part of LustCinema's foray into production work in the United States. Calvert also led the casting process, taking her potential cast members through auditions. She directed actors including Penny Pax and
Derrick Pierce Derrick Pierce (born March 1, 1973) is an American pornographic actor, director, radio personality, and personal trainer. Pierce has received several adult industry awards, including the 2009 NightMoves Award for Best Male Performer and the 2016 ...
. For this production, Calvert decided to include women filmmakers from mainstream cinema on her crew who had never worked on a pornographic film set. She filmed ''Primary'' over an 11-day production schedule. Calvert found the most difficult part of the production process was selecting sites for
location shooting Location shooting is the shooting of a film or television production in a real-world setting rather than a sound stage or backlot. The location may be interior or exterior. When filmmaking professionals refer to shooting "on location", they are ...
. She appreciated the increased freedom she had transitioning from actress to director. Journalist Mackenzie Cummings-Grady wrote of her directorial work, "The story is rich in details, and the cinematography, courtesy of breakout director Casey Calvert, is lush and captivating. It's some of the most opulent pornography ever created." Calvert consulted with
Jordyn Woods Jordyn Woods (born September 23, 1997) is an American socialite. She is known for appearing in the reality television show ''Life of Kylie''. Early life Jordyn Woods was born in Los Angeles on September 23, 1997, to John Woods, a television soun ...
and advised her on how to support
sex work Sex work is "the exchange of sexual services, performances, or products for material compensation. It includes activities of direct physical contact between buyers and sellers as well as indirect sexual stimulation". Sex work only refers to volun ...
ers. She was featured at the 2020
AVN Adult Entertainment Expo The AVN Adult Entertainment Expo (AEE) is an adult entertainment convention and trade fair, trade show held each January in Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas, Nevada and is sponsored by AVN (magazine), ''AVN'' magazine. AEE is the largest pornography ...
on a panel, "Stepping Up to the Director's Seat", with women who had transitioned from actress to director including:
Joanna Angel Joanna Mostov (born 1980), professionally known as Joanna Angel, is an American pornographic film actress, director, and writer of pornographic film, adult films. She founded the website ''BurningAngel.com'' in April 2002 with her roommate Mitch ...
,
Kayden Kross Kayden Kross (born 1985) is an American pornographic actress and director. She is a member of the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. Early life Kross grew up in the foothills between Sacramento and Placerville in a strict, religious household. She h ...
, Lena Paul and Aiden Starr. By 2020, half her time was spent as a
film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
.


Personal life

Calvert identifies as a
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
. ''
i-D ''i-D'' is a British biannual magazine dedicated to fashion, music, art, film and youth culture. The magazine was launched in 1980 by Terry Jones, originally as a hand-stapled fanzine it has since evolved into a glossy publication. In 2023 the ...
'' magazine called her a "committed feminist", and observed, "for Casey, porn isn't about objectifying women, rempowering the male gaze ... It's about exercising her right to choose what she does with her body." Calvert told
Caitlin Stasey Caitlin Jean Stasey (born 1 May 1990) is an Australian actress and singer. She is known for her role as Rachel Kinski in ''Neighbours''. Previously she played Francesca Thomas in '' The Sleepover Club'', although her breakthrough film role cam ...
she wanted to debunk stereotypes about female sex workers, "What I can say is that not all sex workers are the stereotype people want to believe. Many of us are college educated, feminists, and absolutely love what we do." She explained her views on feminism to author Rich Moreland in the book, ''Pornography Feminism: As Powerful as She Wants to Be'', saying, "Feminism is all about the right to choice." She is married to industry director Eli Cross. They have been together since 2013; he also acts as her cinematographer. They got to know each other through film production work together. Her family is supportive of her career and Calvert maintains a good relationship with her mother and father. Before the start of her career in adult film, Calvert moved from Florida to Los Angeles, where she works and resides.


Filmmaker credits


Film

As director, writer, or producer


Television

As director, writer, or producer


Awards and nominations


See also

*
31st AVN Awards 31st AVN Awards was an event during which ''Adult Video News'' (''AVN'') presented its annual AVN Awards to honor the best pornographic movies and adult entertainment products of 2013. The ceremony was held January 18, 2014, at The Joint in ...
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32nd AVN Awards 32nd AVN Awards was an event during which Adult Video News (AVN) presented its annual AVN Awards to honor the best Pornographic film, pornographic movies and adult entertainment products of 2014 in the United States. The ceremony was held on Ja ...
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34th AVN Awards The 34th AVN Awards, presented by Adult Video News (AVN), honored the best Pornographic film, pornographic movies and adult entertainment products of between October 1, 2015, and September 30, 2016, and took place on January 21, 2017, at The Joi ...
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35th AVN Awards The 35th AVN Awards, presented by Adult Video News (AVN), honored the best pornographic movies and adult entertainment products of between October 1, 2016, and September 30, 2017, and took place on January 27, 2018 at The Joint in Hard Rock Hot ...
*
List of BDSM authors This is a list of notable authors of fiction and/or non-fiction works about BDSM. For other notable people associated with BDSM, see List of people associated with BDSM. * Solace Ames, American author of erotic fiction * Laura Antoniou, writing a ...
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List of pornographic film directors A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
*
List of pornographic performers by decade A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
*
List of University of Florida alumni This list of University of Florida alumni includes current students, former students, and graduates of the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Honorary degree recipients can be found on the List of University of Florida honorary degree ...


References


Further reading

* *


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Calvert, Casey Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers Actresses from Baltimore Actresses from Gainesville, Florida American female adult models American feminists American pornographic film actresses American pornographic film directors American pornographic film producers American women columnists American women non-fiction writers BDSM writers HuffPost writers and columnists Jewish American actresses Jewish American artists Jewish American non-fiction writers Jewish American film people Jewish women writers Pornographic film actors from Florida Pornographic film actors from Maryland Reform Jewish feminists University of Florida alumni Women pornographic film directors Women pornographic film producers