Q&A with Jeremy Babcock: January 2026

Let’s goooo! Our inaugural “Q&A” post is here! Over 40 questions came through in the first couple of weeks we had this up. THANK YOU!  I’ve tried to burn through and answer as many as I can without this getting a mile long. I can talk about porn for hours, so I did my best to be brief, but there’s a lot more to say on most every topic. Please feel free to ask follow-up questions in the submissions form, and I’ll get around to them in upcoming posts!  

Really impressed with the variety and thoughtfulness in the questions. I hope y’all enjoy the peak behind the scenes, and hopefully learn a thing or two along the way. We’re here working hard for all of you, so it’s fun to bring you in to the process and thinking a bit.  

This is LONG, so grab a snack, sit back, and enjoy!

January ASGmax Q&A

• A lot of scenes are very relatable. How much of your real life experiences end up reflected in your writing? – AndersonguyR
  • The vast majority of our content currently produced is written by gay men, primarily myself and Micah at the moment. In my 7 years with this studio, I can say that stories that feel authentic and human have resonated the most with our audience – and I try to be mindful of that in everything we produce. Obviously, sometimes we go tongue in cheek or camp, but even then, there’s a core layer of an authentic fantasy (fucking the delivery guy, etc). 
    
    I’ve run the personal gamut of a conservative upbringing and slow coming out phase, through experimentation and slut phases, so I guess there’s a decent amount of content to draw from. Not really specific life moments, so much as being able to see the fantasy hidden in almost any encounter with a hot guy.  Whenever my job here is done, I really want to look back and feel like I made gay entertainment for a broad audience. More than that, I want to feel like some closeted gay boy in a rural state has an outlet to see healthy gay representation and stories. Something I wish I’d had many years ago.

• Do you consider making more videos including suits and solid black dress socks as if happened in the collaboration series with menatplay. – suits
  • Actually, no. One thing I learned on that project was how VERY specific their fan base is. Your question actually reinforces it. If it’s not EXACTLY how any given person likes it – in your case solid black socks – then it’s a failure. This comes into play even more when you factor in specific wardrobe for each scene that’s shot, and to do it all correctly is very hard on budgets.  
    
    We’re in the business of producing content that is more mainstream, and more evenly accessible to everyone. Diving down a niche rabbit hole like that is a bit of a trap for us.  
    
    All that said, I do love dressing our guys up, and we did really enjoy working with MENatPLAY, so I think it’s fair to say I’m hopeful you’ll see more of those 2 things.

• What editing techniques or guidelines are used to retain viewer attention during sex, such as the duration of close/medium/wide shots, changes in position, when to increase the sound level for vocalizations, and what kills momentum? – Ranger
  • The former editor in me LOVES this question! Lots to unpack, but here we go! In many ways, this is a Production question, it just depends on how we produce the content. If it’s a 2 camera shoot, the editor will have options for the cameras – in most cases a Wide and a Close Up. In that case it’ll often be up to the editor to decide how long we see a shot.  It’s human nature to get bored quickly and swap between cameras a little too often, but my request is generally to stay on shots a decent amount of time and rely on the close up camera about 60% of the time. Lately, we’re trying to shoot more of our sex with one camera, instead of two. This seems a little bit like a shortcut, but in many ways it’s the opposite. One camera means our director gets to decide how long the viewer watches any given position, and from what angles. This takes the guesswork out of the editors hands, and I have tended to prefer ONE shot that is nicely framed vs 2 shots that are staying out of each other’s way. (I can talk about edits for HOURS).   Final point on this is that my goal is for each shot to stay on screen long enough to be jerk-off-able (a term I use often). This may feel like a long time on some shots, but somebody somewhere LOVES that shot, and it’s for them. Each position should have 4-6 “looks” at the action, and each of those moments should live on screen long enough for the people who want that angle to enjoy it.
    
    We have quite a few edit “rules,” but generally speaking the goal is to immerse the viewer so you forget about the cameras. We will always try to edit out camera bumps, shaky camera, continuity issues between takes, etc. We will also make every effort to show transitions between positions and avoid crossfades between positions and shots. We’re working with human bodies and a lot of movement, so sometimes arms move, people end up in different positions, etc.
    
    With sound editing, the goal is generally to hear the dialogue clearly.  We put a decent amount of effort into the music selected to keep the scene flowing and give us the right “attitude” for a scene. 
    
    Momentum killers? Depends on who you ask. haha!  Some members would say story. Some members would say long, sustained shots during sex.  Both of those are intentional on our part. To be honest, there’s not much in the edit to kill momentum that they’re not already stuck with from the production.
    
• What is the best pose to film a really good rimming scene? – Anthony
  • Whatever allows the most light!  I often say “if we can’t see starfish, it’s not rimming,” which basically means, if it’s not open to the camera and well lit, what’s the point? Rimming is my favorite part of most scenes, so it’s a priority for me to nail it. You’ll also notice we aim to get mutual rimming in most content, even if the sex is strict top/bottom. Again, just my love of the act.

• The video Pissed with Miles and Nico (“Pissed”) was unexpected and glorious. Are more raunchy scenes from Deviants studio on the way? – nitefly
  • Jessica is more suited to speak on most things Disruptive, as she’s the producer there, but I’ll say I was eagerly awaiting the release of this one – no clue whether it would be embraced or rejected. Very happy to see it was mostly embraced. I’d like to think this opens the door to exploring some other niche kinks. It’s really fun when people are open to something they didn’t think they’d like.

• What is something people would be very surprised to learn is a standard part of any production? – AndersonguyR
  • This may be the most vanilla answer possible, but I think it’s the consent talk. It kind of stands against what the general public thinks of porn, but nobody is ever forced to do anything they’re not comfortable with while on our sets. Before cameras roll, we sit down with the entire crew and the models and everyone talks about what they do and do not want to do on camera. We run head to toe on areas that feel good or don’t feel good (a LOT of guys are ticklish). 
    
    In many cases we map out sex positions and sex acts based on this chat beforehand. The director isn’t there to force anyone to do anything. For Top, Bottom, Vers roles, we will usually have that set when we book the model, so those aren’t as likely to change on production day.
    
    
• How prevalent is AI in production? – AndersonguyR
  • I think 0%. Beyond the AI Roleplay feature on the site, none of the members area content is concepted, scripted, or produced with AI. I’m not sure which aspect you assumed would be, but happy to follow this up if you have a specific area you assumed was AI! I should say that sometimes the AI built into photoshop is used for the backgrounds in the design elements, but that’s more Post Production.
    
    
• Can we PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE get VR content?! There really aren’t that many gay VR sites out there, and it would be amazing to see an American gay VR studio.
  • Actually… we did shoot five VR scenes a while back!  Sadly, we got hit with some budget cuts shortly after and haven’t really found the right moment to squeeze them in. I’m ‘hoping’ to get them released this year, but have been worried about the backlash that might come along with it. Great time to chime in down below in the comments! Would y’all be interested in seeing some VR content?

• Will you be doing anything to remember Scott Finn’s passing? – John423
  • I’m super conflicted on this, honestly. I’m somebody who approaches death with quiet introspection, not outward displays of emotion or tributes (which often come across as self-serving to me, personally). Even giving quotes for a couple of press pieces felt really uncomfortable for me. As much as Scott was loved by myself and others, a porn site tribute feels like a shameless cash grab to me. 
    
    I think this is probably as good a place as any to offer up my small tribute. I was lucky enough to work alongside Scott for my entire first year, when he was both model and PA. His energy and laugh were infectious and he could brighten your day with just his goofy presence. He was an incredibly sweet guy, and loved to do things for other people. He loved to cook, and several times invited me over after a long shoot day to make a nice dinner for us. You’ll see in countless BTS vids from that year how fun and silly he was. We’d often shoot him eating his lunch off to the side while performers were mid-romp. My favorite Scott memory was when I would direct on super hot days. I loved to shoot crazy angles, which often included standing on an apple box holding a camera over the action, while sweat streamed down my face. He’d hold on to me to keep me from falling and wipe the sweat before it went in my eyes. That’s kind of who Scott was. I’d been talking to him recently trying to find a good spot to bring him back in for a shoot, but unfortunately we never got the chance. That missed opportunity to get to work with him again will always be sad for me. He’ll be missed.
    
    
• As someone who isn’t in the game at all: How does one get to direct a film? Where to apply? Where to pitch? Is it better to pitch a finished product and then trying to get more made with help further down the line? How is the payment per scene? How creative can one be, eg. how is the budget?   – @filmkonstrukteur
  • LOT to unpack here. I’ll give the high level answers, but feel free to ask more on specific pieces for future Q&A posts!
  • Directing: This is a tough one. So much of it is the right place at the right time.  A lot of the time people will come up through other crews and learn and eventually take that next step. Other times a director in other fields will offer their services and we’ll give them a shot.  Most of the time it’s somebody who has either been in the industry already or has an existing video team and wants to get into porn. It’s not really an application thing at all for us.
  • Payment per scene really varies. We usually work within a set budget and work with teams who can do the work within that budget.  
  • Frankly, the budgets are LOW. Porn is a very high cost, high risk endeavor. You have to sell a lot of memberships to pay off the cost of a scene, and production is just one aspect of the budget (models, locations, pre-production, post-production, marketing, hosting, etc)

• How do you cast talent? – Andy
  • Our casting team watches the socials a lot, and approaches some models directly, encouraging them to apply.  Besides that, most guys simply apply through the site or our direct link:   tinyurl.com/ASGmaxModel 

• I truly think that ASGMax has the best roster of talent in the biz. No other studio comes close imo. What is your secret sauce to finding and most importantly, retaining, great talent? There are some models on your site I’ve followed for several years now! 
  – hoboe623
  • I wish I knew! I guess the luckiest piece of the puzzle is that we’re a large, established studio, and it’s well-known that we produce more content than most other studios. That draws a lot of models to seek us out, initially. Second to that is that we’re ALWAYS looking, as mentioned in the previous answer.
  • Retention is a point of pride for us. We really do strive to provide an awesome experience for the models, and we usually have guys eager to return for work. Beyond that, I’m a huge data geek. I go out of my way to try to bring back the models our fan base wants to see. Truly, always tracking and listening.

• What’s a scene type or trope you’re really tired of – Rik
  • It’s funny how we’ll move away from tropes we’re sick of, and then the Member Fantasies will drag us back in!  For me, it’s the “straight guy” stories.  It’s never been a particular fantasy of mine, but it’s a porn consumer’s delight. ha

• How come we sometimes see a really popular model for say year or two and then all of a sudden poof it’s like they disappeared? How come that happens? – Chris
  • Same as any other job, really.  They find something else that interests them, a significant other takes issue with it, or the work quits flowing in.

• Will we ever see Jayden Marcos and his boyfriend on your screen in some capacity please? – Mike
  • Don’t hold your breath.  

• When you complete a shoot, do you ever wonder whether you have a winner or a loser?
  • Case in point. Bear with me. I just watched “Good Boy”. That has to be the most erotic video I’ve seen on ASG. It sizzles and gets progressively hotter and hotter. Noah and Andrew are not performing, they are sharing an intense, intimate moment with us. The camera follows them closely, but never close enough to intrude. Their smiles and facial expressions are real and passionate. The dark background provides atmosphere. The lighting is soft, providing a glow. The shadows are perfectly cast. To me, porn is more than just sex. It’s the whole package. I’m not interested in masturbating while I watch, I want to wowed, to gasp and let my imagination take me to places I’ve never been. Why is this scene so good? Presentation! With it this scene is a work of art. Without it, it’s just plain sex. 

• How do you account for the huge difference between scenes? Cast…crew..concept…or otherwise. – Anon
  • I truly appreciate the kind words on this one! My goal for the scene was to do everything you mention. As with anything, it was a bit of a risk, and I wasn’t sure I could pull it off. Glad that, at least for you, I did! 
    
    I trimmed off your alternate scene critique, as I don’t want to use this area for negative energy, but I can broadly say that porn is hard as hell to pull off eloquently. A perfect scene is a small miracle. Casting fit the concept, the models showed up ready to perform.  Holes and poles did what was needed that day. The variables are endless. Even for the Good Boy scene, there was a higher than usual number of chaos on set, and a lot of pivots from the original plan. Sometimes you get lucky and it still looks great. 
    
    For the two scenes you mention, it’s the same crew, so it’s more about just how the execution fell that day.  The same team can make a flop and a hit in back to back days. It’s a very uncontrolled environment, and you work with what you’re given that day. If a shoot is planned, a shoot will proceed. The show must go on – perfect or not. Also worth nothing that the scene you have critiqued is far outperforming the one you praised, so your feelings aren’t entirely matched with the broader audience.
    
    Also, critiquing content after the fact is very easy.  Grinding through a shoot day requires real skill.  We always have notes and feedback on scenes that are shot.  We generally know which ones fell a little flat, and we learn from them. It very rarely takes member comments to tell us what issues there are or what the complaints are going to be. Anyone who rips any creative work apart, should try making some, themselves.
    
    
• Hi Jeremy! I don’t have a question for you about the business but I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you and your colleagues for making ASGmax the absolute best gay site for customer engagement. Specifically, features like AI Roleplay, member fantasy scene requests, the ASG Audition series, and the active blog posts and comments allow fans to interact in a way that no other site offers. I’m sure all that engagement sometimes feels thankless, as you can’t please all of the people all of the time… and people like to complain! I appreciate the invitation for users to share their thoughts. None of the other content sites allow commenting, and none that I know of consistently ask for user ideas, input, and interaction the way that ASG does. – Nathan_95
  • Honestly. THANK YOU. Many, many years ago I created some online forums, and was involved in community engagement (to the point I was once quoted in a book on the subject!). Since I started with ASG, I have always wanted to incorporate that community dynamic for the site. We used to have a forum, but more recently it’s comments and now the blog. I love to interact, but that also means opening myself up to being the public punching bag – and insults are far more common than praise. I take too much of it personally, but I still think there’s value in the process of engagement. We’re here to keep people happy, and dammit I’m going to keep trying, even if it’s a foolish mission. Again, thank you, it’s appreciated by everyone behind the scenes. Positivity earns far more goodwill than the negative comments that are left.

• How does someone get into the industry? – AndyCane
  • For modeling you simply apply.  For production, you’ll usually need to have a background in video, and an existing freelance presence.  

• What were some of the worst interactions you’ve had with models? – Rik
  • Things have changed a LOT in the 7 years I’ve been around. One of the biggest changes is the number of “straight” guys. The culture when I started was a lot of guys on set proving to each other how straight they are to contrast with the eventual very not straight sex act that was soon to occur. Those days were a lot of awkward silences and peacocking. It was a little exhausting. 

• How do you decide whether a scene ends with a facial, breeding, etc? – Rik
  • Directors choice! Sometimes the models request it, sometimes it’s asked for in the script, too. I bet more than half of the scenes I’ve directed have ended with a facial… cause I think they’re awesome.  🙂

• Which scene are you most proud of, and which one do you wish would’ve turned out better? – Rik
  • Each and every one is special to me in some way.  I’m my own worst critic, so I often leave worried it’s going to be a miserable failure, picking apart every tiny thing I’d like to have done differently.  Luckily, most of them have done okay!  Last second casting changes REALLY change your plans, so those scenes are often the ones I wish I could have done with my original plan.  Very happy to chat about any specific scenes I’ve directed if you’re ever curious!
  • Most proud?  I love all the features, and both Goldenrod features were really fun to make.  But the ONE I am the most proud of, is “8 Failed Dates.”  This was entirely outside of my comfort zone to be vulnerable and sweet and aim for the heart.  I’m not a rom-com watcher, but somehow kind of love writing and directing them.

• Any stars you wish would come out of retirement? Do you ever reach out to any to see if they’re interested in coming back? – Rik
  • Funny, a lot of the guys I worked with back in 2019 are still on the site!  Justin M, Carter W, Roman T, etc.  Sadly, Scott was top of that list.  Besides him, I never got to meet Quentin Gaines, but only heard great things.  Brandon Anderson was one I barely got to work with, but wish I could have.  We stay in touch with a lot of the guys, but usually once they’re done, they’re done.

• Could we have a preview of what’s coming in 2026? – Jackofalltrades2
  • My pleasure! Coming very soon we have “Almost Real,” my first directed feature in a while, so I’m very excited.  Ryder Owens plays a synthetic sex robot that’s gifted to Nico Coopa to “test out.” It’s a very 80’s inspired comedy with some heart. Also starring Vincent Grey, Grant Ducati, Trevor Harris, and Derek Kage. Then coming this Summer, we just finished production on the first Disruptive feature written and directed by Micah and produced by me. Very excited to step in to try my hand and some Disruptive content later this upcoming year. We’re in talks for a few collaboration projects, but one smaller scale series we’re doing soon is with Peter Fever. A model cross-over collaboration that will air on both sites. On the model front, we’re really aiming to focus on returning favorites this year. We’re trimming down our exclusive roster to open up spaces for guys we love but don’t get to bring in as often. It’ll mean more returning favorites and a little more variety – which you can start to see in the content releasing Dec/Jan.  

If you didn’t see your questions answered this month, stay tuned! I’ll pick up the rest in upcoming posts.  Please use the submission form instead of the comment section, as I’ll be more inclined to see and respond to them in future posts. Or directly fill out the form below!

Please comment below to let me know what you think of this new series!