The Casting Couch

If you’ve ever wondered how certain actors and actresses got into a big time Hollywood picture, just remember two words: casting couch. Male or female, it doesn’t matter in hedonistic Hollywood. Those who don’t sufficiently impress the producer sometimes find themselves heading a bit north and a bit west to the Mecca of porn, otherwise known as the Sin Fernando Valley. They can break into pictures that way but their work invariably goes straight to DVD. You might think that any girl wandering into the dojo of Osada Steve gets a place on the card at Kinbaku Live Night at Studio SIX. You would be wrong. They get a tryout with no guarantees.

Sometimes they have to come back for a second screen test. And sometimes they’re just not the right fit. I don’t know all the criteria involved but suffice it to say that simply having a pretty face is not enough. One of these days I’ll have to ask Steve what he looks for in a model for the Saturday night extravaganzas.

In the meantime, Steve reports that he has a backlog of eager potential Studio SIX performers. This is due to the fact that he was on hiatus for a month and got behind on his breaking-in sessions. One such session took place recently with Mami-chan (photos below). The name sounds familiar but this is a different Mami-chan. After seeing her pictures, all I can say is I really hope she measures up to Steve’s strict standards. But like I said, there are no guarantees. We’ll just have to wait and see.

One model who has made the cut is Ren-chan who made her debut performance at Studio SIX recently. She also took part in a private shoot a few days ago. If you’re independently wealthy, as is Steve’s benefactor, you might be able to set one of these things up. Bring your high definition video camera, your state-of-the-art stills camera, and a pile of 10,000 yen notes. Then, set everything to Auto and see what happens. I’ve included a couple of photos of this event as well.

Neither Mami-chan nor Ren-chan will be at Kinbaku Live Night at Studio SIX this Saturday. The space has been reserved for a model I have neither seen nor heard about before. She goes by the name Cashew. I’m not sure if she actually uses this English name or if Steve just translated it. Japanese girls seem to like these kinds of names. Take, for example, pomegranate, who really goes by the name Zakuro. Zakuro sounds much cooler than pomegranate, I think.

If you’re in the neighborhood and thinking about stopping by Studio SIX on Saturday, I recommend you stop thinking about it and put it on your calendar. I’ve received some advance warning on this girl Cashew. Steve has some interesting things planned for her, to say the least.

A very interesting interview of Master K has been posted by Graydancer. Here’s the link.

This originated as a podcast and then they actually took the time to transcribe the interview so you can read it as well. This is a pretty long interview so I’m sure transcribing it wasn’t any fun. Master K is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to the history of kinbaku, shibari and hojojutsu. He has written a book on the subject of shibari which apparently is now out of print, however, he is coming out with a new book which should become available soon.

The interview touches on several topics. It’s especially interesting when Master K talks about the ubiquitousness of rope in Japanese culture, even describing it as a “tying culture.” He relates how rope comes into play even at temples in Japan. If you’re skeptical, take a look at this photo. The picture was taken at the Nanzo-in temple which can be reached by bus or taxi from the Kanamachi station on the JR Joban line. Here’s a link with more information and here’s another.

Along these lines, Osada Steve has provided me with a fascinating tale of a god, a judge and shibari in ancient Japan. However, I’ve gone on long enough here so I’m going to save that for an upcoming post.

You’re going to kick yourself if you miss this Saturday’s Kinbaku Live Night at Studio SIX. Just keep in mind, there are no couches in the dojo so you’ll be sitting on the floor with the rest of us.

Below are the photos as well as a final gallery (for now) of Aiko-chan.

KabukiJoe