Porn star in Soderbergh film

NEW YORK – OF ALL the veteran actors with films at the Tribeca Film Festival, the length of Sasha Grey’s filmography could rival them all.

internet-sashagrey Though just 21, Grey has performed in more than 150 pornographic films. But at Tribeca, she stars in Steven Soderbergh’s ‘The Girlfriend Experience’ – which premiered with much anticipation at the festival Tuesday evening.

In it, Grey plays a US$2,000-an-hour (S$2,975) escort whose Manhattan customers are mostly Wall Street executives stressed by their falling fortunes.

‘The Girlfriend Experience’ is his second film in a six-movie deal with Mark Cuban’s cable station HDNet. On May 22, it will be released in limited theatres and air on HDNet.

Like his first such ‘day-and-date’ film, 2005′s ‘Bubble,’ Soderbergh cast mostly nonprofessional actors in similar situations as their characters in ‘The Girlfriend Experience.’ He encouraged improvisation and shot quickly last October.

Soderbergh became interested in Grey after reading about her in Los Angeles Magazine; he says the article showed how different she was from her industry colleagues. Such a casting decision is automatic publicity for a small film like ‘The Girlfriend Experience’ – a benefit Soderbergh doesn’t dispute.

‘I’m counting on it,’ he says. ‘This girl has a huge following. Most of whatever discussion that’s going on is totally based on her… She’s kind of a new breed. There hasn’t been anyone exactly like her in that business yet. She’s not the normal adult film star.’

Grey, who grew up in Northern California, became a porn star at 18. She also has modelled for American Apparel clothing and gotten into music, including singing for the reggae musician Lee ‘Scatch’ Perry.

In her porn films, Grey is known for pushing the boundaries of normal sexual acts. She maintains she’s always in control – a trait Soderbergh believes suits her character in ‘The Girlfriend Experience.’ There are no sex scenes in the film, but Soderbergh believes she has an unmistakable ease in sexual situations.

Grey is far from the first porn star to move into mainstream or indie cinema. Jenna Jameson became somewhat mainstream thanks to a best-selling autobiography and film roles. Traci Lords was a young porn star before forging a full career as a TV and film actress. — AP

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