Pornographic film in the context of Public decency

The sex industry, also called the sex trade, consists of businesses that either directly or indirectly provide sex-related products and services or adult entertainment. The industry includes activities involving direct provision of sex-related services, such as prostitution, strip clubs, host and hostess clubs, and sex-related pastimes, such as pornography, sex-oriented men's magazines, women's magazines, sex movies, sex toys, and fetish or BDSM paraphernalia. Sex channels for television and pre-paid sex movies for video on demand, are part of the sex industry, as are adult movie theaters, sex shops, peep shows, and strip clubs. The sex industry employs millions of people worldwide, mainly women. These range from the sex worker, also called adult service provider (ASP), who provides sexual services, to a multitude of support personnel.

In the film industry, unsimulated sex is the presentation of sex scenes in which actors genuinely perform the depicted sex acts, rather than simulating them. Although it is ubiquitous in films intended as pornographic, it is very uncommon in other films. At one time in the United States, such scenes were restricted by law and self-imposed industry standards such as the Motion Picture Production Code. Films showing explicit sexual activity were confined to privately distributed underground films, such as stag films or "porn loops". In the 1960s, social attitudes about sex began to shift, and sexually explicit films were decriminalized in many countries.

With movies such as Blue Movie by Andy Warhol, mainstream movies began pushing the boundaries of what was presented on screen. Notable examples include two of the eight Bedside-films and the six Zodiac-films from the 1970s, all of which were produced in Denmark and had many pornographic sex scenes, but were nevertheless considered mainstream films, all having mainstream casts and crews and premiering in mainstream cinemas. The last of these films, Agent 69 Jensen i Skyttens tegn, was made in 1978. From the end of the 1970s until the late 1990s it was rare to see hardcore scenes in mainstream cinema, but this changed with the success of Lars von Trier's The Idiots (1998), which heralded a wave of art-house films with explicit content, such as Romance (1999), Baise-moi (2000), Intimacy (2001), Vincent Gallo's The Brown Bunny (2003), and Michael Winterbottom's 9 Songs (2004). Some simulated sex scenes are sufficiently realistic that critics mistakenly believe they are real, such as the cunnilingus scene in the 2006 film Red Road.

An adult movie theater is a euphemistic term for a movie theater dedicated to the exhibition of pornographic films.

Adult movie theaters show pornographic films primarily for either a respectively heterosexual or homosexual audience. For the patrons, rules are generally less strict regarding partial- or full-nudity and public masturbation or sex, and such behavior may be condoned explicitly or simply tolerated by the management. Such behavior may or may not be legal, and if not, may or may not be overlooked by local law enforcement. Certain theaters may also include a stripshow or sex show between films, or other sex industry services.

A peep show, peepshow, or, a peep booth is a presentation of a live sex show or pornographic film which is viewed through a viewing slot.

Several historical media provided voyeuristic entertainment through hidden erotic imagery. Before the development of the cinema in 1895, motion pictures were presented in peep boxes, such as the kinetoscope and the mutoscope. These remained relatively popular for erotic and pornographic films, such as What the Butler Saw.

Nudity in film has been a topic of discussion and debate since the beginning of film as a medium. It may be obvious or merely suggestive, such as when a person appears to be naked but is covered by a sheet. It is a distinct topic from sex in film, as many films contain nudity in a non-sexual context, although nudity is almost always present in pornographic films, and are commonly seen in erotic films.

Nude scenes are considered controversial in many cultures because they often challenge a community's standards of modesty. These standards vary by culture and depend on the type of nudity, who is exposed, which parts of the body are exposed, the duration of the exposure, the posing, the context, or other aspects.

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 distinct pornographic subgenres and attempt to present a sexual fantasy. The actors selected for a particular role are primarily selected on their ability to create or fit that fantasy. Pornographic videos are characterized as either softcore, which does not contain depictions of sexual penetration or extreme fetishism, and hardcore, which can contain depictions of penetration or extreme fetishism, or both. The genres and sexual intensity of videos is mainly determined by demand. Depending on the genre of the film, the on-screen appearance, age, and physical features of the actors and their ability to create the sexual mood of the video is of critical importance. Most actors specialize in certain genres, such as straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, bondage, strap-on, anal, double penetration, semen swallowing, orgy, gang bang, age roleplay, fauxcest, interracial, teenage (18-19) or MILFs and more.

The pornography industry in the United States was the first to develop its own movie star system, primarily for commercial reasons. In other countries, the "star" system is not common, with most actors being amateurs. Most performers use a pseudonym and strive to maintain off-screen anonymity. A number of pornographic film actors and actresses have written autobiographies. It is very rare for pornographic film actors and actresses to successfully cross over to the mainstream film industry. Certain pornographic film actors have leveraged their success to branch into different entrepreneurial endeavours, such as Jenna Jameson's ClubJenna.