The Story Behind Cheap Thrills
It seems like a long time ago now. In fact, it was a long time ago. 2003 to be exact.
This was my first video and it was definitely a learning experience. I shot it with two cameras in the no staff style of filmmaking meaning, for most of the time, there was no dedicated cameraman. I had someone in mind but he was unable to come through at the last minute.
I did have a lot of help with this video, though. I never could have pulled it off without a certain well-known character in Japan by the name of Osada Steve. Steve shot part of the video and also supplied the premises (free of charge, I might add). But the most important thing he did was to introduce me to the model--a slender lady who went by the name Marika Yamaguchi (for this video, anyway).
We met up with Ms. Yamaguchi at Jail, an SM club in Tokyo. Actually, there are two Jail clubs in Tokyo. One is in the notorious Roppongi district and the location of the other slips my mind at the moment.At that time, Ms. Yamaguchi was working at the club and moonlighting as an SM actress/performer. She had appeared in at least one Shima Shikou video.
Subsequent to appearing in my project, she performed live on stage with Shima at the annual Sadistic Circus extravaganza in Tokyo. In that particular event, she was stripped, strung up upside down by one leg, and had darts shot into her ass with a blowgun.
Come the day of my shoot, Ms. Yamaguchi was late which is uncharacteristic of Japanese folks in general. Turned out she couldn't find the studio. I got a call from her on my mobile. She wasn't far away so I just walked to her location and brought her back with me. We began shooting almost immediately.
I would love to work with Ms. Yamaguchi again but it seems she has retired. She was very professional and never once complained about anything. Well, there was one time when she was swinging upside down in the nude being whipped with a leather strap. One particular stroke caught her just right and left quite a mark on her thigh. She let out a cry of itai! (it hurts!). This was quite unintentional on my part, I assure you.
Since the video was shot somewhat out of order, you can see the mark on her thigh in the opening kidnap scene (actually shot at the end) if you watch closely.
I had bought a couple of little round steel thingamabobs with short, sharp spikes protruding from them. I tied them together with twine and the little devices were eventually secured tightly onto Ms. Yamaguchi's nipples.
When she first saw these come out of my bag of tricks, she was quite amused. Not horrified, just amused by the fact that the things were actually intended for use in Japanese flower arranging (ikebana).
I thought the shoot would probably take eight hours but I think we pretty much had it in the can after about seven. We took a lot of breaks but it was still an exhausting experience. At the end, I was so drained I was telling myself, Never again! Needless to say, that feeling completely left me after a day or so.
During one of our breaks, I mentioned to Ms. Yamaguchi that I was curious where the aforementioned Mr. Shima shot his outdoor stuff. She told me they had made their way to a secluded forest in Niigata prefecture. Apparently, the place wasn't as secluded as they had thought. While Ms. Yamaguchi was naked, bound and gagged, a hiker happened along and got quite an unexpected eyeful.
That's it for this installment. More to come.
UPDATE: As far as I know, the DVD can still be purchased at Japanese online shop Epicurean. Unfortunately, I don't think they ship internationally.
KabukiJoe
