Joone (director)
{{short description|American pornographic film director and producer}}
{{Infobox adult biography
| name = Joone
| image = File:JOONE.png
| caption =
| birth_name = Ali Joone
| birth_date = {{circa}} {{birth year and age|1969}}{{cite news|title=THE SOFT MACHINE: Digital Playground's High-End XXX Vids Have Redefined the Craft of Making Commercial Porn With Solid-Gold Results|url=http://gramponante.com/the-soft-machine-digital-playgrounds-high-end-xxx-vids-have-redefined-the-craft-of-making-commercial-porn-with-solid-gold-results/ |work=GramPonante|date=19 April 2011|access-date=2 April 2015}}
| birth_place = Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
| occupation = Photographer, director & producer
| years_active = 1998–2008 (porn director){{Cite web |url=http://www.iafd.com/person.rme/perfid=joone/gender=director |title=Joone |access-date=2015-04-01 |archive-date=2015-09-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924133907/http://www.iafd.com/person.rme/perfid%3Djoone/gender%3Ddirector |url-status=live }}
| organization = Digital Playground
Diosa Spirits
| spouse = Samantha Lewis (divorced)
| alma_mater = University of California Los Angeles
}}
Joone is an American Iranian entrepreneur,{{cite news |title=Inside Joone|url=http://www.xrentdvd.com/Porn_Star_Interviews/Joone.html|work=xrentdvd.com|date=2006-01-19|access-date=May 30, 2014}} photographer,{{cite news|title=Joone|url=http://www.avn.com/porn-stars/Joone-235152.html|work=AVN|access-date=May 30, 2014|archive-date=October 15, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015125756/http://www.avn.com/porn-stars/Joone-235152.html|url-status=live}} director and producer. He has won two AVN Awards for directing pornographic films. In 1993, Joone founded American pornographic movie studio Digital Playground{{cite web|url=http://www.minyanville.com/businessmarkets/articles/pornography-industry-3D-movies-equipment-cost/1/28/2010/id/26572?page=full|title=Coming Soon: XXX In 3D|author=Josh Lipton|work=Minyanville|access-date=9 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160116130835/http://www.minyanville.com/businessmarkets/articles/pornography-industry-3D-movies-equipment-cost/1/28/2010/id/26572?page=full|archive-date=16 January 2016|url-status=dead}} and was a co-owner of the company until it was acquired by Manwin in 2012.
Career
He founded the Digital Playground company in 1993 when he was 25 and still a student, initially making adult CD-ROM computer games.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/17/movies/17KENN.html?ei=5007&en=42e4fb19dab28bd1&ex=1376452800&partner=USERLAND&pagewanted=print&position= |title=The Fantasy of Interactive Porn Becomes a Reality|access-date=2009-04-11|author=Dana Kennedy|date=2003-08-17|newspaper=The New York Times}}
Commenting on the transition of the pornography industry from the underground economy to mainstream corporate acceptance, the company's founder said: "I look at the porn business where Vegas and gambling was in the 70's… Vegas was still mob-owned and they were making the transition between these small groups of people to being corporate owned… I feel the same exact thing is going to happen with adult".{{cite book|title=The Industrial Vagina: The Political Economy of the Global Sex Trade|publisher=Taylor & Francis|author=Jeffreys, Sheila|year=2008|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-9U7Eqp8NigC|isbn=978-0-415-41233-9|pages=73}}
Joone has directed the pornographic films Pirates and Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge.
In January 2012, alongside his ex-wife Samantha Lewis—who was co-owner, CEO and President of Digital Playground—he reached an agreement with Fabian Thylmann to sell the company to Manwin. On the acquisition, Joone commented: "To me this deal is no different than the acquisition of Pixar by Disney, The consumer is going to see more blockbusters, big-budget productions, and it's our goal to create the next genre of adult entertainment. This acquisition is a marriage between two industry leaders. Adult entertainment is changing and Manwin has a lead on technology." The price or terms of the deal was not disclosed, but it was announced that Lewis and Joone will "continue to oversee the studio";{{Cite news | last = Pardon | first = Rhett | title = Manwin Acquires Digital Playground - XBIZ Newswire | agency = XBIZ Newswire | access-date = 2012-04-22 | date = 2012-01-17 | url = http://newswire.xbiz.com/view.php?id=143303 | archive-date = 2012-04-22 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120422061515/http://newswire.xbiz.com/view.php?id=143303 | url-status = live }} however, it was reported in March that Manwin had released Lewis and some other employees.{{Cite news | title = UPDATED: Manwin Makes Changes at Digital Playground | agency = XBIZ Newswire | access-date = 2015-04-02 | date = 2012-03-08 | url = http://business.avn.com/articles/video/UPDATED-Manwin-Makes-Changes-at-Digital-Playground-468224.html | archive-date = 2015-04-02 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150402104747/http://business.avn.com/articles/video/UPDATED-Manwin-Makes-Changes-at-Digital-Playground-468224.html | url-status = live }}
= Other ventures =
Joone is co-owner of "Diosa Spirits" tequila, with Jesse Jane and her husband Rich.{{cite news|title=Jesse Jane: "I don't feel anyone is my competition"|url=http://gramponante.com/jesse-jane-i-dont-feel-anyone-is-my-competition/|work=GramPonante|date=7 October 2011|access-date=2 April 2015|archive-date=6 October 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241006004414/http://gramponante.com/jesse-jane-i-dont-feel-anyone-is-my-competition/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Final: Ali Joone is Not a Terrorist|url=http://www.adultfyi.com/read.php?ID=58523 |work=adultfyi.com|date=2013-06-05|access-date=2 April 2015}}
Partial filmography
=As director =
- Pirates
- Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge
- Island Fever 1, 2, 3 & 4
- Forbidden Tales
- Virtual Sex line of DVDs:
- Virtual Sex with Jesse Jane
- Virtual Sex with Taylor Hayes
- Virtual Sex with Tera Patrick
- Virtual Sex with Jenna Jameson
- Rocki Roads' Wet Dreams
Awards and nominations
- 2006 AVN Award – Best Director, Video (Pirates){{cite news|title=AVN Award Winners Announced |url=http://www.avn.com/index.cfm?objectId=EDA3C528-1372-4B41-C49CCD58F437DB11 |work=AVN |date=January 9, 2006 |access-date=2008-03-01 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223151758/http://www.avn.com/index.cfm?objectId=EDA3C528-1372-4B41-C49CCD58F437DB11 |archive-date=February 23, 2008 }}{{cite news|title=Joone Digital Playground's founder and the director of 'Pirates' holds up his award at AVN Awards Show in Las Vegas|url=http://www.santabanta.com/gallery/events/avn-awards/joone-digital-playgrounds-founder-and-the-directo/17835/|work=santabanta.com|date=January 9, 2006|access-date=15 April 2014|archive-date=8 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808043532/http://www.santabanta.com/gallery/events/avn-awards/joone-digital-playgrounds-founder-and-the-directo/17835/|url-status=dead}}
- 2006 XRCO Award winner - Best Director{{cite web|url=http://www.xbiz.com/news/14515|title=Porn Industry Shows Up for XRCO Awards|author=Rhett Pardon|publisher=XBIZ|date=21 April 2006|access-date=6 October 2014|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006150524/http://www.xbiz.com/news/14515|url-status=live}}
- 2009 AVN Award winner – Best Director, Feature (Pirates II){{cite web|title=2009 AVN Award-Winners Announced|publisher=AVN.com|url=http://www.avn.com/video/articles/34090.html|author=David Sullivan|access-date=2009-01-11|date=2009-01-11|archive-date=2009-01-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090118205743/http://avn.com/video/articles/34090.html|url-status=live}}
- 2009 AVN Award winner – Best Screenplay (Pirates II) shared with Max Massimo
- 2009 AVN Award winner – Best Videography (Pirates II) shared with Oliver Henry
- 2009 Eroticline Awards winner - Best U.S. Director{{cite web|url=http://www.pornaward.de/gewinner/gewinner-2009-2/|title=Gewinner 2009|access-date=15 April 2014|archive-date=29 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100829170943/http://www.pornaward.de/gewinner/gewinner-2009-2/|url-status=live}}
- 2009 Hot d'Or Award winner - Best American Screenplay (Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge - Digital Playground)Paul Fishbein, [http://business.avn.com/articles/video/Pirates-II-Evil-Angel-Big-Winners-at-2009-Hot-d-Or-Awards-366881.html "Pirates II, Evil Angel Big Winners at 2009 Hot d’Or Awards"] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130118040949/http://business.avn.com/articles/video/Pirates-II-Evil-Angel-Big-Winners-at-2009-Hot-d-Or-Awards-366881.html |date=2013-01-18 }}, AVN.com. Retrieved June 6, 2012.{{cite web|url=http://hot-dor.fr/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=2&Itemid=4|title=Hot d'Or archives presse x, articles sur les Hot d'or|publisher=Hot-dor.fr|access-date=2014-05-09|archive-date=2014-03-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140316035017/http://hot-dor.fr/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=2&Itemid=4|url-status=live}}
- 2009 Hot d'Or Award winner - Best American Movie (Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge - Digital Playground)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|id=1015042|name=Joone}}
- {{iafd name|id=joone|gender=director|name=Joone}}
- [http://www.adultfilmdatabase.com/director.cfm?directorid=239 Adult Film Database]
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joone}}
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:American pornographic film directors
Category:American photographers
Category:American sex industry businesspeople
Category:University of Southern California alumni