Joone | |
---|---|
Born | Ali Joone c. 1969 (age 54–55) [1] Beverly Hills, California, U.S. |
Alma mater | University of California Los Angeles |
Occupation(s) | Photographer, director & producer |
Years active | 1998–2008 (porn director) [2] |
Organization(s) | Digital Playground Diosa Spirits |
Spouse | Samantha Lewis (divorced) [1] |
Joone is an American Iranian entrepreneur, [3] photographer, [4] director and producer. For directing pornographic films, he won AVN Award twice. In 1993, Joone founded American pornographic movie studio Digital Playground [5] and was a co-owner of the company until it was acquired by Manwin in 2012.
He founded the Digital Playground company [5] in 1993 when he was 25 and still a student, [1] initially making adult CD-ROM computer games. [6]
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". [7]
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"; [8] however, it was reported in March that Manwin had released Lewis and some other employees. [9]
Joone is co-owner of "Diosa Spirits" tequila, with Jesse Jane and her husband Rich. [10] [11]
Pirates is a 2005 American pornographic action-adventure film written, produced, and directed by Joone, and produced by Digital Playground and Adam & Eve. The film, starring Jesse Jane, Carmen Luvana, Janine Lindemulder, Devon, Jenaveve Jolie, Teagan Presley, and Evan Stone, features many references to the mainstream Hollywood film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.
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Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge is a 2008 American pornographic action-adventure film and sequel to the 2005 film Pirates. Produced by Digital Playground, and written and directed by Joone, it stars Jesse Jane, Evan Stone, Steven St. Croix, and Tommy Gunn who reprise their roles from the first film, as well as Belladonna, Sasha Grey, Katsuni, Jenna Haze, and Ben English as new characters. Carmen Luvana, who played the central character of Isabella in the original Pirates, is absent from the sequel.
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