Image by Haaretz

Tel Aviv has been a happening LGBT scene for decades, but now Israel is becoming a destination for the gay porn industry.

“I’m not competing with foreign sites that show guys with abs who look like a million bucks,” a filmmaker identified as Shay told Haaretz. “With me, everything is homey; my films are amateurish.”

According to Haaretz, the gay porn industry has a boutique quality – with most of the content being made by about 10 actors, even as the sites draw huge traffic.

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Actor wages can run from 1,000 to 2,000 shekels among the small outlets that produce most of the content. That’s about $280 to $560 a day – a good deal more than the average pay in Israel.

But not everyone is happy about the porn industry’s growth.

Prof. Esther Herzog, chairwoman of the Movement for Equal Representation of Women, said the industry is inherently harmful, whether it’s being produced by gay or straight people.

“Pornography, prostitution and trafficking in women are three sides of the same phenomenon,” she told the newspaper. “Ultimately, we’re talking about buying sex.”

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

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