Before I film anything, I sign a contract with the person taking part. Not because a lawyer told me to, but because it is the only way for both of us to say yes knowing exactly what to.
An adult filming contract does two things. It protects the person in front of the camera, who is the one most exposed. And it protects me, because it puts in writing what was agreed and what wasn't. If it only does one of the two, it's badly made.
This is what mine contains, point by point. I'm not a lawyer; this is what I sign, and why.
Who we are
Real name, ID document and address of both parties. On the day, we both show our ID, and I keep a copy of hers for one purpose only: to be able to prove she was of age. It's the proof any platform will ask for, and the one you need if anyone ever questions it.
We both declare we are over 18 and able to consent. It sounds obvious. It has to be written down.
What will be filmed, and what won't
The contract describes the scene: format, style, what parts it has. But the description is only the frame. What matters are two lists, filled in by hand, together, before we start:
Agreed practices — what's a yes. Limits and excluded practices — what's a no.
And a working rule worth more than both lists: what isn't written is not considered authorised. Taking part in a shoot is not consenting to anything beyond what was agreed. If a practice isn't there, it doesn't happen.
One clarification that avoids misunderstandings: the lists are about acts, not positions. Changing position within what was agreed is directing the scene. Adding a new act is not: for that, the camera stops, we talk outside the scene, and it gets written down before we continue.
Who is on set
Name and role of every person present. In my case, two: the person taking part and me. Closed set: nobody else comes in without her knowing and agreeing beforehand.
How long it takes
An honest estimate: about three hours on location — arrival, paperwork, preparation, breaks, filming, signing — of which 45 to 90 minutes on camera. And a sentence that matters: it's an estimate, and it can be less. Nobody is obliged to stay three hours.
Condoms and testing
Agreed beforehand: condom or not, for which practices, and under what conditions it comes off if it does. And what was agreed does not change during the shoot, whoever suggests it. Removing a condom without prior agreement is not a change of plans: it's a non-consented practice, and the shoot stops there.
Tests are asked of both parties, with the same panel and the same time limit. The time limit is agreed in writing: 14 days is the most common, and some productions ask for 7. The panel should include HIV, syphilis, hepatitis B and C, and chlamydia and gonorrhoea in urine and throat. They're shown on the day of the shoot and no copy is kept of anything: a medical result is health data, and it has no business staying in anyone's files.
Where to get them done, free or within a few days, I explain in Where to get free STI tests before a shoot.
The right to stop
This is the most important part, and it comes in three stages:
- Before the shoot, she can cancel without explaining and without penalty.
- During preparation, she can remove any practice from the list.
- During filming, she can pause or end at any moment, without justifying herself.
Removing one practice doesn't remove the others. And a "no" is never an invitation to insist. The contract says it in these words: no refusal will lead to pressure, nor to any change in the financial terms.
We don't shoot if either party is under the influence of alcohol or substances that could affect their ability to consent.
What happens if it stops
If filming is interrupted, the decision of whoever interrupts it is respected. Footage of a practice whose consent was withdrawn is not published, no discussion.
And there's one thing I don't negotiate: if she stops, she gets paid all the same. If the money depended on finishing, the money would be a form of pressure, and everything above would be worthless.
How much, when and how it's paid
The exact amount, in writing. When: the same day, at the end. How: bank transfer or cash, with a signed receipt. And a guarantee that should be in any serious contract: the person taking part is never asked for money — no commission, no expenses, no deposit. If someone asks you for money to "do a casting", it isn't a casting.
Where it's published, and under what name
The platforms, one by one, in writing. What isn't on the list isn't authorised. If one day I want to publish somewhere else, it takes a new agreement.
And the name: she is publicly identified only by her stage name. Her real name is never published or given to anyone. That commitment goes both ways — she doesn't publish mine either.
For how long, and how it's taken down
The authorisation has no expiry date, but it has something better: it can be revoked at any time. That's what article 2.3 of Spain's Organic Law 1/1982 establishes. The same law provides that revocation may, where applicable, give rise to compensation for damage caused — but never that it can be prevented.
When she asks me in writing, I reply within a month and take the content down from every platform I control within 60 days at most. That deadline is my commitment, not one set by law.
And I also say what I can't promise: I can't make copies disappear that a third party made or redistributed without permission. What I do is request their removal wherever it's within my reach.
One clarification that avoids confusion: four different things cross here. Stopping a practice during the shoot. Withdrawing consent afterwards, before publication. Revoking the image authorisation once published, which is what Organic Law 1/1982 governs. And the GDPR right to erasure, because a recording in which you're recognisable is also personal data. That last one has its own rules — withdrawing it doesn't erase what was lawful before, and it has exceptions — but as far as I'm concerned, the practical answer is the same: you ask, and I take it down.
What data I keep, and why
The contract explains it: which data, what for, how long, and how to exercise your rights of access, rectification or erasure. It's not a decorative paragraph; it's what data protection law requires, and it's what lets you know what happens to your ID and the recordings if one day you change your mind.
What a contract should NOT contain
This is as important as everything above. If you see any of these, be wary:
"The parties declare that no employment relationship exists." A sentence like that doesn't determine the legal nature of the relationship on its own: what matters is how the collaboration actually works, not what the paper says. But if it's there, it's because whoever drafted it knew the question existed — and preferred to cover it rather than answer it.
A minimum period before you can ask for removal. "You cannot withdraw the content for five years." A clause cannot make definitive an authorisation that Organic Law 1/1982 recognises as revocable at any time — even if revocation can have financial consequences. Whoever writes it is trying to take something from you that can't be taken.
Medical test results inside the contract. Health data on a piece of paper someone else keeps, with no need to have it.
Money conditional on publication. "You get paid when it's published." It turns payment into pressure.
"Official platforms" without saying which. An authorisation that doesn't say where is an authorisation for anywhere.
How it's signed
The contract is read at home, days before, not on set with your clothes already on a chair. I send it with the proposal, and the lists of practices and limits are filled in together on the day, calmly, before anything is switched on.
On paper, two copies, one each. Every page initialled. Unused blanks crossed out, so nobody can fill them in later. And the receipt is signed after the money is in hand, not before.
A contract like this isn't there to trap anyone. It's there so that two people can say yes knowing exactly what to, and so that either of them can say no without it costing them anything.
If I propose a shoot to you, you'll receive it before you decide. If another producer doesn't show it to you until the day, you already know what that says about him.
This article describes how I work and does not constitute legal advice. The contract I use must be adapted to each situation and professionally reviewed where necessary.
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