Manuel Jeannin (; born 1 November 1975), known professionally as Manuel Ferrara, is a French pornographic actor and director. One of the leading actors in the porn industry, Ferrara has won over 64 adult industry awards including six

AVN Award The AVN Awards are List of movie awards, film awards sponsored and presented by the American adult video industry trade magazine ''AVN (magazine), AVN'' (''Adult Video News'') to recognize achievement in various aspects of the creation and m ...

s as Male Performer of the Year—the record for the accolade, and was inducted into the AVN and

XRCO The X-Rated Critics Organization (XRCO) is a group of writers and editors from the American adult entertainment industry who each year present awards in recognition of achievement within the industry. After the controversy and criticism of the ...

Halls of Fame.

Early life

Ferrara was born in

Le Raincy Le Raincy () is a prestigious commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Le Raincy is a subprefecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis department and the seat of the Arrondissement of Le Raincy. Its popu ...

, France, and raised in nearby

Gagny Gagny () is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Geography Location Gagny is located 10 km to the east of Paris. Until the law of 10 July 1964, the commune was part of the departm ...

. He was born to a French father and a Spanish mother. His father was an electrician and his mother was a cleaning lady who had immigrated to France. His father died when Ferrara was 17.Le porno, cet océan
''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'', 24 March 2015 He studied to become a P.E. teacher.

Career

Ferrara shot his first hardcore scene in 1997 during his studies, after answering an ad in a French pornographic magazine. He then started a career as a professional porn actor, appearing in various French and European productions. He chose the stage name Manuel Ferrara because of his passing resemblance to boxer-turned-actor

Stéphane Ferrara Stéphane Ferrara (born 25 December 1956) is a French actor and boxer. He appeared in more than sixty films since 1982. Selected filmography References External links * 1956 births Living people French male film actors French male ...

. Ferrara became a protégé of

Rocco Siffredi Rocco Siffredi (born Rocco Antonio Tano; 4 May 1964) is an Italian Pornographic film actor, pornographic actor, director and producer. He took his stage name from the character Roch Siffredi played by Alain Delon in the French gangster film '' ...

, who recommended him for a role in

John Stagliano John Stagliano (born November 29, 1951), also known as Buttman, is an American entrepreneur, former pornographic film actor, producer and director who founded and owns the Evil Angel pornographic film studio. Early life and career Stagliano gr ...

's '' Fashionistas'' in which he made his American debut. In 2002, he appeared in blockbuster hit '' Snoop Dogg's Hustlaz: Diary of a Pimp''. In 2003, he started directing

gonzo pornography Gonzo pornography is a style of pornographic film that attempts to place the viewer directly into the scene. Jamie Gillis is considered to have started the gonzo pornography genre with his ''On the Prowl'' series of films. The name is a referen ...

for Platinum X Pictures, a subsidiary of

Red Light District Video Red Light District Video (RLD) is an American pornographic film studio headquartered in Chatsworth, California. History The company was founded in 2001 by industry veteran Dion Giarrusso and his half-brother David Joseph, who co-owned the company ...

. In 2004, he began directing for Red Light. After working for Red Light District for the two years, Ferrara began directing for Evil Angel in May 2006. His first Evil Angel film was ''Evilution'', starring Naomi, Melissa Lauren and featuring the comeback of

Nici Sterling A list of notable British pornographic film actors: Female Male See also * Outline of British pornography * Pornography in the United Kingdom References {{British pornography * Pornographic British British may refer to: Peoples, cu ...

. Since then, he has directed several porn series, including ''Fucked on Sight'', ''Slutty & Sluttier'', ''Raw'', ''Evil Anal'', ''Battle of the Sluts'', ''Anal Expedition'', ''Teen Cum Squad'', ''Bangin' Black Boxes'', ''Ass Attack'', ''I'm Your Slut'', ''Mindfuck'' and ''New Whores on the Block''. On 23 December 2010, Ferrara appeared alongside

Riley Steele Riley Steele is an American pornographic actress and escortbr> Early life Steele grew up in Escondido, California. Before starting her adult film career, she worked at Starbucks and at a golf course snack bar. Adult film career In 2005, St ...

in an episode of ''

Manswers ''Manswers'' (spelt onscreen as ''MANswers: Faster & Harder'' in season three, and ''MANswers: Shock & Awe'' in season four) is an American late night comedy series that premiered on Spike on September 19, 2007. The series is produced by reality ...

'' titled "Airplane Plane Hanger-On" to discuss their careers for the segment "How Can You Become A Porktastic Porn Star". On 22 January 2012, he became the first actor in history to win AVN's Male Performer of the Year four times. He won AVN's Male Performer of the Year for a fifth time on 18 January 2014. Ferrara performed in about 2,200 videos in his pornographic career. In 2012, Ferrara appeared alongside pornographic actress Zoe Voss in an explicit sex scene for the mainstream film ''

Starlet Starlet may refer to: Entertainment * ''Starlet'' (film), a 2012 independent dramatic film directed by Sean Baker * ''The Starlet'', reality TV show * The Starlets, a girl group Transport * Toyota Starlet, a car produced between 1973 and 1 ...

''.

Personal life

Ferrara was married to pornographic actress

Dana Vespoli Dana Vespoli is an American pornographic actress and film director. Early life Vespoli graduated from Mills College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in comparative literature. Career Vespoli began performing at age 31 as a stripper at the Mitchell ...

in January 2005. The couple divorced seven years later. They have three sons together. Ferrara has a daughter with his partner, American pornographic actress and director

Kayden Kross Kayden Kross (born 1985) is an American pornographic actress and director. She is a member of the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. Early life Kross grew up in the foothills between Sacramento and Placerville. She has described herself as "the book ...

. His mother died in March 2021 due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrara, Manuel 1975 births French expatriates in the United States French male pornographic film actors French pornographic film directors Living people People from Gagny French people of Spanish descent Twitch (service) streamers