AVN Awards Show, Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas, NV

The AVN Awards are movie awards sponsored and presented by the American adult video industry trade magazine AVN (Adult Video News) to honor exceptional performance in various aspects of the creation and marketing of American pornographic movies. They are called the "Oscars of porn".^[1][2][3] The AVN Awards are divided into nearly 100 categories, some of which are analogous to industry awards offered in other film and video genres, and others that are specific to pornographic/erotic film and video.^[4]

AVN sponsored the first AVN Awards ceremony in February 1984. The award ceremony occurs in early January during the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Since 2008, the ceremony has aired in a form edited for time on Showtime, which is usually broadcast in a 90-minute timeslot.^[5]

Awards for gay adult video were a part of the AVN awards from the 1986 ceremony through the 1998 ceremony. The increasing number of categories made the show unwieldy and for the 1999 ceremony AVN Magazine began hosting the GayVN Awards, an annual adult movie award event for gay adult video.

Awards often go to consistent advertisers in AVN.^[6]

Award categories[link]

In order to be eligible for a given year's AVN Awards, a title must have been released between October 1 of two years before and September 30 of one year before, and it must be available either from at least 10 wholesale or at least 100 retail outlets by the deadline of September 30 of the preceding year.

The Award's name is Woody and appears as a transparent rectangular Lucite block with an engraved stylized male and female embracing. The base of the award is dark and contains lettering with year, category description and winner's name or film title.

In 1998 and 1999, AVN had a Safe Sex Award category, which was discontinued.^[4] In 2007, AVN decided to rename the "AVN Crossover Star of the Year Award" to "Jenna Jameson Crossover Star of the Year Award" to honor Jenna Jameson.^[7]

There are many award categories, which are as follows: Note: "Film" and "Video" refer to the medium on which the title was produced; all of the titles are direct-to-video releases.

Production categories[link]

Best Video Feature, Best Film, Best DVD, Best Gonzo Release, Best Gonzo Series, Best Sex Comedy, Best Vignette Release, Best Vignette Series, Best All-Sex Release, Best Continuing Video Series, Best High-Definition Production, Best Interactive DVD, Best Classic DVD, Best Foreign Feature, Best Foreign All-Sex Release,,,,, Best Foreign All-Sex Series, Best Anal-Themed Feature, Best Anal-Themed Series, Best All-Girl Feature, Best All-Girl Series, Best Ethnic-Themed Release—Asian, Best Ethnic-Themed Release—Black, Best Ethnic-Themed Release—Latin, Best Interracial Release, Best Ethnic-Themed Series, Best P.O.V. Release, Best Oral-Themed Feature, Best Oral-Themed Series, Best Amateur Release, Best Amateur Series, Best Pro-Am Release, Best Pro-Am Series, Best Alternative Release, Best Bi-Sexual Video, Best Gay Video, Best Gay Alternative Video, Best Gay Solo Video

Performer categories[link]

Best New Starlet, Best Male Newcomer, Female Performer of the Year, Male Performer of the Year, Female Foreign Performer of the Year, Male Foreign Performer of the Year, Transsexual Performer of the Year, Performer of the Year-Gay Video, Newcomer of the Year-Gay Video,

• • Above categories are for an individual's work over the year,

Best Actress—Film, Best Actress—Video, Best Actor—Film, Best Actor—Video, Best Supporting Actress—Film, Best Supporting Actress—Video, Best Supporting Actor—Film, Best Supporting Actor—Video, Best Non-Sex Performance, Best Tease Performance, Best Actor—Gay Video, Best Supporting Actor—Gay Video, Best Non-Sex Performance—Bi-Sexual/Gay Video

• • Above categories are for a specific performance by an individual

Sex scene categories[link]

Awarded to performer(s) in a scene, Best All-Girl Sex Scene—Film, Best All-Girl Sex Scene—Video, Best Anal Sex Scene, Best Oral Sex Scene—Film, Best Oral Sex Scene—Video, Best Couples Sex Scene—Film, Best Couples Sex Scene—Video, Best Group Sex Scene—Film, Best Group Sex Scene—Video, Best Threeway Sex Scene—Video, Best Sex Scene in a Foreign-Shot Production, Best Solo Sex Scene, Most Outrageous Sex Scene, Best Sex Scene—Gay Video

Technical categories[link]

Best Screenplay—Film, Best Screenplay—Video, Best Art Direction—Film, Best Art Direction—Video, Best Cinematography, Best Videography, Best Editing—Film, Best Editing—Video, Best Special Effects, Best Music, Best DVD Extras, Best DVD Menus, Best Screenplay—Gay Video, Best Videography—Gay Video, Best Editing—Gay Video, Best Music Score—Gay Video

Specialty categories[link]

Best Specialty Release—Big Bust, Best Specialty Release—BDSM, Best Specialty Release—Spanking, Best Specialty Release—Foot Fetish, Best Specialty Release—Other Genre, Best MILF Release, Best Transsexual Release, Best Gay Specialty Release

Marketing categories[link]

Best DVD Packaging, Best VHS Packaging, Best Box Cover Concept, Best Overall Marketing Campaign—Company Image, Best Overall Marketing Campaign—Individual Project, Best Marketing Website, Best Retail Website, BBox Cover Concept—Gay Video, Best Packaging—Gay Video

Special categories[link]

Best Renting Title of the Year, Best Selling Title of the Year, Hall of Fame, Reuben Sturman Award

AVN Award winners[link]

The following is a list of the winners in the major categories for the AVN Awards.^[8]

Winners 1984–1989[link]

Winners 1990–1994[link]

Winners 1995–1999[link]

• From 1999 onwards, AVN Magazine began hosting the GayVN Awards, an annual adult movie award event for gay adult video.

Winners 2000–2004[link]

Winners 2005–2009[link]

Winners 2010–2012[link]