Q + A: Cameron Matthews (Part 3 of 3)

And we're at the end of my questions for Cameron. I think you can see how great Cameron was in all this. I asked him a ton of stuff that took a ton of his time.

PART 1

PART 2

One thing you'll notice here is that I segmented Cameron's roster into several categories and labeled them. He didn't necessarily agree with the labels or even the basic idea of segmenting his roster. However, he was a trooper and answered anyway. I just wanted to make sure that you take note of where I ended up leading Cameron's answers in the talent section. 

Cameron was a great sport
to answer all of this for me.

Being a W4H

Q1. How did you get started as a 'wrestler for hire'?

I started doing private wrestling matches when I was like 19. I kept getting e-mails about meeting guys for matches. They were very respectful with what they were looking for. The first few private matches I did were excellent experiences. We actually met often (every 4 to 6 weeks usually) for matches. I'm a fan of wrestling and enjoy it as a sport, so it just seemed to fit.

Whenever I was on a trip for pro wrestling, I'd announce that I was traveling. I'd usually get a handful of e-mails (sometimes more) about potential matches. I've met a lot of great people through private sessions...and less than a handful of crazy ones. Not a bad ratio.

Q2. I'm sure there are a lot of guys who'd love to wrestle you, but are intimidated to contact you. If someone hires you to wrestle, what should they expect from the experience? And what do you expect from them?

No one should ever be intimidated by me. I'm a shy dork. I tend to be very polite and my number one goal is to have a fun session for both parties involved. I don't care about your level of experience, your size, your age, any of that. I just want you to have fun and I want to have fun myself. I couldn't even guess how many Pro vs. Joe matches I've done, but it's gotta be close to 1000. Lots of people I meet with have so much fun and enjoy the experience so much that I meet with them numerous times. Hence, why you'll see me traveling to the same areas over-and-over. I've built up some fun "clients" who I enjoy meeting with again-and-again.

1,000? Wow, that's a big number.

Talent/Recruiting

Q3. As an outsider, recruiting new talent is one of the great mysteries of the business for me. Some promoters seem to do it really well, while others seem to struggle. How does it work? Can you help us understand the ways that you find new talent?

It's funny how we are hard on ourselves. When I first went to answer this I was thinking how I struggle to find new talent sometimes, but that's untrue. I think when you look the most, you find the least. A lot of times you do a shoot and someone says "I have a friend who'd be great for this" or you are out having a couple beers and you see a guy who fits the bill and next thing you know he's ready to wrestle. Sometimes you swing and miss, like I recently did while at a local fairgrounds. A good-looking collegiate wrestler was working one of the games and I chatted him up, he was easy-going and looked great, gave him my number, but never heard back. That's how life goes.

Lately, I've had GREAT success from fans and supporters recommend talent. I'll get a few photos or names and do a quick google to find out how to contact them. A few e-mail exchanges later they are either in or out. I don't stress too much when they say no. It's just not meant to be...right now. I've had guys say no then months later say they'd love to.

It's a little skill, a lot of luck and a great network of friends, fans and supporters I've gained over my years in the world. I'm lucky.

I also believe in sharing some talent. I've encouraged Guido Genatto, Barry Burke, Mark Muscle and others to go work for other companies. It goes back to I want everyone to do well. 

Wake up, Barry, Cameron's getting you more gigs!
(W4H Charlie Panther v Barry Burke)

Q4. One thing I notice is that guys will show up and suddenly be in two or three places. Is that usually on the wrestler or the producers? Do you actively try to recruit from other rosters or do those guys contact you? Are there any rules or ethics in recruiting?

Oops, look like I answered this above accidentally. Sometimes, I'll ask Ron or Mike about potential wrestlers I could use or request specific guys that fans have asked for. They are usually accommodating and kind with it. I return the favor and often initiate that certain wrestlers work for those guys, too. I've tried to get some talent for UCW, but they don't seem keen on it, so I no longer propose new talent for them. Maybe I shouldn't be sharing wrestlers and models, but I'm not one for following conventional wisdom and I think there's enough to go around.

The only rule I have is don't pay someone so they won't wrestle for someone else. Let the wrestlers decide. I think that's a lame move, which I had done to me recently by a group I won't mention. It is what it is and I won't lose any sleep over it. The wrestler in question seemed to be into creating drama, too, so I'm sure he wouldn't have gelled well with the laid-back atmosphere I prefer. So it was for the best.

Q5. Same basic questions with scheduling. We see the same pairings from time to time. Is it coincidence? Are some guys just more comfortable together? Do you ask guys what they've done elsewhere? Do you actively work to avoid rematches or to do something different?

Some guys travel together like Chet, Alvin & Maverick. Some guys get requested more often from custom video clients, so you'll see them more often as shoots. Some I just like being around and get used because they are my friends.

I like a laid-back atmosphere, so it's always nice to have familiar faces around and/or a good friend. It's just how it seems to work out. I guess I should pay attention to that more, but I like most the guys I use and have a hard time saying no when someone gets mentioned or when I'm filming near a wrestlers location that I like. I mean, I'd use Alex Oliver every shoot, even against guys he's wrestled before, but I like hanging out with him and he's very intelligent.

Personally, I don't look to see what others have done or are doing at other companies. I'm focused on what I'm building. Just because someone wrestled the same opponent at another company doesn't mean it's not going to be popular on my site. We have varying audiences and each match is going to be different. Again, I just focus on myself and what I'm doing and what I think will be great based on what I've heard from fans, supporters and customers.

Alvin, Maverick and Chet
(W4H Maverick Double-teamed)

Maybe I've since this combo before, but not like this
(W4H Flash LaCash v Guido Genatto)

Q6. Do producers get pissed when one of their guys works for someone else? Or is it just part of the business you all accept since everyone does it?

I think at first people would get upset when someone would work for another company. I'm not sure, but I think I was one of the early ones to work for multiple companies. I'm probably wrong. I figure the more places I show up, the more people will see me, the more fans I'll have, the more videos will get sold. Seemed like steady logic. Plus I like wrestling.

Mark Muscle was just in town shooting for Thunder's Arena and it upset me...only because I would've liked to shoot with him, too and hung out with him while he was in the area. I'm happy that he's doing well in wrestling and that he is popular. I was lucky enough to have someone bring him to me. I want him to do well. I want Mike from Thunder's to do well and I want Mark to do well. 

I like that Cameron's happy for Mark's success,
even if it's happening at other places, too
(TA Scrappy v Mark Muscle)

Q7. If you could get literally any guy from any level of pro wrestling, who would it be?

I think based on requests from fans, I would say Chris Masters. I've been on pro shows with him. I've sent him e-mails and such about doing videos, but he just doesn't seem interested. Someday I think that may change though.  Kenny Omega is blowing up in the pro wrestling world. I haven't seen him since 2009 at Ring of Honor. We were fast friends when he came to New England in 2005/2006. He, myself, Paul Hudson and Caleb Brand (aka Danny Duggan) spent many weeks wrestling each other in small towns around the area during that time and even wrestled their first matches at BG East against Paul and myself. Would be nice to catch up with him and pretend I had a cool friend who was the #1 free agent in pro wrestling.

No surprise that fans want Masters,
but could it really happen?

Future superstars in action with Cam
(BGE Tag Team 11)

Q8. It seems like there's less stigma to working for 'underground' wrestling organizations. More pros are making the transition. Is it tough to sell them on making the leap? Do you hear regrets from guys who do it or are they just glad to take the money and attention?

There certainly is less stigma around it. In my view, I think the girls actually help weaken the stigma attached with doing underground wrestling. I've had a few guys be hesitant about doing videos, but when they did come they had no problem with it. Some have their limits and I respect that. I don't push them past their comfort zones. I think there's enough sexual appeal to wrestling that just that is enough to be hot for some.

I don't think I've heard many regrets from wrestlers. I know a few guys who probably in hindsight wouldn't have done certain things on video, but we are in an interesting period of time where that view on guys doing homoerotic videos will change. 

Q9. I would break your roster into five  main categories of skills. Experienced pros. New pros. Talented joes. Beginner joes. Bodybuilders. Would you agree? Do you strive for a balance or is it just a matter of who's around? Which category is typically your most popular?

I'm actually against labeling things too much because I feel once you label something you (in-a-way) limit it. I do see where you could describe the models/wrestlers as such though.

I consider the Pros to be the guys on the site and the "Joes" to be the fans. There used to be a show on TV called "Pros vs. Joes" and I liked how much cleaner and professional that sounded for the private wrestling sessions. However, based on your layout of the categories, I will answer it based on that.  

Some shoots just fall in your lap. You start with one or two guys in mind, then they have a friend who is down to do it (like Nick Sparx brought new guy Joel) and Matty O'Boy brought his boyfriend Zacky Darling and his friends James Quarterstaf and Dashing Dustin. Sometimes I tell the wrestlers I'm looking for a particular look and they know someone who fits the bill. I also like keeping friends around each other. It makes the day more fun for the guys. 

The most popular question is tough. I've been a pro wrestler for 15+ years, so I have a lot of pro contacts and have made a lot of fans that are into pro wrestling. Experience Pros and New Pros are always in demand. Beginner Joes are popular, too. They tend to have the charisma and personality that works for these videos. Those are probably my two favorites and most popular categories that you listed (well, technically 3 categories). 

Bodybuilders are popular, as well as the Beginner Joes (everything is actually fairly close in popularity), but they tend to be a tad more effort to work with. Mark Muscle was a great addition and caught on quick. He actually is popular with the locker room because of his fun antics when he wrestles and taunts his opponents. The Beginner Joes tend to be better on the ground, so I try not to have them do too much standing up or big pro wrestling moves until they get comfortable, but Jayden Mayne, CJ Reznik, Matty O'Boy, Nick Sparx, Alex Oliver and a few others have all been fun to work with.

Nick Sparx and CJ Reznik do look like fun
(W4H Nick Sparx v CJ Reznik)

Thank Nick Sparx for cutie Joel aka Blake Starr
(aka Tony Romo lookalike aka Slim McSmiley
as I named him on my Twitter)

Q10. How much training do the joes get? Have you ever recruited a guy then just not used him because he couldn't get it? What steps do you take to make an activity like pro wrestling, which you said earlier is potentially dangerous, safe as a side gig?

The new guys get a run-through of the basic holds and basic idea of the scenes. I'd like to think I am very efficient in my training style, even something as complicated as taking a "bump" or falling properly can be reduced to the simplest steps. I've been to loads of wrestling schools that use repetition to get bumps down, but that leads to sore bodies and useless wrestlers. The basics of bumping ... land as flat as possible, tuck your chin to your chest and breathe out as you're landing. It can be more in-depth, but that's the overall basic idea.

CJ Reznik, Nick Sparx, Rendell Zebu all had less than 30 minutes of wrestling training with me. Alex Oliver had almost zero training, but caught on real quick on how to take a beating. Last weekend I through Joel into a match with no training just to see what he'd do. Same with Matty O'Boy & Dashing Dustin.

My main goal is to get them actually comfortable being in a wrestling match, so I put them with a friend or an experienced guy who knows how to lead a match. Once these guys get beyond their nervousness then things tend to go smoothly.  Sometimes the best thing you can do for people is to just let them play with each other and see what comes out of it.

I have had a few guys who just didn't work out. I won't name names. For whatever reason they just couldn't figure out how to relax in a match and have fun or how to sell the pain or they were just too hard for the other guys to do moves to. It doesn't happen often though.

30 minutes was enough for Nick to get his ass kicked
(W4H Marco Thunder vs. Nick Sparx)

Okay, let's see what Blake Starr can do

My Observations ...

(1) Obviously I over-thought his roster. He didn't agree with my obsessive-compulsive need to compartmentalize the world nor my actual labels. However, I appreciate him being a trooper and going along with them. I still like my categories, but I also like that Cameron seems to view all his guys as more three-dimensional characters.

(2) I love Cameron's answers on being a wrestler for hire. He seems like he'd be a great match, very accommodating and fun. With all the freely available matchups on wrestling personal sites, you need to be something special to get paid for it. The fact that he has a lot of satisfied customers is a testament to the experience he provides.

(3) I kind of knew that networking was the best recruiting tool, but I am surprised at how open and collaborative it all seems to be. No wonder guys appear in so many places. It certainly seems like most places are open to the idea of sharing. Or maybe they know that there's no point in fighting it.

(4) I wonder who is paying guys to be exclusive and why? It seems wasteful - that money could be going to something more important. It also feels wholly unnecessary in this day and age. In fact, I think it's counter-productive. Hypothetically, if an exclusive guy wrestled somewhere else and I liked him as a wrestler, I might follow him back to his original home. It certainly worked with Dave Calbrese, where I was wary of the quality/credibility of the other site, but I took a risk thanks to seeing him at Movimus. If a guy is good, fans will find the money once they discover him.

(5) If Chris Masters ever wrestled for an underground federation, the gay-wrestling internet would freaking explode. Enough said.

(6) More confirmation that any stigma that might have once existed is really non-existent, which is awesome. It was not that long ago that guys like Dick Rick and Big Sexy asked bloggers to remove content, but clearly it's unnecessary (not to mention pointless) now. Just look at how many of the biggest stars have worked for Can-Am, BGEast and others. Wrestling isn't porn (unless you choose to go that way), so there's no reason underground wrestling should be an issue. Heck, Joey Ryan's more adult in the indies than ever he was for Cyberfights and he's one of the biggest indie stars around. Hopefully every young stud is getting the message that this is a great way to improve their skills and earn some extra money.

(7) I am amazed that there isn't more training involved. I have my fictional producers put guys through a ton of training and evaluation, but that's the difference between fiction and reality, right? These are small companies and they want everything on video. They obviously can't work with a guy for weeks before using him, but if it's standard industry practice, it does explain some of the videos I've seen over the years.

So that's it for my first interview-type experience. Hopefully you found it interesting. I did. Please take some time to comment and let me know what you think!

Alex