Reality is at the heart of the new Showtime series 3 AM. And it’s not the “reality” of reality TV that we’ve all come to know and love as a guilty pleasure over the past few years, but the actual reality of life. So much so that the show, which premieres tonight, is being billed with zero mention of the R-word, opting instead to use the descriptive hyphenated phrasing: “docu-series.”

Executive produced by Dick Wolf, the man behind 90s TV behemoth Law & Order, 3 AM chronicles the lives of five New Yorkers ensconced in the city’s legendary night life. Each episode follows the subjects, who range from nightclub photographers to web-famous partiers, over the course of a single night, culminating in what the press materials describe as “when something important and life changing happens”

One of those nighttime New Yorkers filmed for the show is Samantha Acosta, who’s documented working as an escort under the name “Abby.” Enstars recently talked to Acosta about the show and why she agreed to do it, her reasons for working as an escort, and why she’s “grateful” for the opportunity the job gave her.

Enstars: What was your reaction when you were approached about being profiled and filmed for 3AM and why did you eventually agree to do it?

Samantha Acosta: Well, at first, when they first approached me, I didn’t think it was real. I just thought it was someone trying to play a joke. Sometimes in the escort biz you get jokesters. But something told me to just follow-up with them and after a few emails back and forth I finally agreed to do a video interview with them. And that’s when I realized that 1) it was real and 2) that they were actually interested in telling not just my story but showing the escort industry as honestly as possible, because there’s so many stereotypes, both good and bad. There’s the, you know, pretty woman, hot super glamorous stereotype, as well as the victim, exploited, doing it against their will stereotype. And for me, it’s a job. It’s a job that neither one of those stereotype fit.

ES: So it seems like you didn’t have any sort of apprehension about being publicly exposed as an escort?

SA: I wasn’t, I mean there wasn’t apprehension just because pretty much all my friends know. Some of my family didn’t know, but I’m not that close with them. But for me, there was apprehension, but it was the same apprehension that anyone would have about being filmed. It wasn’t related to by job per say, but general nerves. I really felt that like I really trusted the studio network to give an honest perspective. And they really did.

ES: What was it about the show’s producers that earned your trust?

SA: Well, a lot of it, honestly, is related to skills I learned from the job of how to just read people and you can just know everything about them. They just seemed to ask the right questions. They didn’t flinch when I said, “This is stuff that I won’t do, because this is not me.” I said…”You’re not going to portray me as a victim or [in] some super seedy dark world.” And they were just very open to listening to me and working with me that way. And it’s very easy to be trusting when there’s open communication.

ES: So the bio that’s being use to promote the show states you’re no longer working as an escort…

SA: That’s fairly recently.

ES: Do you think that spoils your story in the series for viewers at all?

SA: No.

ES: No?

SA: Well, because the reason I’m no longer an escort is because of the television show. And by very recently, I mean within the last month and that was because I was told the promos were coming out…and that was for safety reasons. So yeah, I retired from the biz because of the TV show.

ES: But you say in your bio for the show that you became an escort for the financial security and freedom it allowed you to pursue photography. So wasn’t it kind part of your goal to give up escorting and focus fully on art?

SA: Yeah…That’s completely why I worked as an escort and why I did the show, because it was a once in a lifetime to have my story told and a big part of my story is my artwork and my photography. And part of my photography has been influenced by my career as an escort… I [also] used my photography skills a lot as an escort. A lot of the photos I used for advertising were self-portraits. So the reason for it was always to pursue my ultimate artwork goal.

ES: In what way did escorting affect your art?

SA: If anything, the way it affected me the most was by making me fearless. A lot of my photography are self-portraits and a lot are nude or semi-nude. And because of escorting I wasn’t afraid to show those and worry what people thought and who would find it. So because of escorting I ultimately became fearless and more determined and motivated and driven in my photography career.

ES: Can you talk about a bit what the series documents in relation to you for this season?

SA: Well, on the series...I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to say...but both professionally and personally, you’ll definitely get a 360 view of my life.

ES: Is it weird to be viewing and also promoting a series that documents something that was a big part of your life and now…isn’t?

SA: It’ll always be a part of my life. And it’ll always be something that I’m grateful I had the opportunity to do, because if I hadn’t been an escort I don’t know if I would have had the time to dedicate to photography and moving on with my other goals. And because of that, it was a stepping stone for me…and will always be a part of me.

ES: You’re currently working on a photography project titled “Do Not Disturb.” Can you describe it and what it’s about?

SA: I was actually looking at spaces to exhibit it earlier today. It started as me trying to document my life as an escort, but because it’s private and kind of hidden…you know everyone knows I worked as an escort but you can’t take work photos that everyone else would do, you know like at the Christmas party. So it’s an ongoing series of disposable camera snapshots because I felt that a lot of people thought that the life of an escort is disposable. So it was me using the medium to further the artistic thought behind it. A lot of it is just snapshots and… you know I can be in a hotel but I’m not going to take a full photo of the hotel because you’re going to know where you are, so it’s something that I might recognize as being at the hotel but no one else will. So it’s my way of being public about my secret life.

3AM premieres May 28th at 11 p.m on Showtime.

Tags
Television, Showtime, Documentary