How does a 9 year-old become a porn addict? Quite easily, it seems, according to now-teenage Joseph, whose accidental descent into porn addiction is revealed in Over 18: A Documentary About Porn Addiction.
"I was playing on this game site, and all of a sudden a pop up comes into the corner and you go and you click on it and it's this porn site and I'm like, 'Whoa, that was weird'."
Joseph says the momentary exposure to hardcore porn started "a little craving" and before long, he was hooked.
Joseph's parents also appear in the film, and speak of their attempts to rehabilitate their son, once they became aware of his addiction and the impact it was having upon his behaviour. They say he began physically assaulting his younger sister because of the violent sexual content he was streaming constantly.
"His entire porn addiction happened in the kitchen and living room of my home when the family was in the room," his mum says.
Over 18, named for the simple checkbox one needs to click before entering 'restricted' content sites, features interviews with researchers, porn stars, ex-porn stars, porn directors, and recovering porn addicts.
The film is a cautionary tale to be sure, but the porn industry's staunchest defenders also get a voice: Bill Margold, a retired male porn performer, director, and industry advocate, says, “no one has ever died from an overdose of pornography.”
"We are the perfect whipping boy for all of society's ills," Margold says.
Watch 'Over 18: A Documentary About Porn Addiction' on SBS VICELAND, Friday 6 November at 9:20pm.
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