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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles - n0 D- U5 j; l! ^- I+ ~+ |7 E
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California's adult movie business is under pressure - internet piracy and the economic downturn have slashed revenues, while state regulators seem set to win their long battle to make actors wear condoms., p+ P# s0 W& n6 C1 H* o; |
, m) B& l7 G' w/ [Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.; l1 c! e5 g2 g. ]4 O1 l, {
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I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. : Z+ q; a, C2 O! d; ` w, l d - ?9 B6 W8 K: e$ W! }( ]) i) O; rWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. : _% a, B" K! t) l' ^ : b& n6 f! j7 ]4 ?; S) kThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga." ?# W: g3 n6 |8 e# w: G
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Performers in body-hugging Star Trek outfits, some with prosthetic noses to resemble aliens, wandered around looking slightly bored as a weary crew worried over lighting arrangements.6 S0 M* |8 S3 N7 l
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This morning was devoted to dialogue, I was told, although - as Sam, the film's artistically minded writer-director, explained to me with clear regret - there was not too much of that to be had.% `4 Z- w9 e/ h* r- [) e+ C4 ^, u
K8 ?- \+ _; G0 q$ tOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.$ i9 w+ J* c% ] D' U& S3 V! j
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The demands of porn may not allow Sam to be the groundbreaking film-maker he clearly aspires to be, but at least there are films to be made. 7 J" n0 \% O! }$ n * e, }( c- I) d7 v/ ?The problem, increasingly, is revenue.+ d! v9 j. Z1 D* p7 C
% Z1 g0 Q0 C2 v1 X2 QLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. . o; c8 Q, A+ X+ i ( ?8 \; ?6 P1 X! z# w7 qDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. * n2 J* g" g: y) ]* W# V, D4 H [# _+ r: Y$ a) D+ L
And the economic downturn does not help. 7 n9 n4 e8 r5 I3 t2 [; g/ X" w! U
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. * k0 a F' {! J% U) }' w( w0 y1 O' h- L# i, o* r
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.* @. O) R- {) F+ F8 ?
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.9 v/ q# Y0 x" a) m+ _; K
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Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.: Y* K8 D8 s8 G& I5 l0 s
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But the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.% ^( P# u1 L& Z4 Z U
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Gonorrhoea( w( v1 o" U x* r! T0 H
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.( y8 p4 G' L- `# Y% H
' O, c, c7 F# Q+ c2 k: W* Z3 X* N/ FA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 6 X% o% K+ t1 M$ [$ b e1 J6 x: K8 i0 }7 t4 i
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure." p$ i- l+ k" \1 W
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"; B& Z8 `8 A3 X
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Her packed schedule today involved a couple of lines, then a four-hour sex scene. Then a costume fitting on Tuesday and she was off to have her monthly health test after that. 8 U7 A* e% y s. R" K4 [; u) N% S" g/ L7 z! S' [0 p+ p
Each day would be 15 hours long., @. ]# M8 e$ v- z X
: P. J, @6 M$ B, z6 s"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.; f$ T' p& r( y$ D8 L
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"You get used to it," she smiled.7 o6 A/ `- e+ N) C' k8 _
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"2 `3 H4 l+ c4 H4 T9 X
1 Z3 D& _1 w! O# V( o n: p"Well, just chlamydia a couple of times, gonorrhoea - nothing much. Anyway, we test each month so, when you're diagnosed, you just take your medication and you're good to go. No problem."' [3 P2 q8 v0 V+ s9 \( L
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.9 |. o' s. U( L. R3 c
$ b6 K1 x) r7 i+ p$ u w1 bExpensive lawsuits # u* }2 V, `9 J$ l2 h4 N1 g* D1 _# Y% u
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. : m, X( S# }1 A4 W. e+ ?" g1 i+ L( E: v8 s0 b# T3 h* Y/ Q
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. ( E! A# {3 T5 b+ n2 I1 P: ` Q8 o% k; M) f# D6 ]
It had taken a Supreme Court battle back in the 1980s to make porn legal in California in the first place, formally distinguishing it from common-or-garden prostitution. - x U. ]0 k$ A 9 l$ ^/ Q7 y. J2 l" |$ z" RNow, many I met spoke of the right not to wear condoms as a key aspect of their constitutional right to free speech, as set out by the Founding Fathers. N' ^2 @- w' i$ ^3 a% F+ l$ P! C- k" C1 D
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 8 u4 |- b/ j# V% m. x3 i) i: O" N3 V
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. . R$ W6 Z, l5 Y# k" I4 m% R9 m9 e2 I# b6 y% Y- |5 S
But then I also struggled to picture hordes of Star Trek fans queuing up to see Captain Jean-Luc Picard going hard-core with the crew of the Star Trek Enterprise. So what did I know?+ t1 R( O7 s+ a! X k- D& K
3 o: |, x4 R2 D0 T/ N/ l- Z. vThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.: D! V4 }. a( \2 K
- f* I7 f& Q. x5 y( A3 ]+ kIt seems likely that porn will eventually lose its battle against the California regulators, not least because - as well as state penalties - the industry could be about to face some very expensive lawsuits brought by former performers. * t. C- a9 d6 _1 F# `( w. k+ x, y' v& a
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. # S p2 g" {9 F7 ` ~$ ^6 ^: | 1 n+ p. J0 N6 ]; nThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. - \! G( r1 _9 U& U$ t- {2 U; G( ^- Y( @) O# r
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.) l( Q& v0 m+ {
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. : N9 Z# f) J( l! @8 l5 { ! _1 o* I- n. A* k+ m1 H# Y# t& v6 t9 J
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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