! t( S2 Z3 i9 bCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles - E2 p9 a2 q1 p# F' F
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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." z6 Z! h) R' N4 X; F- W0 p
* U( x5 Z* D: j4 p* W: @Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. : x7 e1 Q3 o* N1 T" r7 e / H% |0 T! o) b0 b9 g- \; Z7 i/ hI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. ' v0 j% P, x; H+ P0 t$ D8 }2 B ^& _0 j- `- g8 \
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. " m% T6 V( |" A; @! z % ]1 y; Q" x, L& A" h# g# M/ XThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 7 g$ E: G9 o2 v8 c' B+ Q1 t# G0 p' e i9 L
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., ?5 Q8 i# A4 j
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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.0 w0 u: F8 J8 x$ d% N8 X
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. / w# q" W% Z) S* p: _ " ?2 l& F5 A9 L5 N* I0 s) |, DFantasy( i; e0 z; g" ]4 ]0 w
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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 Z% j+ Q# J6 z; K0 \8 z2 ~$ |" d" y1 g. H, D/ Q, C* P! A. P$ e
The problem, increasingly, is revenue., d; k u0 d- p5 U+ f v# V9 ?& u
, V" l" z+ S- |0 k# I' tLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. - V# P" b5 |" ^9 y9 w8 I# K: n6 [- v7 [5 c6 o4 h3 J
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. , V; |; u+ X( n , `$ o: a& g! M/ K2 p% Q9 \3 s9 ?And the economic downturn does not help. : P+ S* O( h; C$ F) A% ]# [- c' h# T/ c9 L' H
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. * M3 W& U1 H9 d1 e5 u5 M' Y& x/ [0 N& s6 E
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. # K M% T& @) s% Y+ O " V, w/ N) h- T- m9 ]For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 7 w3 Y6 ^4 k r' g- `$ H: N7 |* A' T& y {7 n0 P* z) B- v# `& }4 R
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 5 ^: W7 ?5 y: ?5 A 5 c$ ~2 F. n" N; Z7 _, iBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.1 C* R9 }) `6 _; E6 x: q" |
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Gonorrhoea % ~% X$ l/ ^! P2 C# p) B5 z! \1 m, ]+ E1 F% O/ Z9 i! ?: e
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.- H7 M( X3 z% b' O8 K
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A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.- U. Q2 E( ]2 N" z9 ?2 S
5 x8 a ]; f$ n" m* J: pShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. " O1 ~4 U# E- d6 C# ?, f5 s; L+ {- e' `& s$ L- q
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"( |! E6 T4 ]1 w
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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. / `+ P# Q4 _& @& t$ M& x/ P9 ?1 ]$ Q" }; |& n& @6 M
Each day would be 15 hours long. & s) @* F% y$ m( h. Y% j8 ?4 i( Z! D( V* h$ N% V! H+ m! R" \
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.$ M$ {( a7 j$ E, ~9 z# j
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"You get used to it," she smiled.4 M% N; C0 y+ h% X) s
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" " i% `9 s3 p ?* A3 `$ Y( x- u8 D+ a& {* S- i/ i
"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." 5 J. V& P) ]4 m2 j8 h$ F+ V 1 `$ j; B; F% o8 BThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.) m2 F( @' Y- C- c! d, F
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Expensive lawsuits6 H/ R5 K) [% c9 |& X
; V; |" p- s. z3 m; X, V6 ZIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. ' P9 [$ p. l8 d: \) J- w# C" P9 |$ p4 i
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.( }4 n3 n% L- ?/ ?
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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.+ f: |0 i5 q$ b! k, t$ A
% Q% R6 g$ ^& V2 }4 cNow, 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. * R5 ]/ v" {" d8 l5 q$ H5 Y ` H" D) G- Z3 L9 ~/ L
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 2 F- C0 Y6 X! ` `6 t * a k7 U; b+ l5 F0 D# b2 f9 l: [I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 2 c6 u: y2 [! V6 |% m; E2 Y5 s" m
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? 1 r5 A: v0 b4 g% g( j 3 |, I* u- {4 V1 t0 d$ WThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 9 a& x) d6 I- @; \) v, n+ ~% E- U7 ~$ J- f9 D: z
It 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.9 b3 z' ^! _, ?0 i7 c+ H0 ]
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. ) E0 V, W7 ?4 g6 ?+ v ^' h6 U% q/ y+ a
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. X) }! F# ]+ ?6 y0 d3 G K2 z: u, ^& b! ^/ d1 JThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.0 j- i O, a0 J8 s+ q
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.5 m! f5 O5 r" ^0 U- T+ ]+ C. p
1 P4 [# \# H& o& @3 E) m # q% V8 c( Z. E. Y0 |8 E * X+ _$ `; v, H1 S $ O- v6 ?+ _- xCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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