# }9 X6 G o6 p制片人说，这对雇员没有任何好处，只会迫使制片公司搬到海外、或者转移到地下去拍片。观众想看的，就一定能看得到。 1 X) h% @( H) r2 E8 m 5 c3 L" J. T9 J0 d9 f宝碧也有同感。事实上，这也正是她开始脱衣服、准备开拍性爱场面之前说的告别词。7 C' u+ ?) D0 t. y3 M' Y' ]' t$ @
$ P5 `* P6 f. U. E我想，我看的已经够多了。我悄悄地离开拍摄现场，重新回到淅淅沥沥的小雨中…….6 a6 D3 S, A, u7 u( J
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles / y% X1 [5 Y2 J- O- x1 |. Z
6 H; m+ _" t* \; I8 R4 b! g0 @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. 5 o& b2 p4 {- m 0 s( R; E/ o3 y: m& ULight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. l+ y/ T/ J* o/ I+ x+ ]0 m
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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.. ]3 A w' L' ~5 ~! M# q
8 f( q1 S f2 M3 [/ aWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 2 J# b6 Y S( f9 D6 ` , G7 P2 R( f8 m; Y3 {7 Z& kThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga." z+ M. b! Z9 o1 Z
( u9 r5 E1 I5 J* u0 w' R, DPerformers 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. 3 r6 e4 ~$ |3 q; D) L % ~; x( ^" u. T8 y: R0 KThis 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.' A% k9 |7 Y& m$ ?
) u3 C$ c* w# T' t. bOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.4 G% ^5 X" b. Z2 T; ]0 B
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" i, v h; X! O1 IThe 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% l3 B [$ Q5 f& w 1 V. d' E4 b" s/ X# Y4 v1 [; D+ A$ ?1 HThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.+ Q h3 v) }' k. k8 F5 c/ B
" E% v* s! A& K9 F& X+ _" yLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. `! F' x5 u& }! m1 ?
7 l( L& I. ~2 n; a$ P- b- `7 FDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.# a! {$ |: z9 B$ {" E
) H4 f6 X5 q% X% {) R# UAnd the economic downturn does not help.( S! k/ x4 n/ D' ?: \
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"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. ' ?; @- o; b3 ]: r; A+ F. q* f+ v" c6 {1 l) `( D' R4 [
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. ! T: O; M; v( U! |# Z" v" M8 X2 X1 I
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.( K2 U5 A1 B* q& n& U6 R& F
; Z7 q4 q, }0 p5 ^, I( o" mHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. " r* V' q4 e7 O" a8 l8 E6 F2 j- w/ p0 O6 ^0 ]/ l, x* F
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.3 I9 j( }+ d: {8 b/ s
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.; ?- y! Q+ k& q
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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.1 e$ {3 c# g' |
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. 3 W% k9 x6 e- g* N: t* B & I: {/ n% u: N5 N3 X"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"* p j, t+ g' K
' {- Y, D9 w" T+ p9 KHer 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. % d% _8 U: G: x& F6 Z5 t( |- I/ i2 V: P( U) J
Each day would be 15 hours long. % X9 w+ P ^( h! `$ P$ ~1 s$ e& L2 P# t6 V( Y% y3 f" D# A. E! E
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. " V& E# ]9 v" q1 {7 B 3 V W) m; v+ G4 i"You get used to it," she smiled.' c, \9 U# m+ S3 s( I9 _9 z: J
7 s/ |0 P" h# h; [/ m5 Y8 P"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"* ~+ S6 ]0 {, s
, s& N' E- i4 H4 ^' Z0 Z7 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."1 x. p" ?; ^# W: \
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.* z+ [& J& _- r! U
6 N& d) @/ F# e, @: dExpensive lawsuits8 J; w7 k3 q: T" H
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business." S5 H% U" y! m2 E* I
: M. M" o: c2 r/ A! S7 G7 x- dA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. / K3 K6 s( E/ f3 p9 F- s 9 m! }2 s# K& \4 K/ l' t0 {- s" `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. : D) {, E3 S* s% f* _( j q I3 V: b + ?% N$ G( T% R7 `Now, 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.; Q: q6 V1 F @# a) i0 Z, w4 t
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"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 7 T# j0 W- \8 c( }1 R+ [, f! t ( Z6 i5 r1 b4 x) W) A- a- G& C, II struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. $ }4 T! S, [: T ( U/ b! d6 s w8 H, lBut 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? ! L8 L7 v" S1 J; f$ T 0 N" ~8 N/ I& e$ \3 z& L" mThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.3 s2 G" u+ j. y: k: l
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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./ Z! l0 c1 B* }) N- @) w' W' B
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 6 H6 w" i; l4 |/ B. m& ~3 {" Q$ n6 V+ Q7 P" L
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants./ \" W* f: [/ n* S8 `) C8 q
" R: _4 N* P, y. _% h4 s# |That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. . Z" X7 c3 M0 W; v, w# v* G 1 ^6 f; ^/ |, |" q1 d. O/ \I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. + b$ d4 }" {! A0 S- B* M ) {4 O7 [6 J2 } W3 X: \. K' L5 o' H3 H3 `) Z
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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