# M3 ?& I" d2 T% j7 {/ c5 K& S 7 {! o, d8 l8 g8 E4 ?, ZCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles . d8 l H" g+ S" I ) ^: c2 I1 s N( j: b# GCalifornia'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.8 j% k$ C! ~& u& I0 Y: J2 x$ N6 e
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. $ K$ |' j4 U' a: q* ?7 K( u) A6 F, Q0 ^$ P5 ~
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.$ V: d- Q/ D0 E
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What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 3 q5 ^. x6 p0 ]4 A! o) ` 2 r1 p& |1 f3 \" |The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 4 O* i5 S* L5 N# L ' a. G: g: U8 R9 Q# t- t6 zPerformers 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. ) }% l$ S* i' d( q* j$ a% p 9 u4 C; S- m7 u- vThis 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. + k( F) ? F1 h7 ~$ v( B. n5 z( E( r
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 1 O0 z" W( _# @) l) x' V" l, ]) h' S! M1 {& b, z' o4 \8 ]
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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.: m& U7 J( {8 ?) X! w
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The problem, increasingly, is revenue. ' _1 A" b- Q, R& y) [9 ^9 ]$ N 6 ]5 h, Y/ `+ U; n( M6 y/ K; r$ ALike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.+ G" O4 d4 W6 E
7 T$ b% o% p, K" UDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.; C+ | O. ~: V* Y. R
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And the economic downturn does not help.7 H' v' m6 K- n9 k1 a" q
) T/ r6 [" S1 N9 a F"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. # ^" L/ i0 \( I6 Y# T, w* O2 `% k7 U7 \) F | C
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations." F* {0 ]! v* P+ R. `) x, {( E
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 6 ^2 E s7 y" y: \; J* M. Z( ?, M7 ^ @( M0 w- W6 }0 l6 M4 Q
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 7 [: l i% @% o/ _ % {+ i0 e/ C( B; R+ `" WBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say., d/ t6 R D! X
% o& u, A; B. n" B0 nGonorrhoea 3 w. f! D0 o7 f h$ i . G) w1 C6 ~7 F% {- k" |Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. / \0 z6 q/ n% s8 B& F0 T 1 g3 K$ X- U: J1 z# Z; ^0 d' xA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.3 U: v2 V; y+ X3 X
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.+ u5 y7 H; e" [6 ^: y
- z( R5 |: H% O% ^; }"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"3 I- M, }& l Z+ q' h4 ~4 P; p5 G
7 C3 g2 T9 e5 gHer 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.7 |' @# J: L" z( W/ J
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Each day would be 15 hours long.; ?" r4 K, R3 x* S
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.! U5 c9 t* f$ m) D$ T$ |1 t
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"You get used to it," she smiled. 5 `6 J" V F. n% V6 Q/ f. ?6 n, m, I6 T3 u6 x6 b
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" # G ]2 g9 p c' f 3 i* R5 C- p1 p, l2 ["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." / V4 A, v- P+ _0 x( w) g/ H/ c# Q+ c! o6 ^: V2 K
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.- x1 C. t. S8 ?9 m! X3 V
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Expensive lawsuits 7 s8 I) w( B9 j9 K) V% r* g, ?$ h) v
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business." P, u7 v9 \& n. E) s$ m# t3 W" p
/ {$ O+ v1 l8 x* r( oA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. ) s& E) ]4 z9 s / S! V4 Z( T' K2 IIt 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. + K" H2 j3 x! |2 ]; _, |) Z9 I8 F; F8 c
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.# W/ O" h3 E/ t. u. P r: X
$ F( a6 h* Y$ E$ W2 l3 x+ n"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 9 g+ v$ O! M3 @& P+ e8 F 3 u E) _: B9 AI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.+ E6 U# t' R: b8 j! Z
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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?( ?! V6 Q5 U% v5 @6 Y( ?$ Z
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The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.! i7 n0 g8 }, P3 M
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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. 7 e/ c9 e9 E+ o& Z, F! V0 s0 C0 x+ E/ F L* m8 _1 j
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.1 i" d `, }3 B* x0 e
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The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 6 X) L* \1 m9 f0 E: @+ N/ {" G# B' O1 l8 O8 E I
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. : t* @9 n, L- M+ |# P$ i4 A" s$ d2 C' M y' p9 l$ Q
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.5 {* x* W, Z/ X. R+ k
) w+ A ?) n4 p/ v + A; l' v$ }8 Q* f, Z8 h3 e. r ) D) d# A/ H- \- T ( ?; m* |3 u) @2 ~Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
