f& o3 E, V; zCalifornia'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.# y; @7 ~2 x/ g9 p
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.8 u# w$ J# {7 q' s( T; v% L
2 \7 K0 C2 R! F7 O6 rI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. ' [* e& P/ u1 g; Z $ K m; J' _' a3 u, \/ ]What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.3 W3 b' {1 {) X. N5 J
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The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga., V, }: x) `* A7 t
5 m) Y6 L& Q- z! q$ VPerformers 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.: M/ R6 z: s; B' \5 N$ y; c% q N6 \
4 ?( t m2 v" V; i2 X2 p& c; i: UThis 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. , E- U3 r5 ~5 {5 y, r2 B1 V4 r! i0 ?9 E, U
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 1 X' K$ c+ v7 D: L4 y : _+ h$ }8 _" p$ l' A+ Z: n( n/ EFantasy ' m3 x% F( W+ \: @7 g2 y( u! u. K. G: {( L$ A' t0 x. U$ D
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.1 b0 q( W, J h! H
) J7 S* @$ X! [9 f7 u iThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. / \( i" O2 `1 n: g9 e% |- Y4 Y J; X5 W' m. s
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. ( u3 _; `. T' P0 \& R# w 8 d5 D+ {( L$ K% ]6 }DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. % E8 g7 C7 ?/ l$ O/ O1 ]5 R # o% v3 K, T9 W3 JAnd the economic downturn does not help. / q* S; ]7 _* R7 w + s y& `; ~4 P"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.) A5 V# I( `/ t5 r
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. " j1 q9 e# b X1 T $ s" f/ z. n+ b& s, dFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.0 r/ r) ]; U( O F
9 N$ Z7 y2 ?' x; Z: MHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 3 K% I' A7 B1 y7 ^3 S D5 _. }2 e& R) P J& R" ~* t% k
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.2 p6 ]7 b! u1 M6 V2 B! \% Q, _8 S
* C0 A! x" x9 ~, q7 UGonorrhoea : B# H' l) C% P, s8 t' v d* p |; [2 r; l, u3 }+ d
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.) Y0 L E7 Z3 C* ^7 }, j2 L7 a3 z# l
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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.) c( a, |* l8 S3 ^2 L+ A
! L6 L5 W( S2 _1 bShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.! q7 N7 `+ q4 H4 f% z+ Y
0 {* x+ D9 y @) |8 h, d! Y"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"" o6 U1 e* P" b0 a; ^
1 f/ Y+ r9 S9 l, |8 h/ XHer 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.6 |& U% M6 H/ c1 P9 r
" W$ r4 y" D+ S# G L. `Each day would be 15 hours long. $ O8 i7 S/ a$ J : s# u# w4 B; P"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. A+ C% \$ i0 s8 t& c& S
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"You get used to it," she smiled.8 Z0 J5 c, F2 j G
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"7 z% e0 W0 T, y" V) |
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"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."9 a0 c) W! ^+ \. T# ]2 d) S
; i1 V+ F6 E6 j/ NThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. - t: c. L1 _2 u4 |5 D2 s) Y/ V% g' p0 l- a1 u
Expensive lawsuits 2 R: S# a- f" M8 A/ I " d1 J& E& V( Q4 S6 D9 T* f: ZIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business." n6 Y# b1 g) n" o2 ?7 i7 T8 j$ _
" @, m1 ^- M1 M' P$ S. _- @A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.# I% ]* q! [, e' B S' C
m+ [7 p2 d a* Q8 `, X lIt 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. $ A! g+ p8 F4 V% |6 s) E4 G0 h. p% D* c6 ?1 v, N _$ J8 W
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. / s6 ^" H9 ^+ s+ {5 a 8 R( r% |0 C/ w, N5 K. L ^8 D4 @"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" # G& Q; P1 m3 o E2 j$ K( G- Z, o+ W1 y
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 0 r9 `9 e" Y' L% A4 ~1 c& q/ k+ e # s5 b. Y8 G! [" q* oBut 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? " \2 T) `) U8 X! L7 W8 V& f( s2 H: E9 v- c: R/ q0 j
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. % b( F8 r ?0 @ " b" V. G% p( N# [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. * ]6 C; _' @3 O ' u* X0 L" n3 ?- oA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 5 t/ ]3 v6 j. z- @( h0 ^/ T0 Z' ?4 F* B5 C
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.' \/ `( ?" z3 C$ l
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That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.: L: D3 r1 X* t/ v' e7 k% C9 F }
4 Y8 A P8 V6 G! q( GI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 4 u H, U# d w$ q 3 ~- O \9 X9 D+ I2 v& g , G @. y! z8 ?- A- _) k1 A8 | % P |% R5 Y% \( w 7 l2 T ^9 ]5 S/ R- ]4 _4 fCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
