0 `& D9 w: K+ d- D' CCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles & l/ a# I% z3 N6 I& _) a
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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. 9 ` `2 t# I( `5 Q . M* y; J# B" G1 J+ p' KLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. * E6 ?1 h% E" R, e; h" \6 t/ k - E' C$ k% s" r: Z1 \* k R4 }6 g3 DI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. - w3 c8 f# e( Z: h5 e5 r 4 j; y3 v. t+ t" ~2 tWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.0 K, G5 I, ^1 O+ r& F1 S
; A% h' b0 G9 I- K* ?The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.1 R* W, X* I4 y; X, w1 k
. I8 @; h( Q- c/ 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. ' ^4 F% k7 E q3 H 6 _1 u- K! R/ }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. ( s$ c- F$ z1 T% _/ [5 Y # n& Z, _/ m; r& cOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.4 `4 v' }- W; H0 s! _
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Fantasy' }9 r4 W8 j0 G: |6 b- f$ Y( x8 t
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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. 8 u2 B7 k9 ^9 f6 f. w* N; D0 `: |7 F
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. ; q% s$ `# M0 H* {" K t* l X) z* G( b" }
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.( S( y+ J9 j0 f% K1 e# G) Q9 Q
/ s9 i: h9 X( d% P% C* l( ADVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.' m% |% ?3 `1 C* p
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And the economic downturn does not help. 5 `: u: Z+ f- d5 i- R9 g0 P5 m( g4 X% d
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.# H- g8 y; b; z5 ?( \ |$ ?
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. 9 [/ [' x% R9 c0 `" Z& q' K' F/ d- p2 j% M) t) p* n! a
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 4 N, E, X9 v- A0 N & Q" _ Z1 r) a$ g3 L& tHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. - V2 ^1 I% T) X! R6 a% a6 z: u% g `) ~, f/ [' a
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. , E' X t7 a- x( S( Q, @* n. X4 n; E9 w
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.# R$ Z) [8 _5 L+ U
. y. T* G/ {9 s9 kA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.- Q( I/ `7 @+ ?/ p* ~) d8 ^ \
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. $ m$ b4 E3 W1 T q* O: O) y7 l3 f0 Y- U
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" , ^$ u2 d9 G5 N8 A3 N1 k& Q U% b+ D6 S: m
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. 7 _0 ^: y8 P, `8 R) }7 [, {0 o8 b; m5 ]! Y' F$ t
Each day would be 15 hours long. 1 \) F, E1 t, ] B* r# _' |# A( Q! o4 a. w0 ~, c
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.' y9 I" V$ d8 M4 @, X
4 |2 r# y N' c ^"You get used to it," she smiled. + w9 U0 ^& W3 |& @4 l1 e+ u ]6 t" p% l' e8 [# D
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"' g3 H' y# i$ _8 ^ v/ a* W
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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." ! ~# w& T' ]+ b. o - _/ y5 g1 z, G. P# c$ eThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.% P2 Q' p8 B" A' p' E) ^
+ t8 P N1 k* TExpensive lawsuits 5 ^. q( C! \! a. T" Y% l0 P; Z& |3 c6 ^. B9 I+ f, ?; j
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 0 N) {4 q( v( C: r# @" ]' K) _ 4 Y. L0 |$ { m3 D( hA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.5 k: n& t1 E. e- B
' z, E1 `; G }. @, }& [5 p' x3 ~# KIt 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. 4 X. H- g* x- r / A9 R% l* h& c* qNow, 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. * Q1 y, c) ?6 r- C; @5 m0 }( K4 E( F$ T' H
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" , p1 L/ U: d% U. N k, \. s1 ^" ?
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 1 m/ ?! K1 f3 N9 A( e# G / A- O& J e: l6 t6 o- mBut 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? 3 X/ X; g: q! @% E5 \* X3 r4 X3 d5 J& ]" q" ]* I* N( b/ t8 ^+ |
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 8 x- W& s7 I, f' l, m: z- i' { ' H5 W) M2 z" o1 ~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.+ m' K( G8 c7 c% \
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.. S8 N$ i0 J0 N8 T) a. g3 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./ X6 i, w% z& B/ i
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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. * h2 S0 K* P3 g: u+ {4 Y ; R6 L! G9 C" J6 m( C, LI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.9 b% x& R$ B. A& w8 q
. M4 U1 y( Z7 L4 H " v( K3 r0 z" M+ ?' K; q1 P . @/ n. y' Y7 \2 r0 D $ ~' } {3 j1 x4 m; Q5 ICalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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