& m$ X" G1 Z; `' h, H& d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。 ) y, T$ ?! L1 d {3 K* [! n& x/ J; j* s, y' B
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。9 H8 k; E4 H/ a6 x7 h3 o1 v ]
, {8 k9 ?) d8 `/ [' ]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……./ Q" v+ c( [; t7 h
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3 u9 H1 e6 h5 Y3 B1 Z1 fCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles ! j% R# O% z {' J- d( i+ k7 c $ \2 {" v3 T( O: B+ BCalifornia'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.3 A/ ` a1 B) m) f7 H
: K, w m M, O) uLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.8 ^1 Z) J' [0 W4 Y, H# A
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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. ) k. S+ A1 ?: p; |. k5 W+ a1 S9 _0 d$ P6 s( D6 Q
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. ' R2 A4 ]# t" [! B/ e # E3 V" v5 }0 I+ UThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.+ Y3 n; {! L2 V, }
4 |# B3 c1 [- Q/ b; l$ }: i2 jPerformers 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. 1 x5 z/ M! ?0 g s % E; a) r: W. \2 q. 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. # M" A$ c1 u, `+ z4 s O( Y p1 G- K! h' [' oOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. ! Y7 P7 i; X; ], u$ g! T ( x, i1 x( y( eFantasy3 q7 L6 J* H) s& w; r; f( @
; S1 m' o ~* N6 k& u$ }, ]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.. h, [; z3 ~+ R
) X; [. X8 @2 W9 v3 X# o) DThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. 8 {# u8 q$ y) y/ q; [5 W) F5 M% p7 \0 ]
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 9 q6 M$ z& S! p6 w0 z- j6 C $ T# L1 c+ S* H l3 t3 \( @ jDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.( g9 {9 `5 g" k$ v
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And the economic downturn does not help. % R; e8 C& O3 p. ` # V9 F! _5 Q+ q- c1 A"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.7 c" s9 P: q* y( B8 E0 ^, @
6 L, I) S, W* b7 JThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.1 \! `: C& N* Y
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms., k" q( t9 d3 O3 U$ R# W9 L+ r
5 d1 R; E0 a" f8 _5 HHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.5 M6 m1 o# T. k! A! B r. v
6 W5 D9 X5 u5 |0 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. % D3 |8 S' y4 J" p+ n2 v. O4 S# w- \1 m( c
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! s" F, T; ~2 \( l" OBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. * B9 ?. D8 I6 _8 ]) B2 H* g# F7 y0 O- u- T) c) c/ y3 u: \8 H) J* w
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 3 w' A8 O/ u; ~7 o 9 m& G/ l' t5 l+ s NShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.0 u- V0 z. u @9 C) w
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" D7 v" V' p, E
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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.! s* \& w, s. [ w; q& `! }
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Each day would be 15 hours long. 2 J; O9 g( q% l0 H, \7 { 9 m' W; U& k Z8 C1 g"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. - C$ `- i- C9 E$ S" Z$ V, @% W" j) O3 p" Q }8 W
"You get used to it," she smiled.) Z' N/ S3 C; }. V
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"( @- [& M* ^: q# d
# x% m# f x2 Y+ l"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." ( k9 N+ x+ G7 f V5 Z7 R# }: t7 @2 z5 U+ T$ ]4 _1 @
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ! c5 p/ N1 \6 R* w1 f+ G " Z8 b' q9 Y& i- \9 T/ {/ nExpensive lawsuits T8 W4 Z/ M9 x9 V
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.5 S3 T7 l9 G. n, Z m' D+ h3 W
/ ^) s+ e1 B0 J3 G3 I0 x* I/ _A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. . S/ U ^6 h5 P2 e+ D {$ p# y2 y- w # l5 ?6 Z7 Y, | \. P/ ]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.. I. y4 `" j, E/ U& |. s
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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.5 y# i" s7 T" @2 _& g2 X
0 D( \+ h4 S' t$ ] o# o"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" ! c$ g2 T# S+ C" X( P, Z2 [ - {- h0 ?7 l3 mI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. . D/ h* X& l2 c0 n( C" R2 ]) v! s0 R7 l; O1 B4 F- ?$ n9 u
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?7 a) ?) d& B% s
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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. x3 h4 c. F# N' }$ g8 O . v) A- [: |% E% d1 U1 P4 uIt 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. - c$ o: u3 I5 C& s1 X3 K$ O" [! M6 i' k" j& h' ?4 `6 ~4 r1 v* t
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 5 J; ?; w% t; A* C$ ?' Y3 z, Z; Y) b5 Y$ P7 V# ?& n3 W
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. ! y* u; K# b4 L6 ^6 K. b; X/ B1 n/ {4 {+ e% f% E
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.; g0 u8 H) ]! k1 Q |5 h
. M' s9 p5 Z' t" R% n+ }/ T9 b ?* yI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. - ^1 U: I5 ^% s3 ~4 V9 N & O k+ R1 X3 j) O- b$ q # v: K5 p: [( s3 `1 F/ |1 c$ J# r9 j2 _, F4 U% R1 g b2 w! F) L; ~ $ W2 K/ M6 u# w% W# c% s) u, F
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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