. E1 |, }$ k$ P. @! nCalifornia'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. & H, @2 {. M' X. V D) Q5 Z8 u8 O 7 u; s+ U; [0 t1 D. k ZLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.6 _% K8 \ D3 [0 \6 ]$ ]# u( W
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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.2 ?& d+ z$ @- l1 b2 x4 m3 i
2 O2 r( W2 \4 ^2 s1 A+ Q+ JWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. ' T4 j$ O: M3 P! `# t/ f$ h3 _2 H9 M E0 h" Z8 H3 G: q: s5 B2 `+ L
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.9 c3 K! H$ {6 z6 d, x/ E- X# ~4 A
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Performers 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 n' Q. b2 \5 B& ]+ r! [
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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.) o1 `5 C' B- Y$ c6 O
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 8 v- i& K [6 |- b, A( d2 t3 b # t0 }5 D; T+ z, c5 W( S0 GFantasy! B0 p, E7 i3 ]6 k5 T: i. y
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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.; U7 p/ {/ L- k" Q& |! S8 Z
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The problem, increasingly, is revenue.$ u, B9 L" A+ U% w7 _" Q
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. * A( y* N- ^4 w- P9 `. k1 o7 K4 O3 w$ W3 W& P$ W
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.+ P; W! {! _0 Y. A
. d! N4 i# Z6 gAnd the economic downturn does not help. ! S1 n. m) F {! A! K0 x- r+ b. s+ f3 P& R E
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. e4 p" c# i( e+ t$ ^ P
" Q# k* Q1 z: E# ~# }The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. $ R; E5 p9 g+ j& Z8 X, p2 A H( Q: F, I9 h) l- @0 U
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms." h) [ q+ C- D7 [: w1 S7 b1 l9 G
* R3 Q: M: _( ^% Z3 }Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.3 z' Z* @, W& e: [
' H# O+ r9 }- Y( N3 SBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.: g+ {9 r& o) n
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. $ G3 N$ ^- y; N% X# X2 h ] ) c% A5 `: i; i/ pA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.' d* v" K8 B+ ^" y! n$ G2 L2 O/ r
8 D' H; o2 W5 ^1 L+ @* A! ?She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.8 g, y( @1 H2 K6 F2 t! S
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 1 T0 `& H8 T! ^7 X/ u: U) e: e 7 L, Y7 s2 }0 L9 R4 f2 e; l6 LHer 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.; c+ w+ B4 e/ k' `: U) Y
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Each day would be 15 hours long.: l5 Y) c- t, r0 L/ f" O
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.3 V" Q. a3 H0 m" F
' H! W* \8 i8 B) A"You get used to it," she smiled.4 P4 b7 ]* J% E
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"! A7 L5 `( J. u; O( R8 \9 j
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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." 4 J* m2 y- \3 w( q* M5 @9 c" j7 }* G* t3 O
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. 3 {3 O: i# g3 R! w, i3 |( u( l. ?. Q8 ?9 }* F% E0 T6 K
Expensive lawsuits 1 ]# @; c" E! i9 Y3 z" u/ u0 b/ I- o" O$ }
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.' S! o/ q! J; v6 F
6 A& M1 h' i; _A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. ' i5 |6 }( `% \0 D5 `. t# } 6 W3 V: p0 @: R, w% t; ~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+ @" {# [2 L
9 n# o6 _( ~" R! X! BNow, 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. 4 ]. t9 o4 y: n2 t8 p4 A5 z& X! J3 ?1 A2 G# z% C
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" % T; W% N3 S8 b5 T/ ], \ % {; L. O. x3 h; k3 gI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.; i1 ` {+ }1 Z% o2 {
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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? % J5 a# K# x- n& W7 | + e! Z* ?1 z. nThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 1 h- H( _3 k$ j" p- J0 }. T" y; { 0 p: ^$ T; c$ `+ DIt 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.' U) A* v P4 w1 F' J
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. @( i# b R! x1 C' z8 X
! P% o9 E! z% x2 K: |: `The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.% \+ S) b" U1 J: r
: ?0 Z+ f/ c3 ~; o( r, FThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.- Q1 r( @* d/ y( p3 q$ F
0 |/ i& G8 ]" c3 z6 E0 VI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.' T% P' J. f4 ]
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! f+ F* P# M" ]/ I 3 i4 w3 y: q. a! v! M9 k3 TCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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