6 Y+ l9 d: |. L' ?+ PCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 4 t m& Y9 d b0 [
1 P) s+ R" x% f. fCalifornia'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. * H5 `; M8 b4 e' J 0 w$ f2 q. Q' u. h( oLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 0 E4 o% t$ m2 ~ q9 X3 I( C1 V$ x8 s3 k M2 M8 ?$ [* I$ K0 R2 S
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. - B) z! L2 {5 @2 Y # a+ C5 d5 Y. j/ @# k5 m; IWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.) [; s9 H6 H* j+ K7 U% M+ a# q
" L$ D b: B7 M* x2 r. }8 T
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.* _# u& w6 X4 _9 q2 J0 \
G' O6 K4 n9 ^- G# {) j4 D* l6 h, x
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. - }; `: k' v5 E2 D# z ; Z/ e6 O- U3 j' }6 A, C# U. a; 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. ( K( i( `% j5 r7 b8 ` f ) M" C; H, b2 f# k! l' s {Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. : i7 e6 r) V1 `7 m4 |* K1 J2 G( z! @' f2 a! w+ i/ |* Q
Fantasy/ V) K+ Y) S+ r: e( m' _
: t! z+ {8 l7 k4 _- h9 b3 q# QThe 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. . I: o6 z. G3 l6 v ( }$ [6 I" c: {: C! hThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. 7 e7 q8 A0 ^! i6 ^3 v( N# Q$ ? * p# Y5 R9 N" |4 R5 D$ D* {/ cLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 7 z9 ?1 x) i/ @; q3 n% B: s! W5 R4 y- X. {2 i
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. . T* }# K% i; W; n8 Z ?& U0 V Z& t4 v, @0 U
And the economic downturn does not help. ( @1 B: q) S6 _, g- X) [, h) P9 I. Y: A g* E" l, n" }
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.% H s( i% }5 P+ N5 X
0 l2 T" o6 S# |# I
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. * I; l$ Q- T3 Y, I5 J1 H0 C7 q3 o" N
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.7 A) m1 W3 ^' u1 D2 A
# @8 m7 }& a" J: z& uHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 6 d0 w- \3 ]0 f9 R # t/ O& _( u, E' mBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. 8 f2 E* [* |( M, J @+ ^7 f8 K3 K& ]# l' M
Gonorrhoea4 k S2 B0 X: _8 F( q; f( U
& T" m& }1 F" }& C; `' j& R7 rBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 1 G' u# q- c3 k! F+ `/ h0 i7 B4 x4 P# r; h2 g e
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. Y; S- o! E/ R/ [: d6 T z# S& Q! u; N0 Z4 YShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. 4 @0 u: G$ \" L3 ?5 s$ u5 l; L2 h7 P$ R2 H6 q
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 3 o' t8 s% R& I3 a" V; _* p5 z: R, P' ? E# P" n( c$ O9 b$ _( c$ t& |
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.- L, u; P0 y) [* |/ Z
& W4 r! f s% q7 R5 E8 [% m/ vEach day would be 15 hours long.' e- c# E1 N( B* r3 b0 f& `3 _
7 F M5 m' J. N"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. - |3 Z' A( a0 @* w* l8 t5 _3 c3 p: F0 D
"You get used to it," she smiled.) D* h7 l5 L: P. P$ Q/ P: K
/ `8 ]% z) {3 k4 n7 b, F"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" - _! u7 v9 k P/ z# R) F5 b4 `; K N1 W" d. O l" p4 v' }0 P5 t$ U
"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." 7 W, r2 J0 c# F' I5 Q, M 3 B$ n6 [0 i* g6 e5 m" ?There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. - W+ r& X% `& M$ A5 g* L8 E! }* m# L& i$ |: y6 @
Expensive lawsuits c0 X+ L- }$ @8 x 5 S' s' {; g- h- D* G1 G* J# WIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.4 O- H! h/ R+ }1 n
& s* V& H; O# ~% [, `% OA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. ' c9 }* {5 g' ~ P4 F. ?! V p+ `/ N8 n. z
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.# W; o1 Y2 T5 u4 ]- r0 }8 D
' B. x; z( p5 [8 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. , O0 U; T/ O/ g$ S h* n- R; v' }' E9 s+ D
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" . `7 y8 t7 x/ b) J$ @) [, t7 m; x) R f; P+ R5 b$ x# r' D
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 1 z$ Q: `/ x2 ~9 O3 \) j& L, v- ?) e: P2 A
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?2 ~* x" {) ^" R( H3 g5 H5 R
" B. ^: ]$ z% V, TThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. / M2 m, b+ a# m. K- s/ \/ n) M7 t0 V9 V) W& I
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. " ?! u k8 y/ w( t) t$ W3 X2 V" [# r, n* x$ g
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.5 I0 J) |/ C8 P+ `
" h" v. w% \0 z0 u; Y' U/ cThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 1 b4 J3 b; B7 x- O: A$ t, m3 r6 P" p# r, m' h1 p
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.# Z# O- V! O/ {$ t& U
) U" }, I( t& l) f8 o, T7 V
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. * ~6 V+ H& y# ^7 g8 w* L. e* r6 d" Z" _8 {1 M # L+ F1 G. x# S" o' v
* H& N: _: U) l& V0 O- A. C ' @: a0 ^ |1 E4 G
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
4 {/ G% |3 E; v5 _
# L+ F1 G. x# S" o' v
' @: a0 ^ |1 E4 G