* i R' C, }* ~" G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。 : X0 e* a2 F. k! m0 B% b% d. f6 s8 c+ W* {+ m [6 G& O- S6 {
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…….3 x' v. c6 }) K: F+ ^, \
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 1 c/ e* C3 J8 t5 [5 a4 l2 K
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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.. _" r0 g2 x" c: C. J
+ T" H/ C/ z! U; [Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles., i5 H' s/ S& d7 F$ L- X/ K( Y
: T4 m/ V' N: a" W4 R# WI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. % h. f& l* L- h3 W* c $ J* j% k4 C. F+ IWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. ( ^8 ?) G; w4 N; t! c9 i' M. a- n ! e$ t: c l7 Q6 B+ YThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. + s. E$ d6 O. |' X! ?* Z E& ? }$ k1 E; I4 i
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.0 \. b) A% m# `# t, Q
4 c! Y! g$ @4 f1 SThis 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. 9 w$ i; R2 e B3 w5 w" `$ d( g! U) k, d1 B0 v( g
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed., v/ h2 s3 m" m0 x, |
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Fantasy " g, k' B. ]5 C1 E/ b% K ) F4 i0 f8 _. e; ZThe 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.. V' l Y+ m& `( {4 p* r! q: I; d
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The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 5 p1 ]* X8 Y; L: o ~+ p. e 4 w) D/ M, I! A( b; w# k. l6 T) _Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. - p" q* n6 k M( u% O/ r1 Y& i$ z! J0 g/ P1 c9 V
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.' {- M: Y7 n) L T6 p7 d8 O
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And the economic downturn does not help. * Y* q$ l7 G6 a- W 9 I; X: _; s7 ]5 j"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. " t) S3 {2 E* x+ j0 `! |2 x6 U) U5 t, }; ?% b2 F0 L7 A, A
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.- T. J& j& R$ \! M
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 9 `) Z1 y+ Y& f: z! Q2 M, [' R" }$ S) U# Q
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 4 M u0 O2 M" d; f% [* S # K `- l& E! X% \7 {4 H, BBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. 7 \4 P: h! {5 h) i$ g; N6 W% C% X0 Q
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, O& ~: J9 R' U8 o+ R" MBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. C4 D; v5 Q f 7 L' L8 }4 X9 T! g) _A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 7 X$ ?# l8 q) x* W8 D 8 n# `4 F' Y; p. cShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.( |, m# u2 n. K/ y0 E
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" , I: T1 h, X- J0 V" ^5 S7 J" A$ h# x
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. U5 q% Y$ |$ @) {3 D5 ~8 f9 h8 S4 g. i1 i# X
Each day would be 15 hours long. 3 x" E5 P% }9 N9 U- b, Z! j/ T# Z) o2 w" _. e* p% b9 P
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. ( | F: ?: U/ x& U4 \& T1 k& _9 W4 J$ l! m( o% ]
"You get used to it," she smiled.0 M# {4 [& [" k. @7 }( P; ?3 u
9 s+ g: B% P, s4 o"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 6 J" F) m, d, F! D* f 0 v5 q' k- ?; d"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." # o+ ~, P Q! [3 r% H. @" @' x1 q , Y. D" D8 G% y9 }( v3 {; tThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided./ {* X" K M6 T# ~8 |, Q* @3 p
* g- V* o! A( nIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 9 `8 p5 F- F4 O, I" h8 K' b4 m; ? % R" K& X v4 [5 A+ o: W; |8 MA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 2 j$ ^3 ^ {. Y# k0 s8 G 5 x9 N/ ^5 |: M/ S* L+ A0 bIt 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 L! l2 y; D1 d: v& P4 _# ?% W. E! ?; c: `; r# C. V$ n
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. / A% j* X+ ]0 w2 [- k/ o9 E, P1 Z/ k* _. D8 G% u- Z
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?") S* ^8 G# u$ w% }1 ~
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. % v# W. K' @( v I" P4 r6 S % {: S& y! p, \( c% n2 k' l) OBut then I also struggled to picture hordes of Star Trek fans queuing up to see Captain Jean-Luc Picard going hard-core with the crew of the Star Trek Enterprise. So what did I know? % z C7 g, c0 \; F% K4 A% M3 G0 @# S- V1 T, O
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. - k8 E2 B- T* L4 c4 Y6 M }& l8 E$ b! ?) O) p# T& P6 H. j8 {
It seems likely that porn will eventually lose its battle against the California regulators, not least because - as well as state penalties - the industry could be about to face some very expensive lawsuits brought by former performers./ r& J. Q. K7 m% ^' d; g6 `7 Q \
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.$ f- o/ X" @- ]) `$ e* x& ?
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The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. , b" P6 c5 I2 U7 U1 \) y- j% W# r: d$ v/ ?# ?
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.+ Z! _- L# N7 M, I
( ?8 g6 H9 P: l% d' @I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 7 q7 U% C2 x/ e) Q) g5 F * }+ l& V5 X5 X, c, K7 R 8 o! Z% y* S- p! `# j" f3 Y, p0 W' A: r- X+ j1 s ( X! [% d+ g' T& J# X. RCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
