6 J4 v- F9 M/ r2 W# h! l/ m! o# I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…….% G( ^" \7 E5 Z- y+ g
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% v+ _: \7 X2 ?& B- M6 \& E% W3 vCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 3 e% s7 z& v0 w % g% C6 i% c9 e" r$ ZCalifornia'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.- N' p! _ D" p) h6 s8 I# b8 D
9 E. N( l% u: R: s! BLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. t4 \2 p. e$ M& M7 g4 `; V 9 @4 n4 r: r8 `- Z- P0 ` q7 PI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.' X7 |0 @+ H" E: c
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What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.% t2 `4 j; C1 @! X g
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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 v" g1 Q: O$ s0 B5 K8 `1 w f: B7 o/ s3 [; G
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.5 U, n6 u0 M( a3 t/ }
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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.$ I, {8 a" C- i
, u; Q1 H7 b( dOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. " Q$ `: m+ p2 [2 I6 S; q4 _1 Q # {1 y9 E% _' R0 e% z8 RFantasy 5 M4 T3 l- w) y2 P8 p7 M5 Q* G% n
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. : U! f; F, w, }1 E* \& k X, m8 x5 r& A( i4 ~$ e; T
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 7 d4 K# ^, z* r8 m. R# l3 ]2 `) R2 ?8 [* i6 C4 H. M
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. $ P1 y/ }" L- b/ Z1 W: F1 C' ^) ?# _3 L* s- d4 f
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.4 i; o, r7 C/ }+ G8 r6 L
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And the economic downturn does not help./ R7 i% E. f; h- m9 \
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"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.5 q3 Q. F$ E0 W+ }! A
4 ? v, Y& [( jThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations./ @! n8 J: @0 w: w! Y) U4 D* G
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.5 z2 T* ^, d# z+ y5 r, N Q
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Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. ; R, V. ]6 }& P4 v" J5 y" Z $ T4 Q/ j+ |( E: U% B- e8 p/ EBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.3 e, |8 e8 `( Z, U" F1 ^
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Gonorrhoea) q5 ~. u; d, ]" ^1 O: E4 f
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.+ w* Z8 ]$ B7 S+ q3 i5 a3 _
: _: a, E8 s0 F! U' m# ZA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.% S5 Y; g1 ^3 q* l: C+ _9 p
0 M, F% ~. b& M- d( z4 aShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. ; _+ b, k+ t0 H, K+ J1 ~1 p& x2 g$ i- W& I' v' e# }' J/ B' m
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"& Y' m( t! J4 ~' p5 t1 a. ^5 l
9 e7 @0 C* d& O4 IHer 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. 3 o2 N0 Z9 @1 z( F; S* ?. w, [ 1 h& w3 Z" m/ _; e% C, NEach day would be 15 hours long.' g( S# c5 `$ t
% K) V, q R( T% M; B; n"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. ) x+ k4 _" Y) L# m! ] y0 k; a1 Q' \( `6 }$ @1 @
"You get used to it," she smiled.: f7 n: F6 c. l, j- T+ h
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"2 {2 N- i: J4 y* n
- O8 o5 I% e! o5 l4 B+ g"Well, just chlamydia a couple of times, gonorrhoea - nothing much. Anyway, we test each month so, when you're diagnosed, you just take your medication and you're good to go. No problem." - r" F5 j! h8 R+ z1 R$ K; M: Z3 X; o3 [# |$ [1 c0 m+ V9 R
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided." j8 N% I3 e7 b) k+ Q
, i0 i1 p O* o& OExpensive lawsuits 4 E5 ?% p$ d' M+ O6 P5 b8 z* v7 d4 ~1 C
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.$ Q; W( a) N7 e7 A, ]: b0 S. C
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A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.9 J6 e+ [9 j1 u
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It had taken a Supreme Court battle back in the 1980s to make porn legal in California in the first place, formally distinguishing it from common-or-garden prostitution. . k* Q' n% V! } % G, d7 B0 e2 M. c) lNow, many I met spoke of the right not to wear condoms as a key aspect of their constitutional right to free speech, as set out by the Founding Fathers./ @( ~1 \# N/ F H6 j3 w- X
$ l) p i0 n; U; k"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" + O/ G C$ V+ l % O. y' ]+ T* C' l9 p3 X/ VI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. ' {- K0 {) i4 L $ y) |! p! `: p. JBut then I also struggled to picture hordes of Star Trek fans queuing up to see Captain Jean-Luc Picard going hard-core with the crew of the Star Trek Enterprise. So what did I know? # ]$ i, l6 O* h : o5 d- \) Y% e0 j: J: D' w1 UThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. + x! {2 x. b' @( R, v7 m & |/ _3 I! B2 C. p4 R* K$ QIt 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.; D3 e& W1 U! B+ \$ Y7 b
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.+ _. C6 J* {7 K
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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.2 V. G: g5 x+ 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., S N+ ]# u5 c# s( ]# {1 g
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. / t+ O h7 G; [" M, z! {( R! v' |7 a6 H. P8 }8 e& c) M+ B1 J0 H, ~ ) Y! R% w f. c3 p0 K& V( C# `4 M1 F5 O# f- c, l$ d0 e / B: m+ N! o+ }! p0 UCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
