$ \: _5 S' D0 n# j; R+ j* ~一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 & q3 z/ q7 r6 T; q/ \; v2 w i% g' T6 }' J
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。/ P! \1 M" B; q6 x& a5 p& A4 c6 ~1 U
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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。 / x/ `& z) _- R, U( }. S/ J : I1 \% {! N3 ?9 U5 k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……. . S! w! k1 H& H5 U" Q( T ) F, t( Y, Q ~3 J* k$ L G" f! h- ~2 X2 K
Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles ' n& Y+ J$ `. v, S# K$ u. K% `0 a ! L9 K7 s9 J% CCalifornia'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. - ^- u% w' p1 v- x0 f2 A ' ^% }: z9 B( aLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.: ?( Y& x0 ~' ^6 Z
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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. 4 R Y' }" Q8 r+ J3 [& r( `3 } ) \. t- Q1 Y( K' IWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. z- Y) Z; F9 p1 V+ z
) A3 ]( L2 d+ z! HThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.1 {1 @! B, H+ n5 b2 n0 z6 h& g( U
9 g9 O$ Q( j) ~3 uPerformers 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 M) [/ u: E8 }1 E 9 E% K+ r/ z4 }( s* XThis 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( @( {' c$ }. D, Y
, {& j/ N9 w* P6 x' AOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. * C4 L3 y6 P" Y# ~! I0 X2 V' l5 n# k! B! `; |' N
Fantasy ) z1 D2 T$ `2 B: ?; c 7 A, m, b' W0 g4 v0 y& jThe 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. " X$ ] D7 ]+ b/ M! R! N4 k' u/ ^2 a" n* k+ p! }
The problem, increasingly, is revenue.: H& T; b; r% W
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. ( T( z: [5 ?* @; F) l7 ~- l( u) M8 v2 Y; `( \) P
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. & I5 ~; D8 E) s9 _( g5 E3 Z. N% {/ G% ~3 P. V+ ?
And the economic downturn does not help. 1 S# I4 } b; _ 3 G5 e) S( l6 a"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully./ \! g! R0 o3 D8 L1 g$ k5 t' D5 y
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.5 D7 J( |( C) u' T" L
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms." g' W% E; x8 U+ n1 t/ c2 A: D$ @
/ f; |# a: H3 f" |2 cHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. & n: K1 o3 X1 \ ! F5 L6 q5 |8 W2 d( }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.; g; S) Y* i' L9 _* F
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Gonorrhoea ! ]; ^% l1 @1 W( M1 Q7 h6 U + F' D% g5 T1 } s) [Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.1 B1 Z5 J& q0 N: m$ K* q
0 D9 t6 }& B5 NA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years., `; r _3 j- B! d
# J1 n) `/ d3 j* C2 XShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.: l4 U) m' {4 f/ [, p+ J1 x0 ^
$ t$ W D) i" c3 Y8 A9 Q A$ I"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 1 M4 F: d$ _' k* z; [5 S+ g% Q; `
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.; I( I/ E8 Q& t+ z) N9 R: i
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Each day would be 15 hours long./ u( q- Q/ z9 T7 r
" E! y8 ~) G5 [5 c"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.$ E* g% S8 f4 m0 d
3 r$ ]- W4 q) Q" [/ [$ B& {7 q3 d"You get used to it," she smiled.4 u) t- j& ]; j( f# ?
6 j1 x6 ^6 z6 U( W5 L0 c6 q# V2 R& [, a9 D"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"7 i! J' N. L8 N( H: j9 _2 A- h3 M9 W
/ i+ I3 s* q0 M H" P"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."+ i( @4 {! e/ Y7 Q3 H* m
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.) m$ i8 T, ]% ?' Y0 Y& r1 @$ i
9 G# b& y' Z) B( l8 e( _4 VExpensive lawsuits 7 G# @; b5 W; D% u* X - n! K8 U7 r" M O6 |6 E7 F3 gIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. , t* u% h- c4 M% W2 s: Y$ O/ W" n$ f
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. " T7 V4 W5 e( F' [1 ?; a' z, w% t$ A- y) j( G/ B0 a
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.3 x5 V3 q7 t5 D* U" g. C
7 q, P# q; o5 `9 n) H! ANow, 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.! o6 _5 P+ m w0 y" K/ c
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"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 9 p0 u1 q' m9 Z: w" f7 X5 o* X7 p: V8 G- ~
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.7 I' Q' s$ W8 e# n9 Z8 b9 p6 N
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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? & w/ ?$ `7 O* T% i2 X0 U% c+ ] S e0 P g3 _& X4 H
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. : ~7 N) i9 Z2 D3 M7 {6 F8 Z& y w9 m; U& r) F
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. " b0 F, }# \ h 4 c3 V: C }- Q* Z- y5 p% s5 _ h. DA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 8 u* l( ~0 F N- S7 o! j) z7 {7 d/ H9 n( O
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. : @" {3 h$ ~- L8 L9 D! ^; [* W- f& i0 W8 b" \- o8 l( X
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. , g, m# K/ d T& K* _ 1 d; z- f/ }: s. L$ K6 lI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. ~+ O7 w F q% b! A2 n z8 t) V1 {- q& H; e; n! m 3 B$ T' }3 _7 B7 N
) y* Y! o7 q6 c5 t& \& X+ X # K; K2 m6 ?" X8 `' a" ?) v% ~* @9 ICalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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