! u( H9 g8 J$ l$ a( I1 E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……. % a }1 A& [4 _ T' R* G- f- F4 F: |' S
: J; z* r' V( G5 R- N) Z9 i0 g
Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles / l7 p7 a2 j( g1 a
- [1 c: o6 p. W$ Z' o8 r7 j8 xCalifornia'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. 7 \9 g- U/ _. D- B u. O& }' G2 P0 [6 q9 P6 H l
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. - x- Y! m+ n4 B4 ~ ^! w4 W4 E* S `: J
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.1 A" f% c7 f, \; Y
, y; C0 Z' H+ i2 J z( ~What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.# _% J" T! H# V+ e( g$ R
, |0 e& F7 I+ O. [The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. * i; J* g7 w+ Z5 F! t/ a; W" R* `/ i: w# F( k6 L
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. * ~! k2 g0 ^ ~8 Y- ` 1 k( m/ i2 d8 n7 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. ! s0 ^+ @/ h! u/ v5 M8 t - R6 Z b9 t( s8 R6 _ W, M# B4 T2 K4 _/ ROnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.5 {2 O' \' A6 r+ E, p5 g
/ R" h; A3 B" t4 n
Fantasy# W; x' G$ ?& c; |% v/ d( _
) O( g+ X8 J& @ E. n7 mThe 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.3 e5 c( [5 r2 _, s) n! A2 y3 `
7 _- ~% i+ m/ F' P" lThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.' _& u2 f& V* `4 ^; d+ L8 I' s
1 y2 B, y1 v$ i9 C! T2 d
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch." p d( R) Q) Q5 f& F* u
. Z: K3 Z# z6 ]1 i% IDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.; R# L; H6 W- ?" n
3 w' @4 v& L% K9 C4 m: nAnd the economic downturn does not help. 2 M( P5 H7 o+ y; H [* G8 ^0 L2 J: s4 r: r" s+ s
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.# n) Z8 S# @. W3 s# V; {1 [7 G
# T) M4 R# H8 s: N2 X2 r+ v
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. ! a( }; n3 l8 w+ R s6 V8 J. z ( `' I J. l4 D& RFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 3 G, M s4 Q, {/ k+ D; g7 q8 W ! A/ i3 I0 Y1 v( x! D+ W3 OHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. ; b4 g% n, j2 p( P; S/ C2 U5 E9 L# c- {" w
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. 8 n, g+ e4 }* c* @ 9 ]% V4 A& o( u' U9 s. _% mGonorrhoea8 n+ v$ K6 Z( c
7 R% v. k: ?+ Y, T4 x0 _( \2 d& KBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.5 D. j# L m% A& f5 z; I- t) d7 [8 `! {
! P* G& z; t( @* Q2 T+ W3 A
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 3 F3 D( u p& ]8 {! o4 O 2 A4 E/ L. Y5 `4 o3 I2 N* FShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. & Y9 p/ ` s1 B3 g! v8 { J$ ~8 S/ a' |4 |. b2 B
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"4 w6 |; K+ D, }3 H' u. s' L8 ?
; N1 |% x7 W7 u9 l! L
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.- `7 T6 @2 b8 C" Q9 N5 y4 s
) @1 H0 G1 v4 {& O4 f9 ?, k' r& O
Each day would be 15 hours long.! V m; [' `* K4 j, X' A5 ?
- T8 L! y' G. U2 d% M% B
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.3 N/ w i* D$ j; `( ]$ F9 U$ f* j
6 B4 g- _0 f7 M$ r+ ~
"You get used to it," she smiled.: O# \" a9 X% T; o# b! F0 ~
; l y) w; g9 z9 O$ I* A6 S" S& d"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"+ x8 U. q+ M+ Z: ?# `( e# @! g9 f
+ a% o3 b; A& b
"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."# \! Z! T1 [) o/ s6 g9 t. N) I$ E
* f$ Q' u: t3 c$ P/ ]There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ; t, _5 W+ |% M+ H$ G7 l l! i4 o# p/ p2 C+ ]$ p
Expensive lawsuits& V, E" x7 M6 l
. C- D k! o e+ X5 |0 W6 ~7 j
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.& i( s9 F% L( P/ j# o4 `
( w2 {) q/ ~: h' MA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. " I5 O- i5 j' f% M2 i - Y; s- W( X& [+ F6 tIt 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. * ^; P# N( a7 f' m: O, |+ o- Q2 w! x8 t) s: N: R) o" a* Y
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.4 e! `7 w4 v4 m2 }) c( A
; s5 D; [3 b) ~8 Q0 ^/ B"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" 2 i) `; ?$ {) E2 ]" Z! L5 Z( m/ M* T; ^
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.) Z" T& z4 l" r" f7 h
9 K: z7 m' i) I* U g6 L) `! ]' S
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? 7 C$ ^3 ]; B7 w$ G+ k) N; P* n7 S: Z- S) u5 a9 H
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.) D( y# e# i/ F) H+ d, P
/ |- j, i. X5 t& T a
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.: }0 ~7 z& S1 U% K
, W* X k+ K5 [$ {+ A/ Y- CA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.$ O2 C% p; j; [4 E) w! t i
4 F6 T4 V; Y% j* cThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.) J7 }8 y8 K5 ?! V- V5 [0 U
$ e3 }- ]; x8 V5 K( ]& }9 H% b' j/ a
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. 4 ]; o I6 O5 b2 r% L/ {* P9 [0 m' [) x# W8 P
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.4 ~& G, T4 r1 Y+ D u1 W
7 m8 J/ Z; o; g$ u! s9 S 4 Y6 d" _$ v( |6 [& |0 e/ w8 w t( i0 _0 g. S9 z # N6 O2 H4 k' Z5 ?+ ]! J+ {1 i. J2 M" A
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
6 c1 R; |- r0 J- r% y5 P
# N6 O2 H4 k' Z5 ?+ ]! J+ {1 i. J2 M" A