6 a- y5 H, W" {8 h* h2 SCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 8 g5 W3 @* g0 o. s+ g
' v( ^4 }. b. ^! D6 v7 H* _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. - t3 A" T. k7 o! q, u: m3 L. Y$ x/ B. c8 k9 P0 c( J- d
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.* {- D. ~' R- I( G
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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. - x! Q- ^2 ?, o+ [+ c/ Z ?" ~% `/ i3 H) T) D/ ~+ \" A
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 6 [5 y$ a/ D k) C, o0 Z( T3 y' ?: d3 j8 J# a0 ~9 W
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. . R( N' b6 i# |, x( p7 n0 i ! e9 ~ a$ V2 @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. m* S3 P- X: ]3 m9 D { 8 `6 w8 r+ }( |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. - q$ ~! }8 S7 w( U) f% v6 D; n# B/ m# a; r; r
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 0 s, d& ?0 ^8 g7 n' z9 h ! T7 q) v9 M" g2 b% V4 J, D* ^5 a: \Fantasy + H5 E8 y5 E3 r4 K, ~( `) `* y, \' N* g; Z
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. . K1 a* L0 t. @; @& M0 t: b" Y5 K ! e/ D. w; [4 m! p3 n9 @The problem, increasingly, is revenue.1 j% O( w; J, H9 e' D
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. - g7 ^ z7 @( d7 K- P & S6 l1 U) o& O; B# ODVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. + R" T, C. @% R1 X" y2 i0 q7 y% N% J1 l! v4 q
And the economic downturn does not help.9 a; h! L1 P% Q5 m& O8 {- W
4 c4 H$ P# V5 u"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. - L6 T- Q; H( ~9 T& q ! i. D8 O% [' y2 x7 F' G. }% zThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. , ], F6 _5 {/ _ @8 v% q1 Q % k0 p- D% g7 I4 F. JFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. j2 M/ I' }& J) d9 n" k# |% m2 [0 c* r) F5 H9 o* n
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. ) V# O# _9 M0 a, b! [( F0 F; O' T- K1 o2 f( d. F, Z
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. " q& J/ e V% _/ ?0 U$ A- {7 t8 D* ?+ ~6 a% F
Gonorrhoea+ H$ w6 u6 Q9 b
, C; k( n2 `( S& x/ ~Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.7 M0 Z0 Z. c: R; a
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A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.$ j* @6 [( G0 i( n; q- k" p
" P/ o( ?- d7 z; M9 KShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.+ p: `* I8 P4 `5 B
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"' V( s; Z- s2 t. U b9 G
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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./ b1 K! x7 d, _4 p
) B8 r$ V0 Y' Q- s) U# BEach day would be 15 hours long.* q# r1 R, X' d) j; P2 K
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. & t1 d; e# r' T+ h ! t( q! G. ~* E; i" W: ~& r! s"You get used to it," she smiled. " q5 E0 K( U$ ~- f7 D$ Y4 I, Q3 `' c* i
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"& Y. A6 |) ^$ P: T d+ I, A: L
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"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." % g8 v* y. v( O* u3 k# g , \7 ?- d* K4 ^There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ! S* i9 M# ?! b l# N& y5 e9 i% j: b
Expensive lawsuits h: J* ~$ m3 h
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. + n( D( o0 h- @6 {: r, T6 p: B. v- `; L1 D$ {7 e
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 5 a( S+ G' R$ g$ v ( e j) P0 ~, y( D1 S5 i) q. aIt 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. & @$ l7 P+ Z' S+ R7 W/ e) @ C2 v; M2 {( b7 U% f
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.+ b1 l) Q! P1 L3 L
* j7 }, h0 }- a7 h: K"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" ) x. N9 v% r' d$ w( H3 X% J$ [ * d7 N8 M9 h' _' y! Z1 nI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.- U! n- o5 M/ A0 f$ M
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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?1 Q, ~* _- ]1 t( D& G
5 Z. u- B1 Z7 n! C7 gThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection., h0 b" [7 ? t8 ^5 k
- V: g$ [% I/ Q" W% ?+ xIt 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.7 W- K! [6 `# K- c
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. ; J% o; C! `0 v+ {1 K2 ~/ G* |) c5 ^9 j
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. ; l* ~' s- M- E4 A, c4 c* ] 7 [" @+ m3 k9 ?) E7 B/ HThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.: S) Q7 u4 v k' c( R U1 ]
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.# m0 h) I$ l! F. I8 Z9 J3 B
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004