2 M( e6 {: _0 w8 bCalifornia'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.. m. v! b6 f; d- M/ V) }$ v
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 2 K% W0 t$ D9 T" s- A9 o- [8 N" p3 {1 B5 m
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.) l* a# u) b4 D, 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.$ q- R6 I6 V7 }( c, O" Y9 S
. J7 }, i% q% oThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 3 A( |' }. A l" x4 \) T/ S! @4 E4 |. a1 E. n5 t7 Y' f8 Z; n) V
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. $ f, n# a& ^' j! Y8 U' M6 z9 G" k ( R5 i+ j F l2 T3 wThis 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. % [: E E; d- g5 B9 \ ( E/ [9 s2 E* fOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.9 L$ d7 U3 s+ @& w; P
) B' h: z5 J |* Y7 {Fantasy 8 O9 W8 g# `" C2 g" d# m K. f8 N0 }) E& {9 K" W- y
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. 7 b$ w+ _) D: z4 W7 w1 N * u4 R$ T1 y& \$ Z, ]The problem, increasingly, is revenue.: \! k) N$ ]$ j. \ F( A
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch., H1 V" ^8 l' b9 z1 ?1 a
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.( A0 {' x7 D- O; n' x+ ~; T4 ~. |7 E
C0 j' n7 {! X/ h- gAnd the economic downturn does not help. U5 a0 m9 j) \* b " f+ S' \3 V" n. g, P6 _"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. 1 A0 B3 r0 E& s4 ] - F- T- ^9 {9 J7 `3 @1 _5 T$ fThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. % x* R/ h5 ^. a& o1 A5 S % C# h. U y, W8 ~For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.3 i2 B# @$ h% `. K4 x0 n
0 _4 a+ x/ r2 [Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 3 K# x( q6 u* H; k8 b1 {5 T9 `3 S* {1 Q+ p6 H" x! v' N0 ^) \
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.1 Z" M9 I# w' }" n2 [8 h
2 I' v/ c+ W% m! ABack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.; \8 _3 a/ W& N7 ]
0 {# K+ e/ k7 b! i- `A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 2 [3 v: z: \3 h6 r* Y/ d# x6 `8 S. o$ g$ l/ W* X+ |
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.! l6 b6 M X* j7 H M
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" * Q; k& ]9 @4 @0 g / \$ d$ ~( H P$ n' @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. C; O/ H4 _2 ~* {! Z8 [ N) i% R0 \
Each day would be 15 hours long.5 D* u( ~( V9 i& k+ H+ `- N
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.9 k7 m+ S& l+ f
+ {6 w! G) m$ N5 l) p"You get used to it," she smiled. 5 b% @/ g0 q8 E6 M# U/ T4 p1 ?* z& D2 ^" I: Y% S0 h
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"% W. ]; ~- b3 K
( v1 l& V/ Y3 M7 K, p0 l5 }. E"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." 8 G& x' T+ P. o; j U: K& t4 E1 {
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ) [# w* I$ s& ?3 c4 D% [2 b7 d' ]0 m6 u1 j9 w3 j2 s) v
Expensive lawsuits ! [4 ~4 X) P5 ?% Q9 D$ |$ S+ i" \' c 2 P& E; J& |! c* b" I0 q0 ?In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.- w8 \ R- E( c5 X
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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.# q& n! S0 x: |( h) s8 w/ @
$ w+ s/ P s# l9 Q1 d2 e+ xIt 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.2 b: J; I2 `. e( o* t
1 d8 n# l- L$ B) n6 t( _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. ( t0 U" c* H# v2 z# z/ j, ]" X6 M9 [+ `/ ^/ o
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?") P/ j$ x& M5 D- V& e
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. : z0 `6 f% i4 g& B. ?7 d; \) I7 D) ^1 V0 A- U R" `; m
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? / R2 K5 _# m/ q5 }. \8 s1 h3 x) m
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. + c( C; z( r, Y6 M P# N# Z. f8 l5 w! X5 i3 |5 y) E+ Z- R% D, ^
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, P0 c6 r" _6 r$ w$ b4 R; K, ]/ j$ _5 {; T
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 7 J( Z9 H' w2 ?- M# O+ z3 m 3 B& \2 A7 m' l5 | JThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.3 z7 J3 H0 s! O$ h% @
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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.2 a! X" f8 X1 K: x% Y: M8 |4 `
- P1 E0 P3 l8 j" K( lI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 6 w% `6 N3 }5 x( U, Q7 h6 c8 | 5 C' k, L' G# @: Y( l! e u, x2 Y! v0 _9 [9 L5 g. d% `- Z; O% ~
( \, ^. m6 ]1 N % ^2 O8 d5 m6 p0 X" W( fCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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