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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 8 P: W% Y+ Y& o( _1 J# R$ w& A ) ~" M- g# h3 U! L, e$ e' |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. : G2 R P) v! @* Z( g / X/ |7 f* V/ S! z/ YLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.4 Y3 [, m' x2 x0 k& K
: G; A3 V# D( G& LI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.1 K4 z9 }4 v6 T1 X0 A' O: F
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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. 5 V3 d' C3 r6 @1 p2 G7 `7 v: t7 Q" f9 T! H6 [
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.# |4 F7 n# K& g; H
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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. 2 Y* L' e7 T- O q& k1 `, `: h5 b K. m2 T$ Y+ U- p
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. . h" X9 `5 B6 B. D0 x c; k3 q1 J$ H9 \; Q3 V
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. `# U- |, S1 b$ X* x/ j8 } ) q* j3 L5 o KFantasy : z2 m4 m' x' ~$ `3 `* g5 V' E1 R* h0 Q
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.9 K+ s9 n8 a! D/ T9 q
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The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 7 M! _8 w8 } Y; e% e, x8 F 5 S0 {7 u2 L! A$ c$ RLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.+ Y5 X$ S1 W0 D# ?+ M& V8 O
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. 1 m, Z: U- @) M9 G4 w( `$ l( \4 {) \ h! U6 i
And the economic downturn does not help.4 P- i% i$ E6 s# o
8 B. V4 m& w# u7 W2 c"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.5 C# @% J# b" k4 J
+ Z1 R+ d N; d, O4 }8 A! D, @The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. 6 j" l3 g# q4 D/ @# c7 X, _) P. n# q: l5 X9 x
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.9 O7 R0 T4 Y) Q4 f$ I4 f4 w
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Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. + I M1 \ j" }2 m$ V5 ?. ~! w; f/ r h$ E( y5 M K0 |: y( A
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.3 g; k' { I* P3 q @" l* h! u
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Gonorrhoea 9 l5 v S& f$ Q# F. k " C; \8 F$ z4 cBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 7 M" n& `+ _8 H6 J 8 q. b- ^1 [$ C! A9 O3 Y$ V- YA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 0 {' ^ t( ?# X5 F6 {0 W, e/ R5 C r/ U# t1 r. i9 x
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.$ s* n" R& D1 [0 L3 }2 p8 n, g
6 K+ k/ Y# S# S# L; V0 L+ f"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"- N/ C5 t8 n3 z
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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. ) J- K! f* P1 L; b4 A& ? ) M' o: I2 j u, K4 wEach day would be 15 hours long. # {. k: e! C* N: U" R0 ? 5 L& r0 `/ T( }; I" X. g9 U( s" L/ F"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.8 J0 `8 _4 ]% g& ^
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"You get used to it," she smiled. 8 e9 x& ]4 M5 ^ ; m! d: |$ o% u( Y2 e3 A"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" : n) G/ k7 S/ l" g k, Z" V4 S7 v$ ?
"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 c0 S% {6 d# W& J7 x
# q" T; X: J. W; p+ x6 TThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. + l# o& q: U9 d) t( {0 U ! _+ k) s5 E. v) M/ ^Expensive lawsuits % s5 r% f: [7 g6 \( L8 Z8 u! E# y* l5 \4 `) K8 K! ?
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.9 O/ W) K- M4 {8 ?
3 I# q0 ]9 R6 H6 ^A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 9 V6 h/ ?7 T% U& R& {3 P5 ?$ ^8 u$ x$ Z/ U
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.5 Y# W" ?4 w* m2 R6 U
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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.. g3 _8 o. o% X7 K! d# t
5 ?6 Y5 x3 Q( [ T/ s7 D6 c$ C"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?", c* N' K8 s8 a7 A" E8 v
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment./ K! q* }- H4 `
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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? % t6 G: b/ k3 _; h1 B6 S) u5 E0 n0 [+ r( I4 p
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. ' ]+ ~- m. w5 N, \2 O$ E6 S! _' I) @3 u) t, 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. # u; L i% T0 |1 c2 X6 n. A 9 L( |/ {- ]0 a7 h9 h; mA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.. @% X0 q7 s: k1 M
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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.6 ~7 T% e5 ^* ?9 \2 k' \
) h4 u& L, R1 Q# M- |' p- \" [That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. ' M& N( Y& N: w5 m# V5 G" Z 9 x+ J% y1 [4 y HI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. ; v0 ^5 |$ r8 g5 O3 X9 X9 L$ P& {# H: X ( V! a& ]8 P/ B- V6 h& X5 Z& I$ h. B8 R% x5 w. {5 H2 Y4 E . o4 A8 O; Z6 b3 L! uCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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