, L. }) G3 d" n5 F. ], \2 l8 }; N& V: _ 8 r! @* k7 _' O2 fCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles & u% B- g A% a
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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. $ ~3 }) w1 P5 r* _9 g- f : D) f# h) Y7 N# v" NLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.: p+ G5 Z2 @9 v$ [6 g& [0 X
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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./ ?; r; m/ j) d, W
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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. + p, P$ G8 o: [8 p) W* _ a8 T# |9 S* b- Q1 e4 H
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. / W' U X6 W* t: s& r4 P" o ! y0 _/ K1 u( V# 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.( X" {- S% S) z/ y
- e" m# m. [6 @& |6 z) ]3 UThis 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. ( F/ A+ a8 {! d$ w9 p' q * {& P7 _* P' W; rOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. * p9 V4 s% C5 ? ( z; W: S% X* o8 Z+ ~3 F' {1 s. D6 UFantasy2 S3 C( G" j2 Z& J& m& d8 [! y
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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 e% T) J% }9 P & T+ W! W5 _( ~2 F! U7 QThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. ( [9 T5 V: v! D' {# A- ~" i' A' K# Z0 Y# b0 R
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. y# a8 |( ^% u9 ^3 U, ^ 1 o+ _8 k$ v: u( T& N3 R% A. ^/ MDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. 1 g: q- v# @2 ^# g, W L 6 {3 ^2 B: u( `" t/ uAnd the economic downturn does not help. 8 D+ Q8 R6 M' G5 T6 o/ T: n( [7 I+ ]* {4 Y0 Q
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. 6 V8 a ]# |, S % R) u( c3 ]7 A6 a/ o Y; WThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.5 M4 |# U) p2 I; b7 _5 I+ O2 v/ B
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. ' ^' H# I( @. y( v ; l3 T8 t9 N" d3 I& ^; yHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. s3 c: E2 M q, p9 J8 g
8 C6 D" o# t }4 T/ i1 |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. H f/ r0 s" D& S! V & s4 z# W$ J6 L- P |6 [9 [! k. q2 FGonorrhoea: D+ D: k6 f& S
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 5 s& u3 l" @8 E) f" ` / x! k. ]# C4 g+ N( ^" |A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.3 K' @: J, f4 A; G8 J) \7 ^1 Q
3 f, K6 O1 a: O# ^0 E7 RShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.8 S* e. v- w* f/ m9 Z
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 6 }9 Q% W' M! Y! }! r, y. ^+ B6 `' [: 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. ) {* y7 o' J: h* z. q6 z; W( v4 g! v
Each day would be 15 hours long.4 o6 S8 }6 s }) p" A
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.2 ~" \7 }) c. b1 W/ `: R8 e: e
; `1 {# I3 W% W7 \1 p5 S"You get used to it," she smiled. 0 ~, k+ O% G; M- n! d : x6 |% i4 X t. Z1 S& h"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" S3 R+ _0 m2 u# |: }8 D/ ^# } _! E6 @' I( p$ T$ u; ?$ K
"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." 6 r5 h, p: b# ^5 q, A! M6 c3 S" s+ f( b O* Q4 F
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. A0 P W7 h5 A' z, ~* G* m& J3 `% V7 T( P
Expensive lawsuits 2 ?, m$ e- c( m: Z0 E. R: J% k' k8 O ^
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.$ `+ w2 Z) p6 N ~
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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. ! D7 b) q) m% Z8 }2 P6 Q, T5 C# B9 [ : J$ j7 ~8 R" rIt 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." M% S+ B& z( r; a
8 L7 O% {& t! F6 T3 R3 | 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. " \4 Y6 i2 n* E |; d2 M- J& G3 i* K% S3 Q& L
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"1 f% R/ f; N3 [, F. M
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 9 l; m; N F! F5 [ + y" B) i1 \, t6 Z- v/ vBut 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?+ d' b) z: I7 t- B5 h+ d
9 |, w S. y. Y* kThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.0 \! f& b( X, r
7 d! c* p. {4 G y7 _, `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. 4 x# m( g0 S7 [& Z- c3 ]6 k) F2 |5 u. q- G4 u" d7 F& `" U$ @4 G
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. % r ^7 d$ h& c: ]! y 9 `; x+ i" `/ I, o0 X5 v c7 UThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants." _! J# e0 r7 H9 R# V" C
+ |2 g" ]- G5 o2 bThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.5 d& V6 X8 T2 o9 e8 q' ^; o
$ L6 K, B# `& G% I8 ^ ~* uI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.0 {* a& l# r' z& u0 f/ _4 F7 ~
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8 \6 r) d; G" v) ]' l( b / f* k9 I. y: SCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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