* r. L$ y9 m) U8 F0 ^一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 H4 x" B2 h- R6 N
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制片人说，这对雇员没有任何好处，只会迫使制片公司搬到海外、或者转移到地下去拍片。观众想看的，就一定能看得到。 4 X3 v! [. R- C0 |# |+ ] 6 A+ p5 i# J. A' i宝碧也有同感。事实上，这也正是她开始脱衣服、准备开拍性爱场面之前说的告别词。 3 x. j9 e8 _# z, g 1 v2 A9 K5 ?! I9 K% c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…….+ m4 B$ Y- a3 _0 w
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles + `3 k9 f* n, B4 D- G6 E) b+ t' s W2 y* c+ m. u
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. `# m3 T2 R. T* t% r5 Q- n. ?$ J; g x" e( k! _
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. ; H7 |8 V7 n! G* F6 \3 w9 J) [ . v& _2 x# @# t) m9 `I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. ( B% q& D7 p! C % B" L# s& S% q* L. \2 uWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. - v0 h# `$ E- |9 ^# H6 x W : N' `$ Y( p% b \; Z% W! oThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.5 f. C- m3 G; Y2 Y! h
|1 c) F2 K p8 hPerformers 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. $ _+ e( d0 f) s( { 0 I9 D3 g7 `4 f" CThis 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.1 L8 q4 u( O+ v9 U( Z: w( _2 u
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 6 H- U2 _! F8 o+ d* w5 r% s. q; M' X* @) d+ @9 s0 ?4 \& A
Fantasy 8 l+ L% b0 y- s! y: H - g6 G7 r+ E* f, x& ^( ^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.. }% {, h5 l* }6 \+ h) c, d- C: D
; d7 p4 m+ J c& {' ]The problem, increasingly, is revenue.7 L: b6 @$ q) B% |+ A
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.4 Y$ B* F% v6 d- C) b' v4 F
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.6 Z: X0 r; d7 L1 a' ~9 V8 C3 k2 P/ v
. I& ^. {, D1 [) P( A2 z7 gAnd the economic downturn does not help. 7 S1 x1 h7 {! v5 c 0 D+ ~; A s3 k4 ]5 I( x"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. 8 I n2 y4 C+ h+ ^$ k6 N# f- P' h2 ?; m
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.! A7 \; E; @ g6 {8 k9 S% G( b: E
: S( f$ D( ]& PFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 3 j; [$ R4 U* m6 Y. r. c n& y2 T5 o7 s! o3 L
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.% `1 Q8 P$ s9 `0 V" Y" _4 p! @) b# {
( P+ M c, Q! c* J6 a6 YBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. . ~6 W2 s7 r* q$ ~! Q* a( S; `% Z. g. b
Gonorrhoea . W7 P! f& w, c& m) a( z* g3 {5 }7 _+ U) r4 A5 N$ \
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 0 A' ]) K* h. W9 @) M! f" M* O; j# k7 z, D2 j7 r
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. . I' V. U* U- c! Q! A & Y0 _4 k/ e6 ~% e! L$ H2 ^! N( kShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.' s( A. O$ _) J/ Q+ z
. o1 I, D. k! l0 m/ s4 d6 J8 T/ ?"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"9 ]2 [9 n" C- a8 B: G" {3 G; u
" X/ m, Z7 T* j3 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., v- n/ B3 }" [" n, Z# x
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Each day would be 15 hours long.9 Q' h% M$ t7 f' f' A
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. : K4 L2 {4 G7 G" S% M2 w; L2 T" U- r: N) y; J) } v p
"You get used to it," she smiled. ; J% x# `) q0 I9 [) ]" {3 v ! O4 X" J4 f+ s; s& i. o"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" ( ]- e$ A4 d. @9 a# h. p: {4 Y: t" `8 N/ [3 J7 }9 F4 \" ^, m
"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 R) _$ m8 B I- {7 S: J
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. : E: E' l7 i. q A6 F7 O / M. X2 y7 G) ~0 w* |Expensive lawsuits* @0 I3 v+ {2 W8 `
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.- b$ l9 } b/ z/ M
) U! v" T2 r/ ]! x5 ~A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. . A2 b' o e3 b6 } ' l. ~1 O0 i EIt 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; w; c+ k0 y% H r1 j
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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.$ z8 l0 q$ s f. D4 S2 z9 C i
. P. ]) N6 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?"% \/ r6 |5 s: a! V
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. ; Q, i4 `5 v! c3 L! A5 ~% }5 P6 e1 p+ o3 Y1 M: k
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?: v( T1 s, R: \. q9 n& L5 x+ Z8 |, q" Y
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The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. & o9 N- ?+ M! t, a3 u3 a # ?* v" R8 V' k6 j. u" nIt 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 e" z. p' I7 V
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.; m3 p. C a6 H" y
3 n" s0 N" p; j! ^6 a" T/ h- B$ WThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. , M2 f2 G8 |$ P; J8 @ [/ o% D+ J% U4 |
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.; l; m, s1 K$ v+ w$ L% ~
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.0 M1 ^3 a, ~- Z2 B
; Z- g. Q9 i* }1 x( U' ? B8 j, m5 ~" {% s( D# J+ V5 Q9 X, N* b5 v7 h 3 j' C3 v6 I" q4 T* q) F, LCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
