$ [2 s* F# p# T0 Z+ c, A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。2 L: C5 D. L3 h2 v7 e+ k+ s; [5 K
, B6 G) o( p, ^8 H6 E
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…….& s5 v( Y" v; T
* a- _6 `/ J; P; Q3 c/ ` / }) o$ I- I3 A8 Y" Q$ O' l6 [ XCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles # \ Y$ P2 m4 q* z, ^0 S. y0 ~- P* d1 q3 W( v
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.) p& i$ y$ v7 W$ }5 J7 H
+ v4 D0 H4 @: ~+ E+ O( S
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.& X& e5 l9 q- X% B# n! Q' g
4 C- s/ p# d; c4 X
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things., Z' k: Q, b7 V% d
- F! L, |+ R4 l+ |, f( FWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 0 s1 F0 f4 q$ E6 F) O, x. v( S; f' x6 R- S. L' I
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 u% A* \6 C- U; j# u
% K8 `$ v; `, E# Y2 b0 T& d9 d2 p+ |
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. j; P. c3 p6 g8 q8 H, M
9 _3 B. [% I5 u* ~- B% vThis 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.6 k; k+ E `2 d, k# r
/ z, Q1 G% N. {& B$ F' m- Q
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.# U, [$ S) }% T U" w3 k
7 F& `7 a/ }0 PFantasy6 F" `2 B5 d7 N8 L/ i' x" p
" e4 J6 [, H1 N0 E: F
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. & y5 B4 b7 X& q- O( `) c7 a/ v }" i+ a/ K8 w+ p) i5 `! z
The problem, increasingly, is revenue.) o- s$ d2 m0 y( u6 m; \2 b K
9 z+ J% i) l+ y4 u; w5 H% f& cLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 7 Y# b. ]/ c+ g& X! _' v 6 F; Z- N$ _$ f$ GDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.% S% P! M, T7 e! [# Z
1 @9 b1 N. K/ d8 G: p
And the economic downturn does not help.% S9 b: G! H3 Y) {6 U2 ]
. L" c" V4 G8 Z& q0 j8 t$ P
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. / a: L9 x( l# O) o y; t' k, {0 G3 Q1 E, L6 V( M; ~" T2 X
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.' Y2 z0 J& s$ t# k2 G8 z
% y" \) U3 y' S5 A- ~( q
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 6 T: J$ r! X, I1 r f. o3 c- @" f6 Y& ?" C0 m2 ~Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.# A+ C4 [) H i9 G% ^; ?
' b1 ?1 X; B1 ~* w T
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.- n" ]9 q! T% k6 ^+ }' d4 I
% F2 p% f: Y0 e$ `. x# W
Gonorrhoea 2 A/ B+ y2 n0 {( q, g! n* r, `! J: V" q1 ^
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.3 d: _8 w: s, K0 u+ c3 G$ V
1 n: j1 j* k" m, {4 ]' K7 A
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.% L; A$ H; ]* `2 B) U) } n
3 W: B. p: q. H: VShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.7 U& E7 J4 k* a. [0 @& X
( {* g, T @: m"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" ( s h2 W2 i7 x! ^ |# k% q# L, G7 W
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. * ]. \6 S6 A7 p, y# x- C5 X* C5 v* W- Q$ ]
Each day would be 15 hours long.: Q# l$ ` ^: |3 d
8 f# e; U, u9 Z: W6 _9 W8 C"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. # b2 Q& _0 c- q- w/ D- D, w; q8 P$ ?( x+ g$ ^4 Z
"You get used to it," she smiled.& s& y' k2 P: m- ?0 R; z* q9 G
, z* y1 l& [8 B, ^1 Z# B"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"1 o/ u$ i7 p7 }
4 Y4 H4 ^* s m0 B
"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." * W3 v" P" t4 ?% Z4 [ |/ | $ {5 w2 C# a, x* J& ?There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.0 U4 {. k5 J2 ] l* x
0 W3 L& m" M+ j0 q9 xExpensive lawsuits' v2 R/ F2 g% l7 K8 k) o U) Q( K
3 A: C* W) X9 `# o; `( w
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 6 o+ u1 b, ~# Y, \: p/ i; `" y( U7 [8 t
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.2 p$ n5 J+ @; c0 Y6 \- m9 \
( s2 k3 N! x9 |. i
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.# v$ n% s4 ^( ~( s6 w0 g. E8 |
) R# V8 I) ~8 tNow, 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.; |' {$ y1 i$ t1 A; x) l
$ s' U: [4 @# z5 k @! [6 h+ A"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" / `8 Q8 E7 F. X$ A , Y2 V* [. ?- @( h* x* t7 f5 gI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.' A8 G" C* J" }
7 w* t1 R% @" y9 J8 [) u
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? ' u0 @# V2 v+ w8 v8 v$ B8 e# T* T. v! V
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.0 O( D. H: M, a7 P& R' [; C4 [2 N2 r, j9 X
& Z. c& l4 U3 E( V/ B4 s
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.- S* Z0 L/ E$ k* [" z- E) ~) q* R
/ `# N& i0 ~/ h
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 6 `6 b5 V3 N% c% K; `0 W ( p7 {- k' W# V! d3 Y8 b. X1 SThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. H b1 {8 y& H4 ]* ?. N. K- _; O6 z , C0 m" t8 y% c) yThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. + T% V0 C( [4 R Y" y; @' V" K4 D6 h {( `- x8 }& K
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.. w" d% W. @& U% K; v
5 r: W2 A# {: V9 L2 J: n * p; s' {2 C8 `- M" \2 J% T1 \- j4 w: X! U r' O4 q! Q; o $ M/ J4 \. [# w! K+ H2 gCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
