' ~; O# L% P* j. b和加州的立法人对阵，色情电影业最终很有可能打败仗。除了罚款，色情电影业也面临着一些前任演员们提出的代价昂贵的法律诉讼。0 X$ X Q, x% f. _& _# \* H0 ?
5 y* Z y, D `9 x" |. c一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。 % ? z- I0 B0 e2 {# p . j( i9 K4 Q& U/ }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。" c7 j0 \: P: e
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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。9 p( W$ X5 U, v/ G& ^
( s+ `" `5 O, ]9 E0 ^+ Y9 y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…….( s1 g2 b+ t9 X" ^3 f8 f, q; \
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles E9 g$ L, a* D0 K4 }2 F3 g8 ?! x; O. e+ C$ d! K3 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. 2 H9 {7 B4 D& c" j; Y 2 e' ~0 j5 Q$ G) g4 T: HLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.6 E) j4 j/ T$ f& b' L+ L& r B
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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. , f- C! c. r" }" M4 k# K) c7 r* ?, \- \. r) z( d9 u. z& i7 z4 L0 X
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 5 X; k# p. U& r/ Z8 c7 p * ?: {% L' w' J7 [The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.! H9 {2 P# S5 E* S
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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. / S1 L) ~4 q6 K2 ?7 n5 @6 `; M5 G6 U/ w2 g. O4 ?
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.; w7 b' W, t6 O, H
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.0 S9 F y; A( J" y+ M
0 U) {0 B4 B" j9 V* E% o+ kFantasy 2 J* K6 c4 W- y5 T' ?' i/ G& P* e$ i. d& `/ P( j6 \. [
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.$ N( c; S' C6 T) _; W
$ ~, ~) T; ~% ~- M- KThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. . m: K5 E) q; G0 t8 c( @$ }- W( I. n5 L( o. d. d% E7 M+ L
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 5 j: J3 [# g6 N4 z h2 e9 q" g9 g/ r, G! W
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.; y Y( z. V* M3 ~; Q5 z @! X+ C
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And the economic downturn does not help.: l6 ^. n0 Z6 b- `7 H4 @# O
% b* E8 I' N( X1 Q"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.1 p$ p1 s4 j; j- H3 S
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.: h9 w" Z/ }1 L: L: [8 f
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. ' T: e6 @# F1 l: _( R1 z, S# q2 i. C8 G- p% v7 y: e; f- ~, k
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. ) k& _2 B7 E5 C " Q0 e/ B# V* a% hBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.+ z% C' K8 _8 [+ v
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 3 i) g* u* h% g- \3 _ 6 `. l" \# u6 S% c$ L" n$ ZA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years." U+ o. F: Z$ M2 j9 }" x
6 \- E+ V7 H0 X, BShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.6 W& D: F8 m8 U$ B; i1 [! n! {7 n
' \5 g8 J5 g, T( l4 I6 c"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" ; _) |8 F* [% P' p2 x/ M6 ~6 ~" {& F4 o, b% 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. 1 q1 i. j! G! G! K0 c" O! I: O 0 F' F+ m) l# A; q7 }1 W- FEach day would be 15 hours long.; K$ @. ` j8 O- K* q+ l4 [
9 \$ h( f& y' r3 R( c$ W"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.' }) |% g. S! m4 N" a$ n
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"You get used to it," she smiled. 3 R" Y* |$ L4 o+ g4 w6 G, C6 k4 b$ h! |! W6 {
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 7 @9 G/ g9 S, a- Q3 _* ~ 5 |4 p' ~; U, t! N! |* X"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."0 q* _$ q4 ^! U- Q2 @
( B( ^* V) I% m8 |/ @There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.- w7 D4 P: Y9 P
; S6 D, b7 _ J& V* _# a HExpensive lawsuits' u1 b& Y t6 ~9 J; M2 H! K# k$ }' X
8 L0 D5 O& Z: @8 d/ u" b+ nIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 6 w$ H! K0 J# K- {! P& z$ }) L. F A" F1 `
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.) o4 G& y' `* O+ }& f4 z3 N
- A H: `$ @7 \9 Q1 T# w8 O0 S! uIt 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. ( D$ X1 z7 s, j0 O* g" i. A3 z 4 w. ` O$ R& J+ `! H0 ]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. 5 a1 _: x, F o . ~9 U8 b: C7 ]2 g2 `/ {8 K8 _"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" : x1 W: L: z7 I$ L, U/ L7 b % B; B6 s) D1 ^* O; F, YI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. $ m8 ?2 w( c/ r: T6 _6 B) S8 J& u+ S$ `# s; s' B2 Z7 t& [( N
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? 2 [- A0 |, S$ N$ [% y& |, x$ q( c- ]: \3 \. s
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 2 f0 Q- x% g( o. K4 l' E% I' Z5 |& N
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.& J, G$ r% U( ~- @/ j T7 o
' c5 P" c) I" CA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 5 n: u8 P# D. @! V: @: ^! }/ o# n. ^$ m: g9 l3 X9 L( _0 D X
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. * P/ m; |6 P8 g' a 2 Q9 C# {" d8 T% L$ a3 ^$ \That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. % h- b, i, v7 h1 |& J) Q" a- Q; Z, h Z4 ?: y% [5 Q+ t9 d0 z
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. - j y2 ^/ W! |3 m/ R$ T) G* M9 E5 ^$ u) A( J6 M+ X. T' m l! v; ^2 a7 U9 d3 e7 K$ Y+ W" s# L5 j3 O% r* p$ m 2 X( @; x2 U6 Y. |0 D: p
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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