- [* _4 @+ H% N3 L0 \8 U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。 0 h3 g! F" b: ~" x$ F/ T7 R9 E2 O Y3 s1 X5 o% D! E7 d
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…….0 e4 S* B9 l8 @' h. z' ]+ O
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Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles * _4 E1 [2 `5 z8 e- ]9 B3 H
0 [5 p% l+ ?7 c; e) ?2 sCalifornia'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.* W9 Y2 N, c% u h, V* m0 F
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles./ x. @3 b) i; f. }. j- |% H% Y
- c7 K! p9 I \1 H' D8 l2 `I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. . p2 O/ N. |; b; v0 p; e; E2 |3 c5 G # h7 {) M0 n& EWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. 0 s/ ?8 l" F' }7 k0 o+ o5 e+ o * H" v8 ~7 V7 U9 N+ Z4 M8 WThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 1 w' E9 N1 H3 ~6 N: U6 O! }3 s, a# h* i( }, J8 F. d2 Z
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.: B( _# \5 e7 L z" D
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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. 5 ~/ a, k1 L. U# D: s3 C) S. U& b ) b4 ]) _0 ?* m8 S! AOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. u$ a# X8 J: K+ [+ W
2 l$ Z0 a0 c9 V5 g- KFantasy 7 J6 u/ Y% m; `1 o: d- W8 O. \" \8 X. K2 a7 e) ~3 C6 z
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.$ y# O" B; B. j: m" s4 C
* N" Q! ]& B% z% eThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.* y+ ^2 }) C8 [: p. e# U
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. & N Y9 e1 O S% X" X6 r/ ^ 7 W+ Q1 M7 J8 a" LDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. 0 |* P5 }9 q6 z# ^; \6 ]" L$ T+ t( n/ E N6 u1 k$ o V, n0 g' `
And the economic downturn does not help.% s. q$ E8 H+ G9 ~- Q
, O5 T( q' t: E( \"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.% @9 g2 j% `, W9 W
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. & W4 N$ l3 w V* E: O* ~+ r * J. Z; X2 L+ N) G3 ?6 P; ^For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. - [( Q" n( ?1 v# x* z5 [* E : E0 q: C2 S$ o9 w0 X* y2 EHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.2 N8 Z9 P9 @9 x& `0 @2 E
$ V( Q) f4 N3 s/ B& _) R+ z3 `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.7 j; B- W) k; V4 v
9 u! T) y4 S) m! UBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.+ u7 F7 E& J2 B% ?/ A3 B
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A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. 5 g/ X( f& ~9 u. K# e9 P# R3 L7 Z! A5 X2 j! W9 |( @+ `1 q1 E. [9 {% C, C
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.0 n: [, h7 j( q6 z+ ?1 _3 H2 _
; ]" \; u8 y/ {$ h4 ~7 }1 ~"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"! W: H! g8 v% |& P
0 r" [( A* a8 G3 b1 S4 G3 _- C+ v+ nHer 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. 0 [. {; `; J* Z! C. J1 |9 R8 m" I$ a# A
Each day would be 15 hours long.0 l4 V/ P+ [5 f% e$ r2 c B0 ~0 |
' Y2 p; M9 Z" G3 l"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.: X( K5 \! k$ y& a
% O8 o9 y& T" ]/ q4 ?& s# Y. i"You get used to it," she smiled. 4 Y8 ~8 e# c9 J9 `: j/ ]: ?4 t: O9 H1 b' ?8 f
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 6 m; X; x* I4 s4 ]- d3 T. Y, s ; H5 e6 e% N% H/ C$ z: ]' D"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." 5 }/ M4 h8 Z( N2 I5 {* o/ P9 K3 u# u
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ' N, {0 }! H; W5 e, z6 \5 N; c: M9 x2 I/ C8 ?, Z3 r
Expensive lawsuits/ z5 z3 I( {7 x0 e
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.3 ^) m8 a" i. O3 T9 B% k
0 r) f6 p( D" l: r3 Z; Q5 y1 Z: UA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.5 ^7 V* |; U& D8 h& ~1 ^
: U5 S" O5 ~, L! |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- T3 m) j0 n
d& l. ]2 {4 O0 ~; kNow, 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.6 q, _2 e: c4 h( [ [# N
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"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" + K* J4 T; c- `" ]! J9 k! G/ f% J# `6 s7 I# i
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.* S( R2 |* Z' t! J' E2 b( ~6 l
5 t+ g3 C- W9 a. F2 ~) fBut 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?; G5 e1 k1 m4 ~; W. h0 Y
8 l# G2 \& E2 n: d, RThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.8 r+ [. G4 t' D' c& A7 v- z0 n& `
+ g3 P: {9 [4 w8 gIt 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. $ O0 `- Z! R# A9 B9 [6 j9 }2 x% ^2 W1 \% P+ I4 N( f
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. % i w5 I j, j5 ^9 k+ Q& Z; g5 X+ h' E A( Y2 h$ |# o' g. ^
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 S! E, h# u3 }$ l
3 u Z6 m3 E% u3 N/ bThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene./ c: C8 `0 k& x ^* ^9 `
9 O+ u) q) o5 J# \+ QI decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. $ N6 U3 c0 f3 K. r2 {/ G" v# I" s1 x- V - Y, i* u5 H0 E( j7 N% J% \
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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