) ^& a* E3 M5 _* M! ]0 TCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles * C v/ x7 z: ~6 ~( a3 A. Q3 ~# g
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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. e5 {2 t$ \/ O% Y$ y# ]
: Z. ^2 i% C: ^+ `Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. % N4 V5 o* W8 A% X ], X 6 M0 ^: t# @! X' ~( x# VI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.6 m7 [1 O* h4 i+ P+ W1 q7 l$ v
& W( `0 P) O- \& a! ?What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.; b! d$ h. _5 {& G! s+ ?& W1 E
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The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. ( s! u9 n! t7 p5 @: u% Y& t ' q) j6 {# R/ _$ W% _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. - `+ f, o: z+ i+ e. P( ^' b1 Q . o v! @2 H" Z/ 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.2 V. W+ n7 B/ k* l5 C% m; I2 f
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 0 y6 z0 v `7 W4 d! o$ o" d . E1 l$ {, p: [- yFantasy 0 b, H4 z; k- n3 f4 }# t, F! j; v3 E/ q- Q3 P' K; ^6 U9 J
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. . w; v$ | y7 j4 W) Q1 u$ r/ X( I! a* x
The problem, increasingly, is revenue.# ~0 \$ X" S5 {" \) Q
! x6 y0 c* ~* w! s9 A. ^; V# BLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.9 V. N; c8 F9 p: c! {* N
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. % U9 j+ i% T# w$ x0 G) ^# q! O9 j! B$ i% D$ K& `- @
And the economic downturn does not help. F8 u% N L2 c2 A6 ?" h) S$ Q5 M9 \. S+ t/ H
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. * p7 C; I: X2 X5 c b" b9 s7 I. h+ F$ G: BThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.1 ]2 F! J' \9 z
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.+ K' }8 X/ x# [
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Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. ! C6 J6 D' h1 h + f* f2 w* r7 N5 ?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. % Q& B/ E9 u8 n- J5 P1 o! i; ^! \/ ?# Z+ L- T
Gonorrhoea 2 `3 J, Y% t* r8 m0 C1 t6 G) K. L( V/ x
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.& N. X8 j2 p p6 m2 H8 g3 D
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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.; t- f. O4 `, ?' Z9 q z# C9 Q0 U* o
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. ; B1 T( C2 R$ F2 }( T% K) Z! j+ K0 z, z; c$ \: K1 I% S+ w
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"% U) X7 ~( ^( r* f" s' @
+ q6 w) P5 X# s7 `' f) ~6 aHer 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.* w( d5 c% M3 T: E$ |
6 `: V, Q: ~) P0 ]& xEach day would be 15 hours long. " S: d; X3 e$ ?1 ]* d) |1 f 4 O: j! I) }4 v4 A3 a9 O- A"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. ! T8 _" g$ S$ q5 m+ h& i" m+ O" T) r5 r% z! B5 ?, U6 T ~8 ?, G
"You get used to it," she smiled. " K1 G" U1 l9 V: {3 `4 f; ~4 d7 D4 j: L- z5 K7 L* i4 a
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 8 N( f6 c( Y$ `7 s2 n3 o. J7 S9 A. ], H9 V* V7 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." ( n: N4 ]$ O5 z5 j- `0 \5 z1 X+ v, \& G, `' I
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. $ c$ O8 P: K! h' G( ~0 @8 J- S4 u' r
Expensive lawsuits % ?8 Q, `( X* H3 J) W * I9 @6 {$ M. }# dIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. . S! f5 X% v) F- S/ F3 O / t4 i& N: v8 m6 RA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 4 g8 H/ N7 X' b5 ^- r8 z, Z& E r; J0 E3 X& m
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. , | A$ {* ^8 a2 R6 P% ~& `% m4 Z; t% w/ Z' E
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.8 D4 @% a' I' B' ^. U
+ ]3 h% U8 w6 f+ k"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"- \; P# n0 J) Q( F
B- ~. o7 ?- @2 o, XI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. : q3 A, S' X4 _* e4 G! j' b8 c & {5 t2 x8 X, }- `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? 6 M; o+ D( \, @' z. O0 D) c# i O) N% M0 j
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. ' z3 w7 z* F' N( w |7 {7 j# s8 ]! X' s c
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.0 Z- V) ~% q. ? `
|: `. h8 R0 S' { C5 l1 mA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. " o5 k) X. b- H# F: \! v% ]/ O8 J5 K4 D7 Z0 U# d
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. / s! R, l1 V4 I4 `4 B( f7 \ 4 a# X8 |3 v0 N: P/ kThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. : O4 V+ q$ I9 i, v3 J5 U W1 k- Z$ `! Y/ ^* }
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. , R0 o. `8 }/ F / ^6 ]1 X x; f0 w+ ~) n) N- r+ h/ ]8 j5 r7 }
9 d8 Y9 G( c/ d * {/ `0 I6 B& TCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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