' q# ^6 b. a" m1 n4 W7 lCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles # E% I, q1 z | + F; Y& Y* m. gCalifornia'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.4 c0 o! M) e% i. r
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.# Z$ D9 p( ?& m6 r5 l
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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. + f9 R( j: J. W. v% }+ T: P+ n( p0 J. {% t) u9 T
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.- d# o8 p. g# k% h
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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. , l/ B- B+ T! e, b3 Z J/ A2 W, ^1 x# f' r$ q! K7 b- h8 M; D
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. : l2 K7 V1 y F# F B4 p! p( y* J; \- ]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. ' {& n- R. V' v' b5 |2 o5 Z) j9 i) U6 O+ K8 K+ |$ V% R' e* ~& D
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.) Q# q- t% j' [& p( _% f$ c$ I
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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., l3 K, c5 h2 H0 k
9 r" M- k$ |$ l9 w ~3 g' a! pThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.1 Z3 `# v1 d/ @ [+ L" j+ M4 L
) ~; i) B" T; ^Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.4 u% ~- M+ H/ N e' W l5 j
0 ~9 U9 W9 \; m" ]/ w/ GDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.3 h6 G% u" F- A' @4 U1 r
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And the economic downturn does not help.2 Y5 p( O9 ]9 B9 G
3 d# k5 b4 S/ p"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.+ U2 e, L9 N8 O2 l# \3 E
8 |- `# X2 J+ NThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations." E9 p* t/ k w$ i
4 L. x0 Z$ h/ g1 ~ vFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. % @) H$ p( u1 m# A; g) h b, X& Z0 h) N% i% U) g% q/ G# P- e
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. . b! U1 z, m9 c3 H9 G* S * B# {, @( J! Z& Q4 TBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.9 V( B$ w0 |7 ?" x* R
* V0 @% @& L/ z7 I9 ?Gonorrhoea( Q) G* A, x- m: ~' h8 h
) O; J; u7 @' S+ \Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.4 \2 B% f, P7 x. p! w. T
. {1 X; q* R' \8 J3 J$ X5 SA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.. E; l- b! y8 P- P6 i7 w0 q# V
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure./ r. k( B4 q3 j$ k
% `2 p; _( e' j/ u3 t"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"" N; D: _( p/ G. r5 E
% m2 y& n+ p9 Q" F5 J0 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. 3 J8 u/ {2 a3 O6 T: C$ b9 {- n! b: y1 k0 f- V
Each day would be 15 hours long. & j6 v1 ?' r1 N& Q/ X( l ( ^3 D" N( c2 `; Y% f"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. " o! d' u, _, j- T0 S+ P; { u , ^" p0 r! U; s" z1 p"You get used to it," she smiled. * s2 p" A- N' V1 Y {9 M/ b5 \+ w( D5 O5 |5 E" {' w
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"( L1 ^+ h! l* k% p9 ]
6 K* ~2 a. P+ _1 M B8 Z" F- Z"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." A. _, t: `1 L5 ^" F2 B
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.! g0 h3 F4 _: |6 F# y
- w j' H. E- Q+ w' HExpensive lawsuits ; {* P: U+ o4 y/ o . W3 i, w ^, X& U3 l5 V1 uIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. & ]% i7 f) x. ]3 U4 q' @ U 7 l$ o" j& O7 c. W8 KA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. ; Z, O2 Z% N# c f3 ]; s9 Z1 o- |0 F! h
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. * B) N3 V4 [0 i5 J7 A5 E1 d( w# c) v! [7 L & r* a; Y, L. H$ `$ pNow, 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.: Q5 s# o; h7 L- b- Y
6 y6 N4 e. M; Q @6 S"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" % f* I! p6 t! c' c$ r f$ s; V9 i. _% T9 T
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.& ^/ a, o" B4 S& u3 I# k
$ _( j' K8 j; v) 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?. E2 s- P. o: p, \
& t* N0 c. e4 b! u# W: {The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 0 g8 ^+ j- O$ j, j& U' u, P( l2 P9 n3 ^, 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.4 t' E1 c9 v `% n) n5 U
7 v. M8 z# ?# h1 b) p/ HA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them." L5 n0 x: E5 Z0 l3 U, L$ T+ F" \
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The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.1 w5 u0 o& v; p4 i
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That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.. N* c. e% f. E9 O( B
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 8 X9 }# x1 V+ a, j; z( ^$ Q % F1 N* p8 Q1 w4 N" ^/ Q$ ?1 Z% p, I( h! M( p9 }" R2 ]
$ z& P' }( D, \ / H% s8 _& W! t9 ICalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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