$ P, M/ j! V& m0 t7 m; y. PCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles " @0 j# D0 w5 g4 d2 _4 L8 n4 I u" R0 [* W' J8 `* O
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.) O+ c6 l- b- H2 C. d
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 9 D1 W5 s1 U4 f' v a$ y8 X : c8 i0 X5 ^9 zI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. 4 }4 @9 R' \4 S7 D' O! P b J/ s; t' u; R
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. $ R" I7 z4 j" m1 ?0 f/ Y; E1 `/ D" s, }! N L- T
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. ' Q# h$ J7 x" W7 s$ }5 D/ r( r, d# U& F3 A& `2 c' D6 k9 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. 1 D# |+ I9 c8 s0 w' g6 I! ?! F. @, t + S; G' y4 E8 [' {1 j9 S$ m+ @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: S% r1 R% h5 ] G7 y# e . A+ ]7 }) e4 E8 k, H7 _/ o& WOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. % }( j' j" }* h7 b/ S, Y, h # | ~, K* b( b3 L0 q3 a/ X! sFantasy 5 T/ n8 y2 Z5 A. I ; u; `+ W! y. \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. 4 \6 \+ c a9 _1 @+ t6 G, |& i6 b. [1 {! e0 ]3 J4 a
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 8 }& A' t; p5 Y& ?/ l& e 4 O/ q: d2 N& q4 h$ ULike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 8 [4 H! n0 v5 A2 q2 e1 h4 R/ \' F8 i a9 \. M
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. 6 t( B j6 `9 ?+ [% z: y! Q+ x0 Y( s/ y
And the economic downturn does not help. - Y$ S3 {; `1 @( \4 Z( Y % {1 H, {6 ?. |; @$ j# |! A- v9 n% g0 V"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.3 p* R* |; L% V/ A6 W5 z# s
8 M+ U) X/ u. i+ o" b/ @/ ?! }5 ?The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.; `3 ?/ @# e. g, e0 }, Y
/ T8 r4 a( g' B2 d1 _For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. * a+ s% l% e& o 8 K! j5 Y. ^1 O" P8 r& FHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.3 _* Q3 q, S* I, s/ D- r
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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. {$ {( S4 |2 y3 [8 x1 g
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.9 L7 s7 g2 \; D$ Y& g
5 q* G7 O. U8 p' H9 kA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.7 a. P: `: w& Z! b' `4 \
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.1 Y, t( }* ^, t3 Q& I
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" * g* U6 O M7 V' t! z. R6 G# b& k) Y
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. $ ?$ F: e% K; m* a; J3 G" _ % M+ J- a; t; R/ _7 E; R1 cEach day would be 15 hours long. }+ W, q+ x% X4 i
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. ) H. J! u+ K9 L5 Q6 ?8 \1 K* C( F% {- p 3 ]7 I' \# @! R* }* T9 G"You get used to it," she smiled." C7 y( R, Y- o" S8 l) O- o: @
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"5 P- ~% g3 t+ k ^3 V! A
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"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." ! c$ ^) x- P3 U% j3 w2 j* g9 [# g9 T1 Y0 V D9 w
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. 7 a3 D2 K+ Z6 E4 C& Q/ D1 R0 F5 i% v3 `2 P9 X3 r1 h) Y( s! d
Expensive lawsuits / n! [, f- x* R/ B8 w) _ ! }9 a, S- |3 G' n; pIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business." M% u: o2 J0 j& v* f% g; i
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A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 6 _8 M6 a" v) X4 h * ^" I7 s5 B/ w/ B4 cIt 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, F* N) O' ?: y: ]9 g
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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. $ T0 y8 U. n8 R* @ ! E: \- A. ]" d8 s2 I"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" # n: G/ G! c' H: E2 @ + t4 J+ o/ m8 e$ oI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. 3 t1 A) b/ T5 i' X ' h7 H0 B3 a4 O9 F( V) J5 m7 U7 _$ K4 `; TBut 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? - ^5 z/ L! K% w) W0 t' F 9 B! u2 l8 r1 s4 ^- J' kThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.2 ], |/ H: x% J+ i& [9 f1 E7 t, D: ]
& h, `7 b2 r- Y' ?( UIt 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. " _6 \, d$ ], l, q5 A ) [, {3 M8 S/ x2 N; N1 [2 AA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. g! ~ ?7 C& |3 Z- q6 C
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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. ^0 |+ p' h j/ M* i9 y4 _0 D+ E' s) r
* @' P9 M. } Z- Z) eThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.8 r, }" |: {7 }" z8 X. ^
& e' ]5 P* x# C7 n6 \2 |I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. 1 o v; M7 V- K2 v& e5 e 1 @- ~; h: H* x" W1 a, M. s/ [8 S! E% ^
% h6 A5 v5 i4 A5 j' s3 J ) v/ g" u0 S7 n$ ^* C4 ]Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004