6 B& p8 f4 }5 }, n* VCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 6 A6 }" Y$ m S. F: y" ~: l' A; h h' m; y
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. + X2 W/ V* z$ k- _0 f0 B* p% u
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.* u, `" F6 `: 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.3 x/ e0 k1 t( b7 m1 t& V
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What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. - ?, K2 f. \% l* t: g0 C* b* O5 d) c# F( i
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.$ Z# H/ Y5 J/ H5 P5 P! y; u8 X
" ]" b4 v" d* _$ r5 C VPerformers 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.9 K( I3 x% U& 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., O4 Z* ?( W" z
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.5 g6 m3 O& A) w5 v5 r. ]* g/ ~
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& s- J9 S) ]: g- rThe 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. $ K. _4 |8 S: r5 G% F9 Z6 J% [/ {" x! F& W$ N" }
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. & x, f7 F% ~8 w: M3 ~' {+ \6 S3 F3 z# e9 s! r2 P' n8 ?! p$ f+ b
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 3 z% J5 B9 Y- C2 n S3 u8 h0 P6 ]: M # s. Q# b3 {. b3 V5 f7 DDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. ( z5 o6 g! k. B( h$ Q- W! x9 {7 a6 c* ]" o7 g- H! x Z0 Q# K; f
And the economic downturn does not help. & {, K" P, ? k3 o) r# I- Z% t 2 ^4 p5 y- [) Y- E"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. 0 L' \3 M+ P7 U& z , V6 X3 ?. O/ x& A4 N% JThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.) x7 N1 a0 ^2 H* s+ U
9 v- z. p& F4 N1 i( qFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 2 ^& [8 W( P: H- z! G3 C0 t3 W. ~% R P6 l4 p, J3 _0 Q" e9 tHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. & Q" H! c; }+ M0 L1 U1 N' [+ F & c* K2 Y: e. |1 K- n' [; R1 l9 o) EBut 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 n' M) O' y& c ]! [1 e $ J; N1 M- x& n5 RGonorrhoea* I% {" A8 @& p e4 C# Q
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. S6 ]0 \0 u' Q7 g3 E% c+ J( p1 G# q t" i+ q5 W
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. ( E& v' Z" b7 b; g5 u Z z. z. p" z* J' nShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. & B- m$ Y/ z. h4 g: F2 N / ?4 d" [, T# i# N"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"& C* N5 c. g6 H9 P
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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.2 [4 Y' c* k4 c
: D4 l' B# r, [: k; X7 i0 EEach day would be 15 hours long.5 r' }$ p" U" F: V" J' T
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.. x" [, T1 w1 v/ ~- j
0 z4 A0 [+ M( b9 X [4 X"You get used to it," she smiled. ! y0 i' X. [. Y" O+ ^6 H3 T$ N! i; y) ]& D% {$ H$ W0 Q/ W3 `: l6 f0 p
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"% J# w6 O G [4 k" ~" {8 S
8 L4 K' J; H" I9 V4 n. F"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."- h( Y, X, f( g- f$ Q l
, S* L; W1 S, y8 n7 T, T0 wThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.% s- |' ^$ `0 P
. J# m, @# N% T. aExpensive lawsuits * i0 c1 i8 B. S2 `5 ~) J 2 a% ~7 F+ s& C7 ]! EIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. ! M) B' a ]3 S9 i# G5 a" P ) Q; I, `: z$ k8 r6 _% ?A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. " g( V$ W% ~$ y S0 Q* @$ u* Q$ i/ ~6 B5 ~& J$ q% g
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. * E3 D; M3 F- z7 v4 r0 I* h7 o" @ D8 H6 D9 H
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.3 s- b, H% z3 \5 K o# V8 f( \
+ f1 R! r( V+ z9 F4 N! w"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?": q& {- t0 r, h0 p# k/ X
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. ; q7 s1 A" |( D 9 W' U, _) X% H6 Y0 C! @$ RBut 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?) S3 k0 v j( L6 B& r# U a7 d
& a+ ~1 E3 \" T' x. ?The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection." {, M2 E J7 f1 T% s3 _
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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.- D$ O* Q8 j- a9 b1 g2 s
( `- {$ b0 f, h( e& lA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.# T& U4 {8 x# }2 G- B+ t8 e3 H
7 m* [5 @, Z5 n& b0 fThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. $ i3 M) i9 d8 F% b7 x4 W; D; j! g' t4 i: e% W6 ?" h0 q0 n
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. f1 C& Q- A7 n# a4 x. q6 z% g' u
" I6 g( \6 x. } q0 J2 II decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.' ^; Z* ], o$ H6 X2 u
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004