7 j3 L! y R) K* M! {9 j8 h0 D一名制片人告诉我,“如果你把我的演员都装在橡胶里面,作为艺术家,我还能怎样表述自我呢”? + k9 U3 g! m0 w. I7 }) ]4 t/ d . j* f$ p( F4 N7 Q1 y( D我很难想象,法兰克林和杰弗逊起草《第一修正案》的时候,想到过戴不戴安全套的权利。% e. p1 J- y/ _6 S
( N* n4 C' J0 [, _但是,我也很难想象,《星际迷航》的粉丝们排着长队去看皮克船长和“进取号”的船员们真刀真枪地“肉搏”。所以,我算老几呢? 2 K, \& t5 P/ } 5 P9 F- C. U; I3 p6 S% j( U但是,当局非常坚决。建筑工人必须戴头盔,矿工必须戴口罩,色情演员也必须有适当的保护。; I+ a4 t p2 W% x3 _
5 ?! i6 K/ W) {& x和加州的立法人对阵,色情电影业最终很有可能打败仗。除了罚款,色情电影业也面临着一些前任演员们提出的代价昂贵的法律诉讼。 ' g" R3 Q) y4 u n. M, ^% R) H3 |7 T: ^
一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。5 D# s) f q8 V5 G% @
6 n! l* M1 ? j* l0 n1 {: H- s制片人说,这对雇员没有任何好处,只会迫使制片公司搬到海外、或者转移到地下去拍片。观众想看的,就一定能看得到。 z* i1 B. S" v6 s* X% U+ Y # h$ b& W; T+ H; {, p }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。 + t/ Z' w* O; E2 @7 G & L2 Z4 N5 T/ S0 X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…….2 L, z7 v6 R; q* I
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$ A A1 C' }: m8 R( yCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 3 q4 e6 B" [) v6 g2 D# D' Q: \) u6 x% V" v4 Z& n# f2 F. `; J
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.; O2 Z* T# e/ g4 s1 P2 u3 _
" Z! G! \8 {* q. I$ B2 F7 [Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.6 i; ]9 f* j6 c' }$ }$ Z
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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. 8 ]! F$ f' N) ^/ o E+ A: b7 R. V @0 |! ]" L- X
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect./ S5 B9 J) g8 [, F% f9 K0 l
! a- O9 `9 Y! B' S: F0 a% P9 S/ TThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. % N0 ~: J7 t8 r: y8 A- |$ x8 m" S; F8 o' X
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. / d1 |+ F& B/ v& D) a. e7 v* k& T; J/ E! U# P4 _
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.# Q4 d! N* f2 o! r7 K
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.7 z. D: ?6 L( w0 z
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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. q/ U. O- {6 _ 6 I4 Y9 ?& f' ^The problem, increasingly, is revenue.4 A5 d3 v# X$ u2 u, x7 t9 s
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.* s8 X$ k0 v% w# F; q( v
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.4 I1 Z, [3 C9 G* h$ b% E! E% p [# k$ N
" | X/ h$ I4 {9 {- GAnd the economic downturn does not help.2 H8 Z. A2 G" b4 C/ {/ ]1 G6 F
' X, Q9 A, O5 ~* v- T; c0 O"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully. & w, P0 G0 u" ^) N- I6 D7 ? r8 s) k6 Z+ ]+ s6 W9 S' C2 o6 H
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. , x. N" h+ z/ Y: a * l' x, \, r: l0 k( C eFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 3 W, D0 j/ V# y. M) l& _6 A 8 T) Y8 x" L# sHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.4 A( Y, Z- x/ a+ m/ P0 ~
* d- Q: w1 c. T- `6 x3 xBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say.5 O9 O' g* d# X0 z2 Z* r2 q" V
/ k& R q' ^& B3 m! m6 C- qGonorrhoea 4 {5 L: A% @. P; ` # p7 G7 i# F/ TBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.+ i k: q# k K% w
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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.* |. h; J: g6 m% y
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.' T4 f* P6 |' U( |; A' n& p9 {; D4 \
4 G' j- g e/ f3 G5 J"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"( t# L7 \5 n6 ~' H0 D
4 T, i4 t" A; c7 N3 [8 a+ R" w3 KHer 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. ! ` k% W1 M$ a6 ?' [1 h! Y+ v8 {4 _/ b
Each day would be 15 hours long.0 e8 Q* h* i- m0 d4 |2 t2 i
: W& m a& g% F- a% U! S5 T! W: p"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.. {2 \. |5 e. a; B! j! `' [/ D
: @2 _& z: R) t, a) B"You get used to it," she smiled. 1 R4 D. Z; u0 c0 a: R3 A- M( x - k4 I/ M; e; k0 a1 H# J"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"2 O1 d( N: i, O8 [0 x+ I, P
, B# V, v6 e2 }& m, P% L"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."- O0 ?7 M& P2 g; @$ {4 E7 p
5 l( f9 `$ S: ~There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. ^5 {& ?7 F* c6 H+ F% E8 U& f J/ G. T& c( q+ b+ p8 \
Expensive lawsuits 4 {4 M' {# Y2 }! X$ x/ }( w( @8 C" K! T# |# f, ~* K
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. y6 y1 J' ^9 `5 E) G / L4 U& a" x: j6 I. CA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. . @- c: T9 q, A- S! \$ }( z+ U# c, ?' f; Q/ l% ~" e; ?3 Z
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.' p) [( z. h# P( K9 F# Y( L
6 u4 }; {0 f3 P# l/ UNow, 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.' a4 p* a: P# J H i
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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?"% d+ n6 Y! W' `2 d1 `! F' Y
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.( C3 g# n/ s: I
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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? ' o4 P) f" U( K1 Z0 O3 a( j. W2 @) X1 W
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.3 J, |- G( j# q4 {
* q5 S. o+ X6 q W- BIt 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. # ~3 B l: x: O i9 N; e, E9 J3 X% B+ N# ]) ?& @; Y4 e; C
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 8 X2 G, J8 u. \! D! H5 q$ f6 [" J# ]# }) d3 v
The producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants./ d* p% s b) x1 O- K4 m. j3 O4 \2 @
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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. & ^' u& v- ~$ C' h! Z' D4 x# z; S6 z& M3 A* Z
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.2 I7 _ m! N' W0 t& m+ M+ P" Q( N
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004