- v2 f f& f' R& w! M ?5 z$ i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。 $ W6 ?2 q; Z* S0 L' b7 h( i) \9 o; Q" t2 F+ L3 l* C( i
一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。6 i4 d. g. q1 r
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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。 6 J# \5 \% i- T8 [9 ]1 Y( g8 \) e% f# h+ Q; _ Z; P9 r
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。 1 a. y8 C4 N, s6 I3 Z( b. P 0 i- i0 Y! r& y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…….: u* k& o! J* P* e& T" y8 I
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& }4 N, s, }( E1 GCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 9 t! L3 F) ]8 _6 b2 q/ x! J0 @8 g6 S h; J7 ~
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. ( |3 w2 _& Z: e# k6 y- V C! [, L. ^2 m7 [ {/ Y! V# W
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.& y8 I8 U) v9 B4 L. y5 P
0 t/ m( ]( v& ]* J; J* q. G* q' ~, YI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. . O( P; Z- o3 R. n 7 |: _" M# u1 @What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. , B$ l* @& [$ E8 i, ^, f7 C3 n8 j/ ]) ^$ q( G9 P) e
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.& d( N) I& j& Z Q f
9 e. t4 M, ^, ~9 g9 B- C, gPerformers 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. ! T: W" q! x0 x6 r P1 {) x* c# b5 \' Y1 O
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.- \+ `3 X/ S; M" T. }" ~# u% Z
& t' F/ u5 \; G* g& J% TOnly 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.. [6 E$ o* D8 U# v! w$ g: S
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) G8 l( s c- Z" ^) h( A+ TThe 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 O+ V/ N+ ^6 k% I5 J/ |# A# u5 c, ^% m. W
The problem, increasingly, is revenue.; U5 ^" D' Y3 B
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.8 } m- [, U2 q, j
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.2 f; ~( o, M! g2 \; }& _; k+ D
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And the economic downturn does not help. % V( I% `" s# i$ g* r! N& b) G+ j , Z8 D( F8 n( q4 L"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully." G0 Z0 D$ W! [, |- {+ ~7 D
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. ! B0 D; _* W) w3 A9 r. `5 J8 g/ C/ ]- o3 ]+ Z
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. , B; t$ Q2 Z7 r0 n, m& V( d) t Y ( m. t e& H7 G1 P, _Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. : k( ^2 `! V" y3 G% s6 y4 H* c8 Z1 W4 \7 B# V8 Y1 s$ f
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. ( R3 E5 R1 C6 u' \ $ n# s$ o& D$ _Gonorrhoea : `8 {9 q$ ]9 |9 r7 @5 K2 C: E. O* l$ z k, f! L: _4 a
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.. _$ b! S! [* {. w9 a) u
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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. [6 u7 I9 y+ x+ [8 I* h% x$ z9 c2 Z
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. 1 k' o% O z; D/ o( a% z6 j , Z8 G' p- z9 u0 @' V( h"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" $ v4 C! t+ o! U1 b7 k! j 8 F3 S G# J S Z! YHer 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. + r o/ i6 C, C& m' n% A s8 @, S# f) J
Each day would be 15 hours long.* d5 j7 ]0 z4 o! q& @
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.7 y, d7 q' O1 O( h
/ z% w% u9 }2 q: k; m9 {"You get used to it," she smiled. # W% U5 b1 |+ a1 k, ], `$ L2 h7 y/ @) ~: A# \ u! r# D+ f& @
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" % A0 a1 E5 v- X* k2 B, j! n& F% Q9 h& }" s, H0 F- r9 y9 A p- ?
"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." 6 Y4 C, Z5 }3 [6 j# f5 ^0 B/ V" v$ y# l" `
There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.6 J7 i4 f& C" R* r
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Expensive lawsuits ; w- w$ D* ^9 G) y: w+ H8 D 9 g, E1 I% n" N+ vIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business./ @0 V0 Q# ^7 [ @7 j( r
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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. 9 x. q4 }7 ?# C1 u7 I( a $ h, c8 x* ]- i) k8 z# EIt 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" b7 e( K& n* v ' z% j" R& }1 nNow, 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.- X* j' |+ L1 f8 i8 l$ W
2 B" i. G6 z) r6 f' e+ z7 y"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"( ]2 i3 H% U2 z* }% x! s+ x
8 Y/ u9 E' |- q+ G2 C3 {I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.: `3 R$ e0 x/ i% l/ A$ T& B0 ~
0 b' \: A8 _! j ? G9 C9 ZBut 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? F: m' S3 b! R7 b: h6 U
1 ~0 M w. a. U* pThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.. \2 s5 |4 n/ K [" H
% X$ N: F( m2 z7 ^& sIt 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 _4 L: u% e& a: E: n+ ]! P; K
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. 2 D% V/ ~# h2 e4 ~1 P E* p) g % } b) j& h/ i) Y! S& qThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 8 P9 D1 f4 {1 \( o$ z) F6 b4 b s& o$ x6 g, W
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene., D; n) T; x" o) Y' q& D1 Y; G# c: F
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.: P7 }" a2 E. ], w/ b
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Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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