8 ]0 x- W4 T) |, h. T3 N% P5 bCalifornia'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. 9 C% y6 _7 f6 r9 R& v4 v$ Q) R' \3 q' ^# {& s6 c
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. ' s6 z- ?. j* _ 1 v- p% ?- @* d+ ^7 g7 YI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. w$ K/ \* ^- n& e
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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., p9 D0 m. W$ y4 g+ r
- V Y+ o; O, kThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. % b* X$ M9 m" g. o! d& l$ l2 P: F9 x7 G- f- E( p9 h
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. # b; Z4 @3 y4 t& { 9 @ |: l# `& s E; r; pThis 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.# v7 }! D0 F+ z5 ^2 |
( o8 k3 @; J8 V* Z0 \( [Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 4 Q9 m+ {0 L$ G( y) R) }, D& h+ ^) [" o( K
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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. ) f _, g1 a w0 u2 l( g" @7 U / _) d1 V$ t2 y( g" H7 S4 XThe problem, increasingly, is revenue.. W, T! H, ~8 ?" e4 y
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Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. $ }& |. u8 x. C6 [+ T- p8 }* S/ L. w6 s7 x: F
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.' A3 P K3 Z; g, f7 O! J1 ]6 C
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And the economic downturn does not help. , |# I: E. }: F: \7 [% J8 w6 |6 ]; W' m& ~
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.1 ~7 v0 b5 E5 h: A& [
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.2 u$ d5 g( u" N; V
1 @) {- y# y; K! W$ w+ s& z( @For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms.7 C; o! f# V2 }+ G
: i- F" L; \/ xHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 2 n1 i- r3 K% [* ^: z" h/ q" b: i6 M# a) u; A/ W
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. 4 B& O v+ \6 t# |2 z$ P/ o2 a , ]' s. ~6 d) W1 H7 aGonorrhoea" @8 w0 b! N' v0 m5 D
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 2 R/ ]1 T3 a3 C, r7 R: a0 B $ s; j" r# X9 k1 O1 J7 `A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. " I) G0 P5 [8 ]# h7 l1 C: w# G 4 [; `, ] d3 |. ]6 w" [' kShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.0 [! E( |) }) r6 E4 ?
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 5 C' C5 g* k# V! k/ H # s! f; R! x$ {6 XHer 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.9 e) `1 ?2 g' T1 V
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Each day would be 15 hours long. ! Y% ]9 n- y5 i5 h7 w& t 0 l5 j+ K( Z6 N/ {"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. 1 x- n: W) n2 ~; N ?9 x# o4 @6 ?9 _/ K- }' j' X
"You get used to it," she smiled.# I' d, K* M) D; O9 S
- z8 {1 D2 O& E6 V"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"( P) g. L. b p1 \6 X
; P U) A5 \* k! I. r' d) e"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."& n; N! ` D7 ?! G9 p8 M1 v
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.1 n* }' y" }; H, C# O( F0 X
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Expensive lawsuits 1 Z) V9 d+ J, t8 W7 S4 R! V+ \ o) O9 t* k) a7 _1 D( I. k0 ~
In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 3 U% Z5 [* y4 _# q, ]2 [8 ^, k5 p/ |+ K. G" C* |( A- x
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 3 d7 N# J0 v' U6 N( B) W2 h- D y% _ $ @7 W/ F# W0 m/ |$ VIt 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.7 D+ A) y* M' a8 F2 \& I
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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.1 z! ^. r) o$ y6 h$ H5 w3 U9 p
; M" w: L( D2 U' E& W) \"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" / x; e, l/ t3 W9 L+ r1 f8 R$ t+ Y# g, ?$ r& A/ W
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment." C3 {5 ^: V+ C# P. ?+ S6 M
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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? 6 r6 J0 t) q$ y) ]+ n* z! l& r 4 T/ r+ u# I6 OThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. : f0 d$ D! c t2 l * Y3 S" Z, s' q) D4 ?+ G7 wIt 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.2 f8 J K- Y; l6 Z7 t
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A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.' R- k/ {3 |6 ^
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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. ( r7 M) G: j/ a. F 8 R- a9 T* x O: G1 ~# tThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.4 ~, U' X% ?& i, b* s
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I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.* t. E" ~: B9 j1 J8 o! u
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6 p% c: Z. Z( Z9 j( p" T3 l8 h( J* B 2 z4 n. P; \; d7 GCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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