+ ~8 V# G% j. N! `$ E% L+ C1 P7 q2 Q
Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles ! q4 o, H1 W9 p& L$ i! c. o" `+ D2 e0 e
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.- K+ `: ]! {# o4 ?4 O6 S6 D
2 V/ B2 P' A; T/ M5 h9 C7 Q
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. % x% u U- ~2 |: `9 w( {/ A# r& f/ N8 Q- s# l$ H
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.; y' m) H( D, M9 e7 p: w
/ k2 m% S- _$ j1 M% g3 WWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. # T* H' o3 e* k- N. |8 L; R. X, E; o- w: P2 s2 p
The porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.) b( U3 }# H& D6 }, v. }6 q* w
, M, U, i5 T4 [- @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.9 U9 U6 s" n7 l( [
! G: m% ?( Z( \3 l6 w6 U$ j
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.+ k9 ]! c$ q$ w' H! K* a7 l) X9 N: s
2 R% `/ y1 M$ _- U h
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed.( e( L+ U1 [/ s
0 Q. t; ^% ~: G! E) H3 T& kFantasy5 C* m* ]9 G" Y1 y, v4 U
) b0 }2 g$ C4 `$ nThe 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! S% y. j0 `! d9 g1 e
/ f% Q% t7 B x9 k5 w5 gThe problem, increasingly, is revenue. & W5 u" [0 k( o) e7 T. @- ^: z& C' C/ C+ `+ V, Y
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch. 3 \" g8 S: O7 x7 T- E5 C9 @6 E$ ]; N* }' @$ C: w9 |9 X/ L
DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.1 ~, s: [2 x4 u: O8 c6 F
7 a! ]9 Q2 K# P3 j2 {8 r L& Q
And the economic downturn does not help.# i. s: ]4 s" ?
+ ^7 p+ B. z2 P! ~$ _"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.9 g7 g' y! ]; P1 |7 s8 M+ X: d8 ~
! m9 Z% Z' X5 TThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. ' O9 I1 Q; N1 Z4 B% L 2 u, X7 ^) b7 q7 p( E$ U- N6 N% t1 E/ JFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms." p0 G5 a- {8 \1 n. L% a0 ?! e! u4 Y
5 x U) a3 X' \/ e. w2 z" O4 f% P& D
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.5 Z {7 H& o0 h! A8 c7 ^9 y; S5 t
* Z$ a5 k" g+ FBut the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. ) j. B2 O" h& l& o2 n) h, q- i% p+ Y, R1 j
Gonorrhoea$ H* [% b. q' r
# r% f- a# v8 z; X
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.7 ~( q8 A" W9 c
6 m( `# Z7 {' l" {; |* m# CA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. # A2 U( F V" r) d2 _7 Q* Y/ E l* I C
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.. e; i, L& m8 ^& ~' h" w
1 Q9 d1 _ a% q; z. T) C' e/ I3 T1 u
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"6 M7 u: u( p" ]7 b
& r$ m8 ~6 E, Z9 {& t# Q+ o7 B& FHer 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 v" M) X+ B7 L+ Y! O; R1 `* K G
& }( y' d4 p7 p& L1 vEach day would be 15 hours long.- ?* w# f1 @: X" ^3 u! q. Z$ ]
) D, _+ h: u1 E( Y1 a' d7 G' T7 v"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. " v! g/ G' L$ [0 R3 Q - v4 j/ Z" Q$ l) s9 P+ Y: H"You get used to it," she smiled.! }" V7 |' V( E8 {, ]; c% J0 i0 F
" M( q. c4 y4 u/ X* k* v$ q"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"6 G$ S$ q" I6 S; r8 H8 p) Z; O2 O
2 z C5 }0 W* f2 M2 O' ~& ?
"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."1 D, p3 T: t ^3 e
0 |7 D- G3 q" k: f! U; S7 G' fThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. # i( g0 j g/ J, {. | " I( j2 M) w" ^- UExpensive lawsuits3 t! b1 x* p; Q: ~4 ~
. q" E# c" }- e% LIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. ' J& x% @# i, Q0 E3 X - c E% b+ B! K5 XA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.$ ~, i; U/ n" R2 b& v Y: V$ @. I
. `3 U. v- [: h! }# e7 y( ?
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.$ T4 o2 C, P8 _) n7 d/ y( X
1 G4 d2 j, s6 }
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.9 {) u( x' `6 j8 {( z5 E" Z3 @# X
: F' Z/ L) T% ]0 k5 b/ l1 K* c2 x"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?". `9 K8 z- F& J0 t3 |9 v$ K, v$ a
& j3 ^2 ]% I" b) x/ p$ BI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.) L5 a! q0 f% P7 k3 U& N
/ |) U7 m5 v0 j. {+ t" c
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? ( J7 n& N. u) \/ C! S8 h o+ |8 C; s- P; X3 M3 R$ l/ M6 |" x
The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.% [% d0 P: Z7 N
4 ] Y: d4 v! G: m: l2 Y$ j# r: AIt 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. ; q( R+ V3 f9 {' T " {( b; t E$ m& fA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.( a; q+ t9 @! ~ c7 T- k
7 Z& Q. M# M+ ?* f$ LThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 2 F7 F/ Y r7 ]# m# ^1 Q" x3 `- g) s! o; K" w' T: T+ o ^! Z
That view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. - { _. T: J4 B3 F) s2 g4 A5 ~: M0 W& a& Z l% C
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.7 f1 M, q1 w) V3 Z$ S. s' D0 i
x8 A( N* B3 y) o5 R 7 _7 ^( L7 x/ L* ~; u; v
. k/ A7 B m1 x$ v 4 ~4 D6 t8 p" p+ k1 z% J
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
* [9 ^7 j7 W1 r" b8 @) T, `- \8 _
7 _7 ^( L7 x/ L* ~; u; v
4 ~4 D6 t8 p" p+ k1 z% J