' e: l6 g! I) ~) d' U( N 3 e% v" C8 n% M) P, H/ e, X0 g) n4 XCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles , g5 f' @% O6 m5 }/ \! W: i
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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.1 T9 E: |, |& O
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Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. 7 H# G+ ]9 }& |* d8 O5 \5 c' q; R9 i$ T& m+ T# B- _* M. A
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.+ ~2 {6 O* p- O$ d& m! q
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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 [- H3 m* J2 B# Y % h& O3 t2 r* ?* p' t0 F( PThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. r- B. K, B7 u9 F- ^8 ^( J& G/ D* `( d" X7 R7 L. f
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. ' k, D" q3 U$ r4 p, j ( @- a5 P5 [% {2 M- FThis 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. % J$ `4 Z! w9 Q* U# q' ^" q/ ^$ A( ]: e
Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 2 j, L: w n1 l: m ) \ f* ~5 G' p" uFantasy% D1 y2 I5 \: Y3 h& B" x
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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. 4 C2 H6 e" g' V; I6 m+ H8 ]5 t1 F2 S" @& ?4 `
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 8 I" Z+ ?* u) @9 r# i; [5 j0 t5 [+ v1 d0 G
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.( X1 D: u. h( ? c
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free. ) L) l! `5 h+ m ]- C2 ]6 u' V2 G( Z: |, P& k1 C0 t) N8 l9 r3 m
And the economic downturn does not help. , y' Q) L: ?- \: ?" \6 z" s: w# X( g3 d8 W& ?2 j* F9 I- s4 @0 ?
"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.' M P! c" f8 }( _! P+ v
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The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations., O5 h+ L/ g: L$ ~2 i9 C1 a
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For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 6 U. S! z) A! f. j/ D2 m; z- M& {& \4 y+ {- e$ Q
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. . d% I l! _1 t! v; j0 o* d- W3 ~8 P# b4 t' E/ n7 K
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 F7 Z) n/ A$ ]) i / @1 j% b+ y4 W8 W; z) AGonorrhoea 6 o# ~) O% k2 ~" o4 ~5 X' h: j2 T' w. v" \/ }* t, m4 @( G
Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 8 s3 T. O# l' v/ p0 T 8 U$ C3 S; r5 T$ a7 R% _ YA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years.# f) m2 _, J9 d: O& y! t
: `1 C* m# d6 r- [6 H+ a7 ?0 fShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.5 w* ]9 G* a3 O# O
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"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 4 Z! }( O# C! w; [% f4 M$ c, B; K# p, z. v
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.: H1 b5 c7 ]: g8 h! a: t4 b
8 Z$ H% J% z- H. i! \8 E, ?& S# mEach day would be 15 hours long. 2 o- S: v% t. m4 R0 V6 h- `: L! o# S) R5 q% S4 l
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. . n" d8 R: U) Z+ _" @9 Z" H* a. f! Q
"You get used to it," she smiled. 9 G& O4 [0 S) ^ . ?, h& E6 e8 |0 c"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" * R" M& f6 T( }+ y6 F o 5 K0 o1 ]8 Y1 I# 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."5 ]" k( ?' v; @1 q/ \
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There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. U) r5 V+ J; \1 R' p
" U2 [: {) T0 H3 Y; s' hExpensive lawsuits $ u/ s+ o: w' m* Y# s8 l # L* G: ?5 L/ N, H0 K4 SIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business.0 d0 E9 M' G! R; d
- l- }( A3 e- j! D" ` I# @5 N) |A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 8 x0 b) s& `1 d& a1 S- v : U6 D( q% L- ?& _$ z5 ?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. # _; q& S) x2 L+ Y: \8 @ 0 g0 ~+ ], ?, L( z( ANow, 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.7 L( d( {+ A% A
! {2 S2 C$ L. t"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?" . ?% W& b0 N9 ]$ T0 F( V- N; j, l0 e- P: s" W, f
I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. * b. c/ ?, b4 Y/ i) d 0 L; w% @9 P, v4 E3 n* N3 `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?" H" y. }/ u; J. I1 p/ I
. R" ^+ g/ h9 h6 d5 @The authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.- A4 x D3 {5 |: a* d. k, Y0 b
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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. H' v, J9 G5 m+ ]- ^ z, i3 H 3 Y" s; @7 _" t! ~) NA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.9 l( Y3 \( v" n% h
6 I' M* E. D- j( r8 A2 jThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.8 L4 e+ e: @: ~7 X
) X. w5 M% w; @/ t" t- K- XThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. " p! y( t. S: P7 }0 v' [7 M1 d1 L3 D# e& m0 Y/ N
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.3 `' _' M; G9 h% I h3 z, R$ A+ R
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