* [- E' v0 _( j9 c# _$ ~一些演员私下告诉我，他们盼着立法赶快生效。. e! {, w2 b! U: b* Q' N, n+ I4 h
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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。 s8 d: v [. r. U1 \
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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。# Y6 r9 }* p" Z" l1 U& v
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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……. ( L' v- `# O& C `. G1 J! r; D9 t+ ?: d& ~' q4 J
* E1 O" d5 t" ]( rCalifornian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles % ^* w8 i# B, ~ ' Y6 u4 T8 s+ L) rCalifornia'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.: q9 I, c' t' q+ c) F% Z
# a7 I: h, h) o3 [8 lLight drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. + n. d9 V ~; A' k$ Q $ o2 h" u, x- m4 s( @' PI had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. ( l+ b( \/ |6 ]0 c- D! M. F3 L0 y+ p2 q& u: c, v o
What I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect.3 s8 f; x7 B8 r) X# w5 O& J- `. j2 F) C
9 A b$ q: I% a' L, @; i- bThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. ( x* R" F* L. O! [ ( `% e, U" d& CPerformers 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. & {8 G U3 f( W( f) p! s, T4 v0 a: E- j* u6 \- i* k( 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.3 O: K; w* R& Z7 ]. W# |; J
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. ) Z/ Z* j' ?- f3 B- @ 4 A: |; S+ h" u7 j/ HFantasy 8 {& N( G1 U7 V. C3 U+ Q! j; D' l& h: w7 H+ i1 Q
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. 5 W( B- Z |+ t+ M8 c6 d7 q! a a& c* g+ v3 V% E1 s( n# g
The problem, increasingly, is revenue. 1 C+ u" G+ V. j8 ]; n2 _* B* Q9 L* g" Y3 Y) ]. ?/ u' R
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch./ W8 ]! m7 } g* k7 d
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.4 l5 J& |2 G( V/ }! e
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And the economic downturn does not help.( { y: @* L1 M' b- Z0 A t; P
, h: f: i. c2 N& b"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.2 V6 g3 M: u* i, m
( z- T% v5 y9 tThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations. % b5 ]$ D3 U. O4 G . g! R/ m. G; z# E) KFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. & y5 U( @3 R! F8 Z- N 1 S" U9 A3 I3 uHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. 2 Q0 _; y2 s9 `. I4 P i" J( u1 o0 Z+ U( z4 V
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.2 W' @# q' x* w
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Gonorrhoea 0 I& B" Y& \! c$ j, j8 B) M 7 Q' ], E# k4 e0 r* X2 G+ `Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.- F* r- l9 O4 b7 I5 d6 F, M
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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.) X& Q" \, f8 Y% m$ I
" f n5 ]4 s1 I) \9 R jShe turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. 2 ^' l5 W" ]9 r' b* |* t# Q) o0 u' H2 o. @1 R
"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?" 8 y* I: G0 h1 q# k/ ]' G% E$ J/ N$ b/ e. ?7 k
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.% { i' ]& h O% u
1 ^" K& l+ K' ?, a4 j( u3 |Each day would be 15 hours long.- W7 X1 B8 V$ h0 k3 Q* g
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. # G; D% {# I8 |0 F, g6 `! q4 \ 0 p. L( \- m, ?% ]9 Z9 Z"You get used to it," she smiled.# G* B5 T7 R6 ?, Z$ n. e$ ]
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?"& `& u) O4 ~$ d% Z6 p; N: V
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"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." # J& c! \3 O/ u: s: y$ s# T - m0 L8 `/ y; A0 H: }7 _1 X9 UThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided.. D) v% q" a3 m) }! h
$ b$ w C, C' e+ DExpensive lawsuits4 J8 M, z# n& t) e) L; H u/ U
% E+ p0 D3 y `3 d) YIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. - h2 f" R( s( @, ~( w " d% M; R2 R* Z* x0 y/ sA combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.: C. U0 E0 |0 A4 V O* e1 W. h* B
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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. 9 Q, B, ~+ x3 M1 E3 K* n2 b O* j2 ?9 w+ o( s/ P5 i" @! _
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.6 Q- T$ c8 K5 r: _
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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?" 4 J/ h$ L3 Q" I2 a # P3 l! K: I+ p4 H; XI struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. ) ]3 \+ D) q0 L. D2 \# r8 ~9 Q' _3 {: Q& g- l7 A! ~
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? v* A4 ^3 y9 y6 r 7 _" ~, N0 g l. B3 |; ?- ?: uThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. G8 [& p& ^& V6 Z5 A7 p9 z- @$ ^" ]% [/ |; w$ u8 \0 ~
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. 9 D# O I& u* o2 m- B Z+ S5 i& A8 {8 b5 N; M4 T/ [9 D+ y) p7 J4 M
A number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them.8 G: _, j; J- P; J) k1 Y
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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. 8 n2 C1 Y* X5 B+ H c R 7 D& H$ N( V; `7 J+ Q0 c9 r+ XThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.7 `7 X- }' {" H8 l! @& A ?
: p+ x6 M V4 d% }: t8 ]& L9 `I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. $ }; I. |- g0 a6 \ 0 d+ |: l6 m6 l 0 V% v" [2 k) x. h/ | ' d0 F+ p6 F* L7 p2 E1 M- h, u, c) l+ B1 q- v4 E
Calls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
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