Z& ]! r' G" P I. LCalifornia'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. 0 K3 l4 n* C9 }* ^ 3 z9 C4 X8 p8 r" `( `' L ~Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles. & Z" @9 J* S! y# x+ ]2 U9 o. s1 e# T
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things. - g! y4 F( ]7 f3 U7 ^4 T % b- v1 n) D! W* }, f& sWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. + {# F% I [1 e7 `6 x0 Q# A$ U; _2 Q 0 ^( n3 Q& m, h. F- q& aThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga. 5 x7 e( I8 X2 I5 j# F! p, Z: V5 r ( }: A& _/ j% D9 F9 o nPerformers 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./ n% h) C2 v% `7 p7 A: V5 I' C! t6 ~
8 K& B. N: u4 p+ G7 b4 Z9 YThis 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.: c, U! y2 h( b9 p7 y
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Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 4 f' z: C/ `9 x( Y* V 3 i& x# W4 p, O, v4 Z z. D: yFantasy ! |4 }& R! v2 F8 R) a+ i( P$ x " s& f9 M8 m! b3 K) a7 |' gThe 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. " K7 |+ w! V! i: {8 Z2 Z! l* Z$ D, y1 {5 K
The problem, increasingly, is revenue." ?& o0 e2 k; e+ U; W9 ]- N
- p( h% d; u3 C# d, h8 {: z# e3 fLike the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.% k2 z7 b1 i. d# D# @
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DVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free./ N4 j! _1 A$ P" _$ }
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And the economic downturn does not help./ B* b( f5 V7 {
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"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully.( d/ O6 {. y; j2 F6 H# q, \
$ [8 Q% k- c2 ^& k' uThe economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations.2 A9 r6 o5 c; Q7 z" M' w
5 A8 z( P6 ?. `% t: AFor years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 6 m+ s+ W* |7 Y# v* Z+ B+ a" J $ a: a! C. d2 l1 `: vHealth scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set.( o! V: y$ `$ z6 H
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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 k% G+ Y: V( G0 `4 Y3 h; K% |
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Gonorrhoea1 }/ |+ W' y" M4 P. n
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Back on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers.! Y, [ f) R" |. x6 e7 X
: @' C$ _1 I) M. TA college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years./ E. g* B6 s# n0 W
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She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure. $ K9 L' o1 x; i% H: r# ~ . Q# U5 i& B* S# j* W' b"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?"4 W( N4 P+ f1 Z( K
: m7 S; U) }2 O. R: v7 ~) {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. / q' b1 v' J- b3 S! R. ]7 K5 c3 U; m- X# B5 y# m; l
Each day would be 15 hours long.& G2 p7 W7 a+ I/ n' R
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"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested.5 h2 ?4 ^ O' A. j( W& [/ N: N
2 e5 |- o3 ]. G7 v2 s. T* N L"You get used to it," she smiled.& @' G& N" H* a s, U
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"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" 4 o% a9 D/ W" j. Z; C) z# R( _1 C4 F; n; O! G. ~/ C
"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 K8 m* e8 B. {1 G 6 @4 [, e$ S! G& Q9 }% bThere was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. % L* x5 a, q' J- t: p 8 ?, I5 T, Y: H% ^% nExpensive lawsuits! V" P) W; ~/ U
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In fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. # s7 ]8 t: F) Z8 s5 g8 l l5 ]7 ^' P+ f* }# E
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it. 3 ]' Z9 T/ `1 S7 a3 H; @ : i2 K: ]1 c. F$ `' U& [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.1 n3 Z; O: M( j) ?4 u+ z9 }# ~
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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.% f5 H& M8 H2 Y5 h7 A: [
& o7 p" f8 l/ j9 X# H0 H a"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"6 f( g" G0 I; b
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I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment.7 C5 E1 k: {% L. m9 j& v
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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?- z! m6 u5 j/ ?
~4 E0 l+ a% K: F DThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection.2 |0 N0 f1 F7 M
1 i' O# U6 k0 \# U0 j/ X XIt 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. ) p: i6 ]9 b! d 4 E( K! D' v) L' L" b A, wA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. / {$ N! Q) z$ z5 c p" K 1 L! a' H6 s6 N9 W$ \3 C2 MThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants. 1 w% l; y; X$ m ' i* V" q7 ]2 H4 b& u$ m1 Y4 n& eThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene. ) h" F" i+ `% a3 w 6 c4 d9 [) X0 [I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain. ! y- C( N( o6 y4 s- n5 @5 {0 G; L* Y/ E( j$ m; } ! ]/ N5 u0 X0 ?: n$ r. w v# L' k5 i % {- R& v- B5 A; F6 m( C/ E: U4 D * H! |8 U! `2 ]5 vCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004
