Leslie I'm not coming from a legal point of view, but my response would be that the fact that a DVD autoplays rather than first presenting a menu for users to choose from, would make no difference whatsoever to the content, and therefore any issues concerning censorship are unaffected by this difference.

But of course this is common sense, and probably no help when dealing with bureaucrats whose role is simply to make life more difficult.

Good luck...

thanks davet2,

it's all one program - think of, say, a wedding with opening menu with selections for; play all, and other selections that would take you to chapter points within the ONE video.

" Why would the censorship board care?"

Because content can be hidden.
I can see why the local censorship board has gone down this path as there's been issues with hidden content in video games. Once a classification is given the horse has bolted so to speak.

By requiring someone to fill in a complex form they've got some legal redress if the mums and dads discover their kids watching naughty bits they've found in a G rated DVD or game.

The problem is that even an autoplay DVD can have hidden extras and the board is out of touch with the technology.

Unfortunately for Leslie's client to educate them it's going to be a long road to travel, arguing with public servants is no fun. I'd suggest he just plays their game and fills in the from as best he can.

Bob.

peter,

you have to remember he's in the states ;-)

i'm really at a total loss as to what they're going on about. it strikes me that some bureaucrat realised vhs was going out of fashion and decided they needed some more forms to fill....

Bob,

That makes sense. Especially after reading some of the postings about video games and DVDs. This seems exactly to be the issue.

Sounds like you are stuck because apparently once a DVD is classified, it can't be changed for two years. (If I understood it right).

Dave T2

thanks bob - that makes sense - so does that mean every dvd release is going to have to go through this process (in the states that is)?

Only if it needs a rating. I think films can be released without ratings, but I don't know what the implications are.

I see many DVDs that say the EXTRAS are not rated.

http://www.filmmaking.net/faq/answers/faq11.asp

Dave T2

Current video games fall under something different: they must report all content on the disc that the player COULD find, even if it's done by illegal means. Used to be you just reported what the player would find while playing the game normally (hidden Easter eggs didn't count, that's why "Leisure Suit Larry 7" is M instead of AO & isn't being re-released).

Sounds to me like they're wanting to rate the non-motion picture content.

Here's an idea: why not just release the film to the censorship board & then release it on an interactive DVD (technically they're correct) saying the rating of the film & say it's unrated extra content?

EDIT: I didn't know you could change how a DVD started after you hit "play" (maybe scripting?) but this could also be a catch-all for BD's where that can happen.

EDIT2: Maybe the main film autoplay when started & the menu is called after the film unless you hit menu? If that's their definition then why not make them happy? The first Matrix movie autoplayed after the menu repeated three times (I thought something was wrong with my remote).

"thanks bob - that makes sense - so does that mean every dvd release is going to have to go through this process (in the states that is)?"

Oh, sorry, I missed the bit about this being in the USA, my bad.

In that case I don't have a direct clue but I well imagine in the USA they face the same challenge as we do down here.

Has this DVD been classified in Australia?

I ask because I have one client who sells his DVDs globally but out of Australia and he has classification in Australia and that seems adequate to get the disks though into the USA.

If your client is selling within the USA that would be quite different but at the end of the day I really cannot see has much choice but to simply fill in the paperwork. Maybe he could make some noises about the FTA or even have a talk with our censorship board. Aslo there's some government departments down here that would help IF your client is Australian based and trying to sell Australian produced content overseas.

Bob.

EDIT: I didn't know you could change how a DVD started after you hit "play" (maybe scripting?) but this could also be a catch-all for BD's where that can happen

You can also put menus at the end of a movie, so technically, it autoplays and then goes to alternate content.

My comment was made before EDIT 2. ;)

From what I read online, Ratings in the US are voluntary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_Picture_Association_of_America_film_rating_system


Dave T2

I don't know with whom your client is consulting, but there is nothing known as the "Censorship Board" in the United States, either formally or informally, either as a government entity nor the MPAA or any other film industry rating agency. Nor has there been such an entity beyond the earliest part of the 1900's. Since the quote used capitalization to indicate a proper name, I get the compelling impression that there is some form of exaggeration going on here.

The industry in the United States is almost entirely self-regulating, and rates content rather than censors it.

It would be a good idea to find out who your client is actually speaking to, as the language contained in those quotes seems incredibly strange from the perspective of anyone involved in content production or distribution in the US.

Yeah, the more I read, the more I find this wording on the Australian sites, but the US sites do not say anything about interactive DVDs. In fact, accordiing to one site, a movie retains its theatrical rating when transferred to DVD unless altered and extras do not have to be rated nor does the altered film. In which case it is listed as Unrated.


http://www.ofrb.gov.on.ca/english/page14.htm

"Distributors belonging to the MPAA voluntarily agree to submit their films for review and classification, but those not belonging to the MPAA are free to distribute films without a classification. Theatre owners and film and video retailers are free to show, sell, or rent movies that are either classified or unclassified. Unlike Ontario, there is no legal requirement that films be classified prior to distribution or exhibition."

quote from above site



Dave T2

I have to agree with you and Musicvid.
However even digging into the Australian Censorship board's web site the application form simply has a check box that says "If an interactive film, I have also attached:
particulars of any contentious material and how that material may be accessed"

There is a worksheet to be attached, maybe that's where this is coming from as it has tems such as "Number of interactive activities without supporting documentation/ material".

Bob.

thanks guys for all that - i've sent a link of this thread to my client - maybe he can answer relevant questions since i have no idea who he's talking to the the states.

all i do know is that he has to get his video's classified to sell them via mail order or off the shelf....

other than cost he's had no problems doing so here in australia.....

thanks again

"all i do know is that he has to get his video's classified to sell them via mail order or off the shelf...."

Sounds like he's dealing with some export requirements in Australia or from his distributor; submission for rating in the US is voluntary

If by states you mean the US, there is no censorship board here. Censorship is against the US Constitution.

i've written to him (my client) to further explain eaxctly who, and where, he's coming up with these problems....

on another note, 'there's no censorship in the us'?

is this correct?

> 'there's no censorship in the us'? is this correct?

Methinks maybe tongue in cheek. For instance, we have Al Jazeera News Hour here in Oz on free-to-air TV - I believe it is still banned in US.

'there's no censorship in the us'? is this correct?"Well, the 1st Amendment to the US constitution guarantees Freedom of Speech. However, there all many-many nuances to this issue. e.g. You can't incite violence, You can't yell "Fire" in a crowded movie theater, and you can't distribute kiddie porn. Read about the nuances here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_in_the_United_States

I would be surprised if the U.S. government officially banned Al Jazeera unless they advocated the "violent overthrow of the US government". On the other hand, the cable providers might be responding to public outrage and therefore do not provide the service.

All that said, this discussion could easily degenerate into a political debate, which I'm really not interested in. So, this is my one-and-only post on this subject.

...Jerry (just a U.S. citizen, not a Constitutional scholar)

on another note, 'there's no censorship in the us'?


I did not say that. I said there was no censorship board in the US. As for censorship, it is unconstitutional. That does not mean that certain politicians do not attempt to pass laws that would restrict the freedom of speech, but if they manage to do so, such laws would be challenged in the court of law and overruled.

But that was not the discussion I meant to start. Just that there is no censorship board, so ask him to further explain what he is talking about.

Now, movies generally do get a rating, but not by any kind of censorship board or any other government entity. It is done by the movie industry itself and is completely voluntary. The movie This Film Is Not Yet Rated takes a look at the American rating system. And it would certainly discourage any small indie filmmaker from trying to get his work rated, IMHO.

Only the government can't censor, any non-government entity can all they want That's why Walmart & GameStop don't sell unrated or AO games but sell unrated movies.

I've never head of DVD's being shipped IN to the USA being need to be rated either. I know other countries have law forbidding certain content (censorship, IE Germany & almost anything Nazi related). Normally any laws in the USA don't pertain to all methods of delivery or only pertain to illegal activities (IE you can't deliver nude/pornographic images in the US mail unless they're covered by something like an envelope, can't say/do certain things on broadcast TV between a certain time, can't kill those little dogs by crushing them with high heals, etc). Doesn't apply to other countries though: in Buffalo, NY you could, at one time, get soft-core porn after 8pm on Canadian TV stations. Nothing the US could do about it.

I'm betting the distributor wants to check and see what they're selling first. I'm sure as a nature film it's nothing bad but they don't want "SUPER HOT NONSTOP ANIMAL ACTION" with their name on the box. :D

Actually, Al Jazeera is not banned in the US. It's carried on KCET Los Angeles, for example.

This message isn't meant to divert from the actual topic of this thread... just clarification for a posting made farther up the thread.