The ACMA suck, round number umtpy-something
LA Zombie refused classification by censor - accordingly, is banned from Melbourne International Film Festival
^ Warning, there's an autostart video embedded in the link; hit "don't play" within 5 seconds if you don't want the video content.
The way ratings work in Australia goes something like this:
The ACMA rate movies which are going to be commercially available in Australia, and some other media as well (apparently, they're keeping a list of Refused Classifcation websites. Don't get me started on the stupidity of this). Ratings run between G and X for films; however, in most states, it is illegal to sell X-rated material, so in practice your options are G through to R18+. For games, the highest rating is M-15.
Material which falls outside of the ACMA's rating scheme is Refused Classification. It is illegal to sell or show Refused Classification material. Material which has not been classified by the ACMA is usually marked out in some way - trailers of unreleased films usually say "this film has not yet been classified", I think. Sometimes films shown at festivals are "exempt from classification", if they aren't going to be commercially screened.
The ACMA do not normally classify the films at the Melbourne International Film Festival. However, after reading a summary of the plot of L.A. Zombie, which has been described as "gay zombie porn" and includes wound penetration and implied necrophilia, they requested a copy of that film alone and refused classification. It is now banned from the MIFF, and indeed from any venue in Australia.
The MIFF program, from the sounds of things, was up-front about the content, the deliberately B-grade style, and the offensive nature of the material. In the absence of a formal ratings system governing the festival, it sounds like they were doing a decent job of providing content warnings for prospective audiences.
If you watch the ACMA's ads on TV, the ratings system is there to help you make choices about media consumption for yourself and your family! Sounds lovely, doesn't it? It's actually pretty close to useless: if you've ever tried to find out why a particular movie was rated M-15, it's nigh impossible to get specific information out of either cinemas or the internet. "Adult themes?" What the heck are they?
It seems to me that the MIFF were doing a reasonable job when it came to helping attendees make their viewing choices. And yet the ACMA want to step in - not to review and rate the whole festival, oh no. Just to make sure that this one film can't be shown.
Anyone want to bet how much of the decision is due to the fact that it's gay zombie porn?
ETA: Director Bruce LaBruce on the ACMA"s decision:
‘‘they pass so many mainstream films that have the most extreme violence, with brutal treatment towards women, and torture and dismemberment, but because they didn’t show a penis, they can be screened with impunity.’’
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^ Warning, there's an autostart video embedded in the link; hit "don't play" within 5 seconds if you don't want the video content.
The way ratings work in Australia goes something like this:
The ACMA rate movies which are going to be commercially available in Australia, and some other media as well (apparently, they're keeping a list of Refused Classifcation websites. Don't get me started on the stupidity of this). Ratings run between G and X for films; however, in most states, it is illegal to sell X-rated material, so in practice your options are G through to R18+. For games, the highest rating is M-15.
Material which falls outside of the ACMA's rating scheme is Refused Classification. It is illegal to sell or show Refused Classification material. Material which has not been classified by the ACMA is usually marked out in some way - trailers of unreleased films usually say "this film has not yet been classified", I think. Sometimes films shown at festivals are "exempt from classification", if they aren't going to be commercially screened.
The ACMA do not normally classify the films at the Melbourne International Film Festival. However, after reading a summary of the plot of L.A. Zombie, which has been described as "gay zombie porn" and includes wound penetration and implied necrophilia, they requested a copy of that film alone and refused classification. It is now banned from the MIFF, and indeed from any venue in Australia.
The MIFF program, from the sounds of things, was up-front about the content, the deliberately B-grade style, and the offensive nature of the material. In the absence of a formal ratings system governing the festival, it sounds like they were doing a decent job of providing content warnings for prospective audiences.
If you watch the ACMA's ads on TV, the ratings system is there to help you make choices about media consumption for yourself and your family! Sounds lovely, doesn't it? It's actually pretty close to useless: if you've ever tried to find out why a particular movie was rated M-15, it's nigh impossible to get specific information out of either cinemas or the internet. "Adult themes?" What the heck are they?
It seems to me that the MIFF were doing a reasonable job when it came to helping attendees make their viewing choices. And yet the ACMA want to step in - not to review and rate the whole festival, oh no. Just to make sure that this one film can't be shown.
Anyone want to bet how much of the decision is due to the fact that it's gay zombie porn?
ETA: Director Bruce LaBruce on the ACMA"s decision:
‘‘they pass so many mainstream films that have the most extreme violence, with brutal treatment towards women, and torture and dismemberment, but because they didn’t show a penis, they can be screened with impunity.’’
This entry has
comments on Dreamwidth. You can read and comment there using OpenId