CENSORSHIP OF PICTURES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17092, 25 August 1917, Page 11

CENSORSHIP OF PICTURES

DEPUTATION TO HON. MR RUSSELL. MINISTER PROMISES. AN IMPROVEMENT. The censorship of picture films formed the subject of some remarks by the Hon. Mr Russell on Thursday, in reply to a deputation of Otago members of Parliament which waited on him. It -was suggested, among other things, that a portion of the programme at picture shows—say, 25 per cent. — should comprise educative and instructive fihns.

The Minister, in reply_ to the deputation, said he believed _ a cortain improvement had been made in picture programmes since the censorship had come into operation, but ho did not think the censorship had .sufficiently got going, yet to fully justify itself-, booms© a number of films were on oirouit and in tho libraries of the dvom.panies hiring out films at tho time it canjo into force. A reasonable time had been given tbem to work these off. The right was reserved to withdraw this concession at any time. Ho was not_ iroing to stato all he knew, but certain information had come to him, and , after tho 31st of this month there would be a prosecution against every picture house that sho\v°d a film that had not been censored. "By this means," ,he said, "we Bhall get a grip on a lot of stuff that is being hawked round still without passing through t.ho censor's hands." That, he' believed, had been the canso of a great deal of the trouble. Tho censorship was receiving tho corsideration of tiio Government now, and very careful inquiries were being made as to the appointment of "two other oensors— one to be a woman. He could not say how far tho matter had gone. Inquiries were being made, and ho hoped that very shortly a statement would bo made with reference to the matter. Ho did not think it would ever bo possible to attain to the high level suggested by members of the deputation in regard to the proportion of educational films. He did not think it was possible for the Government to lay down a rule that 25 per ccnt. of the programme would have to be of a particular class'. All they coulci lay down was that there should be a reasonable standard. Just as it was in literature, so it -was in picturo Elms—ono could not reduce the films to tho level of the child any more than one could reduce one's library to tho level of tho child. There must be some films which a child could not understand. They oould only stipulate that a particular film could be witnessed by a specified class. Tho experience, however, was that so soon as it was stipulated that a film could he witnessed by adults only, and this was advertised, there was a rush for seats in the theatre in which it was being shown, and even young girls put up their hair and m*d'e themselves like women in order to see the picture. At the present time proposals were under consideration which ho hoped would materially have tho effect of a.fffotincr the status of_ pictures. Very shortly ho hoped the ar^oointment, of a worr>an censor wcmW bo definitely dealt with by Cabinet. Ho had not, definitely cormnittcd himself, yp+, he did not want to incrrfl.se the expenditure at the present time, but the deputation's requests had his sympathy.