PICTURE FILMS.

Timaru Herald, Volume CVII, Issue 16447, 19 January 1918, Page 2

PICTURE FILMS.

CENSOR REPLIES TO SCHOOL TEACHERS. Teachers ia conference in Wellington last week unanimously passed the following resolution:—"That -this institute views wfch grave concern the immoral influence of many 1 of 'Wio picture films now shown in Now Zealand, and in the interedca of the young urges tho Government to set up a mos? vigorous censorship over films which glorify crime and animal passions." The resolution waa submitted by a •representative of the "Post" to tho censor (Mr Jolliffe) for any comments he might have to make upon it. "Yes. I read it." he 6aid. "It was, I suppose, a remit on tho agenda paper of the proceedings. A deputation came to see me from the Teacher's Conference prior to lihie resolution. The joints raised in it were discussed, and the depu'eartion lejib apparently satisfied with wluit I lied to say on tho subject. It was asked ithaifc Itho Government be urged to set up a more vigorous censorship over films which glorify crime and the animal passions.' My answer to tha'c isj I have never seen 'films which glorify crime and the animal passions.' INot only have I not had to censor such pictures—l say I have never seen Ichem.

"Complaint is made about 'sex' pictures. Well, I hove not seen pictures that glorify 'sex' —in the sense 'Sex' is used; by many censors of fthe censorship. Sox, as we know, predominates in novels and plays - to-day, as from antiquity, and sex will naturally be. expressed in the film play; but so lons as it is not indecently treated I shall not interfere. No film may bo publicly exhibited in New Zealand without the censor's authority. If I have reason to think that a film I have not passed for public exhibition is likely to be Shown the police are notified bofore the film is returned to the inporter, aud they are on "Hie" lookout for it; but I iiave no knowledge of importers oadeavouring to show uncensored films. In fact, the importers are always ready to do anything I require. So far as 1 can see they «ra desirous of , facilitating my work as censor. Tt is no sinecure, I can assure you, sitting out mile after mile of pictures, but it's my work, and I do it to tho best of my ability, without wcrrving about what other people think.

"It is no part of the censor's duty to teach parents their business in the training of children. Personally, I heartily disapprove of children being out late at night seeing pictures. I told the deputation so, too; I added that the best, corrective tC this kind of thing was the introduction of the cinema into the schools. Bless my soul there are any mumber of subjects suitable for teaching by ' cinema—nature study, geography, history, elementary science. Give the children the cinema in the schools and,.they won't crave for it at night. " As for so-called sex pictures, they leave children cold; they do not appeal to them a bit—they bore theni» If I have anything to find fault with the pictures for children it is in the shocking mutilation of the English language by English film producers, and the coarse fun of Charlie Chaplin and his imitators. But let me t«)l , you that even Charlie Chaplin is acknowledged by.,suin t e I of, the -unco', guid to Da exceedingly" popular witti: children. But, I repeat, it is not the censor's duty to teach parents how to bring up their children, and what I say on that heading is only my per*c.iul viow." "Look at this," the censor pointed to a deed bos, the lid 1 of which ho lifted. It contained seven tightly packed layers of rolled sections of film. "These are cuts I have made. There are more boxes of them. See, each cut is correctly labelled. They run into many thousands of feet in the aggregate. Some are complete episodes, some are. merely sub-titles of pictures, the wording of which I objected to. These excisions are carefully, kept and registered. If the film from which they' have been taken is exported, then the cuts go with it, and can be inserted in "ttiteir proper places if required, but not for exhibition in New Zealand. "No; the people who. raise objections against the censorship do not always know what they aro talking about from practical first-hand, information. If parents think going to pictures is detrimental to their children it is for them to take action not the censor. Tlio teachers' resolution do?;s not disturb me in the least: besides. I Tepcat that the deputation from tlvem left me apparently satisfied with my explanation" of the position."