What can we learn from the history of film censorship? Public lecture

Today’s media and communications seem at odds with the idea of censorship. In a digital environment, media appear to be hardly controllable, due to their technological and spatial dimensions, opening new possibilities for a public sphere where freedom of choice and action are relocated into the hands of the user or consumer. Forms of external, top-down, corporate and/or state censorship seem to be replaced by forms of voluntary user-centered control. However, in this so-called post-disciplinary society, there is a renewed interest in traditional models of censorship. Moreover, as this talk on recent studies on film censorship will argue, we can learn a lot from why, where and how censorship emerged and operated

Meandry i paradoksy międzywojennej cenzury filmowej w Polsce

Meanders and paradoxes of interwar film censorship in PolandThe article concerns film censorship in Poland in the interwar period. The first detailed rules on censorship appeared in February 1919. Due to the small level of film production, these provisions related primarily to distribution and screenings. The detailed instructions for censors from 1920 cited in the text contain a long list of prohibitions concerning the presentation of scenes and images “contrary to law and public morality.” In practice, film was subject to political, moral, military, religious, and also artistic censorship. The article presents the ways to circumvent censorship guidelines used by distributors and cinema owners, as well as a critical evaluation of the activities of this institution in the eyes of film publicists.Meanders and paradoxes of interwar fi lm censorship in PolandThe article concerns film censorship in Poland in the interwar period. The first detailed rules on censorship appeared in February 1919. Due to the small level of film production, these provisions related primarily to distribution and screenings. The detailed instructions for censors from 1920 cited in the text contain a long list of prohibitions concerning the presentation of scenes and images “contrary to law and public morality.” In practice, film was subject to political, moral, military, religious, and also artistic censorship. The article presents the ways to circumvent censorship guidelines used by distributors and cinema owners, as well as a critical evaluation of the activities of this institution in the eyes of film publicists

Silencing cinema : film censorship around the world

Oppression by censorship affects the film industry far more frequently than any other mass media. Including essays by leading film historians, the book offers groundbreaking historical research on film censorship in major film production countries and explore such innovative themes as film censorship and authorship, religion, and colonialism

Recent Developments in the Chinese Film Censorship System

The Chinese film censorship system is a very important administrative means for the Chinese government to control free expression and content of films. Beginning in 1978, the Reform and Opening Up policy made China’s economy start to thrive, and helped China grow into a large film market. As China joined WTO in 2001, the Chinese government was forced to open up the film market. The contradiction between the development of the Chinese film industry and the government’s censorship system is becoming more and more intense. Imported Hollywood films are impacting the Chinese film market, which has led to the public asking for a more practical and consistent film industry law. The unclear criteria of the system, the opaque censorship process, and the lack of public oversight have caused even more problems internally. On one hand, Chinese moviegoers urgently hope the government will learn from the west, using a film rating system to replace the current censorship system. On the other hand, China’s ideological situation is not ready to end the censorship system completely in a short time. This article will introduce the historical background of Chinese film censorship system, including current problems in the system, and analyze these issues with case studies

Bangladesh: film censorship in film magazines

Film magazines offer a unique lens to appreciate a culture of expression pertaining to film censorship concerns in Bangladesh. In this post, Arpana Awwal traces some of the censorship debates in archived film magazines Chitrali and Purbani between 1981–1991

The progression of political censorship : Hong Kong cinema from colonial rule to Chinese-style socialist hegemony

Censorship is an important cultural regulatory instrument for the government of a society, or even a state. In certain socio-political settings, it can become a powerful administrative appartus (dispositif) and technique (techne) designed to render society governable. Censorship decisions often embody hegemonic views on social and political issues. No matter how virtuous the original intent maybe, the practice of censorship is inevitably geared to the social tensions surrounding issues of human rights and political dissent. The theory behind film censorship may once have been benign but banning or cutting a movie always involves an unnatural set of procedures and actions. This study examines this problem in the context of socio-political changes in Hong Kong. It is an enquiry into the evolution of political film censoship in its more conventional form to its full-fledged integration into other institutions and policies under today\u27s \u27on country, two systems\u27 policy. It also analyses the discourse surrounding the changes in film censorship practices from the days of early cinema to Hong Kong in the 21st century. By contextualizing Hong Kong cinema from a historical and political perspective, the study of the Hong Kong experience aims to shed light on censorship\u27s socio-political meanings for, and effects on, filmmakers and film production

The claws of ideology: censorship and subtitling of war films during the Estado Novo in Portugal

By analysing the context of censorship, fascism under the Estado Novo in Portugal and the institutionalised processes a film was subjected to before reaching the audience, some historical events, which resulted in a tightening of the censors’ reigns, will be explored. The Guerra Colonial [Colonial War] was one of the life-changing events that had a direct impact on the censorship of war films. Three films from different eras, the censorship measures − cuts, omitted subtitles and manipulation of the text − and their contents will be examined. The extent to which censorship was able to change the substance of a film will become apparent