Film daily year book of motion pictures for 1942 (1938)

creasing spending power which has reflected on the revenue of the theaters. Malaya's secondary products such as pineapples, coconuts, palm oil, sage, etc., have been in good demand. Increased wages to laborers have also benefitted. -At the present time, the future is fairly bright, and most observers believe that conditions in 1938 will be better. Three new theaters are under construction and one contemplated. The one at Seremban is expected to open in December. The new theater at Ipoh, will open in May, 1938. The Penang theater now under construction has not announced its opening date. A large theater is being planned in Singapore. It is expected to oi)en the latter part of 1938. .Motion picture distributors are very anxious for the new theater to open in Singapore, as it will be operated independently and should result in a little competition for the monopoly which has controlled the distribution of motion picture films in this city. Native audiences prefer films showing a great deal of action. Spectacular films are the_ second choice followed by musicals, and comedies. A large percentage of the theater-going public do not patronize dramas, dealing with European domestic relations, as they do not understand them, and these plays are only popular with European audiences who contribute very Httle revenue. The yearly gross income from theaters in British Malaya is not known. The Registrar of Companies does not require companies to report their income. Sound — ^There are 96 theaters in British Malaya which are wired for sound. Inasmuch as most of the theaters are now wired for sound films, the prospects for sales of new sound equipment are limited. About the only demand for sound equipment will be for the new theaters and for replacement parts. Practically all the well known manufacturers of sound equipment have representation in Singapore, and these agents are constantly on the alert for sales. Imports from the United States — 1936— Positive Sound 2,843,504 ft. $60,120 Negative Sound ft. 1937 — (First 11 months) Positive Sound 2,923,260 ft. $61,248 Negative Sound 25,301 ft. 905 CEYLON Legislation — There are no laws prohibiting foreign exchange and none giving other countries preference over American films. No quota or contingent laws are in effect or contemplated. Censorship — The censorship of all public performances is vested under Municipal bylaws in the Municipal Commissioner who is assisted to a very Rreat extent by the police. The managers of the theaters are required to send to the police a synopsis of every film three days before it is to be produced. The police either exercise their nvn discretion in i)assing the film with or without excisions or report it to the Municipal Comiiissioner as containing undesirable features. On leceipt of such a report the Commissioner orders a private showing of the picture at which he is assisted by the police and a number of ladies and gentlemen comjietent to express an opinion, and a final decision is reached either releasing the film in its entirety or subject to excision, or complete banning. In order to minimize inconvenience to the theaters, films that have been banned by certain Authorities like the British Board of Film Censors are blacklisted by the police and banned in advance by the Commissioner so that they are not imported. During 1937, 13 films were totally rejected on religious, political or moral grounds. The first two films were rejected on religious grounds and the remainder were banned in Ceylon because Boards of Censors elsewhere, such as the British Board of Censors whose rulings are usually followed in Ceylon, had prohibited their exhibition elsewhere. No films were banned in part. No strict censorship is required in Ceylon because films imported for exhibition here have been previously examined and passed or rejected in whole or in part. Competition — British films are the largest competitors of American films. About 60 percent of the films shown in Ceylon are of American manufacture. American films are well received in Ceylon, but there is not as much preference for them as some years ago inasmuch as the (juality of British films is steadily improving. Copyright Relations — As no films are produced locally, no special copyright protection is required in Ceylon. Production — No motion pictures are produced in Ceylon. Taxes — The taxation of the motion picture industry in Ceylon consists of : A tax on net income ; an import duty of two-thirds of one rupee (cent per foot) in the case of films of British origin and one rupee (cent per foot) for films of foreign origin ; an annual license fee (payable to the Municipal Council), which is based on the seating accommodation of each theater, the chargeable fees being as follows: Seating accommodation for 500 persons or more Rs. 500.00 Seating accommodation for 200 persons or more. . . Rs. 250.00 Seating accommodation for under 200 persons Rs. 125.00 An aimual tax of 20 percent of the rental value of the property to the Colombo Municipality ; an annual fixed sum of money to the Performing Rights Society, Limited, for the music played. This tax amounts to the proceeds from the sale of all seats in the theater for one performance. Theaters — There are 19 motion picture theaters in Ceylon, of which only 16 show pictures regularly. The total seating capacity of these theaters is estimated at 11,970 and the average price of admission is Rs. 2.50 ($0.92) for balcony seats and Re.1.00 ($0.37) for orchestra seats. English-speaking Ceylonese prefer American or British films, but non-English-speaking Ceylonese attend only films in the vernacular, the majority of which are made in India. The estimated yearly gross income is Rs. 800,000. Sound — Eighteen theaters are wired for showing sound films. There is little prospect of selling sound equipment to theaters at present unwired, but several theaters have antiquated sound equipment that will shortly have to be replaced. CHILE Legislation — As there is no local production, except for an occasional scenic short, no quota or contingent laws are in etTect or contemplated, nor is there any legislation contemplated at present so far as we know which might reduce or prevent distribution of American motion pictures. Censorship— This is not severe. 45(> pictures have been reviewed by the Board of Censors so far this year and only five were rejected, none of which were American. There are only two grounds for rejection, immorality and anything which might have a tendency to cause political unrest. Showings of American films treating with the aftermath of War in the Province of Santiago was prohibited by the provincial authorities at the request of the Ministry of National Defense, although this film had been approved by the Board of Censors. The reason given was that it tended to disparage patriotism. The Board of Censors confirmed its prior decision and peace organizations rushed to the rescue with the result that showings of the picture were continued. Competition^ — ^The most important competition comes from German, French and British productions although the latter were probably more severely affected during 1937 by the exchange conditions mentioned than were .\merican films. There is given below comparative figures supplied by the Board of Censors for tlie first six months of 103b and 1937 from which it will be seen that the United States supplied 76 percent of the total 1185