The Film Daily (1928)

THE 12 ■fXI^ DAILY Thursday, January 19, 192(||rA British Quota Bill Is Now Lau p IN EFFECT APRIL I FOR !; THE TEXT London — Text of the Film Bill, commonly known as the quota measure, is now available. The bill became law on Jan. 1 and, insofar as the renter or distributor is concerned goes into effect on April 1, 1928. The distributors' quota of British pictures for the first year which ends March 31, 1929 is 7H per cent. The quota on exhibitors becomes effective Oct. 1, 1928 and during the first year, exhibitors must include 5 per cent of British pictures on the screens. The first sections of the law follow: An act to restrict blind hooking and advance hooking op cinematograph films, and to secure the renting ayid exhibition of a certain proportion of British films, and for purposes connected therewith. (22nd December 1927.) Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: — • PART I. Restrictions on Blind Booking and Advance Booking of Films 1. — (1) As from the commencement _ of this Act. no agreement shall be entered into to rent, or imposing an obligation when called on to rent, for public exhibition in Great Britain any film to which this Act applies unless every such film to which the agreement relates has been registered under this Act or a valid application for the registration thereof has been made: Provided that — (a) this provision shall not apply to a film which has been exhibited to exhibitors or to the public in Great Britain before the commencement of this Act; and (6) in the case of a serial film or a series of films within the meaning of this Act, it shall be sufficient it any three parts thereof have been registered or a valid application for the registration of three parts thereof has been made. (2) In the case of a film which has not been previously exhibited to exhibitors or to the public in Great Britain, this section shall not operate so as to prohibit the making prior to the registration or application for registration thereof of an agreement for the exhibition of the film in one theater only on a number of consecutive days. 2. — (1) As from the commencement of this Act, no agreement shall be entered into for the exhibition to the public in Great Britain at a date later than the expiration of the authorized period from the date of the agreement of any film to which this Act applies : Provided that, in the case of a serial film or a series of films within the meaning of this Act, the authorized period shall apply only in respect of the date of exhibition of the first three parts. (2) For the purposes of this section, the authorized period shall — (a) in the case of an agreement made before the first day of October, nineteen hundred and twenty-eight, be twelve months; (b) in the case of an agreement made on or after the first day of October, nineteen hundred and twenty-eight, and before the first day of October, nineteen huiidred and thirty, be nine months ; (c) in the case of an agreement made on or after the first day of October, nineteen hundred and thirty, be six months. 3. If any person enters into an agreement in contravention of this Part of this Act. or if any person exhibits to the public in Great Britain a film the right to exhibit which has been acquired by him under any Arrangement of 16. 1. 2. 3. 4. PART I. Restrictions on Blind Booking and Advance Booking of Films Restrictions on blind booking of films. Restrictions on advance booking. Penalty on contraventions. Provisions as to existing agreements. PART II. Registration of Films 5. Prohibition against exhibition of unregistered films. 6. Registration of films. 7. Inspection of register, etc. 8. Correction of register. 9. Power to require reference to High Court. 10. Provisions as to alterations of the length of films. 11. Marking of registered films. 12. Special provisions as to serial films, etc. PART III. Provisions for Securing Quota of British Films. Renters' Quota Provisions as to renters' quota. Power of small renters to combine. Provisions applicable where same film rented by different persons for different areas. 13. 14. 15. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. Schedules Prohibition of counting film more than once for quota purposes. Prohibition against carrying on business of renter unless licensed. Returns and records. Exhibitors' Quota Provisions as to exhibitors' quota. Prohibition against carrying on business of jexhibitor unless licensed. Returns and records. Provisions as to itinerant exhibitors. General Examination of returns. Proceedings for failure to comply with provisions as to quotas. Provisions as to licenses. Penalties for failure to make returns and keep record books. PART IV. General Films to which Act applies. Penalties for misrepresentation. Power of Board of Trade to make regulations. Advisory committee. Institution of proceedings. Interpretation. Short title, extent, commencement, and duration. such agreement, he shall be guilty of an offense and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds, and any agreement in contravention of this Part of this Act, wherever made, shall be invalid. '. 4. Any agreement entered into after the twenty-fifth day of September, nineteen hundred and twenty-six, and before the commencement of this Act which, if entered into after the commencement of this Act would be an invalid agreement under the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act, shall, if and so far as it affects any films to which this Act applies to be delivered for public exhibition in Great Britain after the thirtyfirst day of December, nineteen hundred and twenty-eight, cease to have effect on that day. PART II. Registration of Films 5. — (1) On and after the first day of April, nineteen hundred and twenty-eight, no film to which this Act applies or in the case of a lerial film or a series of films, no part thereof, shall be exhibited to the public in Great Britain unless the film or the part thereof exhibited has been registered in accordance with this Part of this Act: Provided that — (a) a film in respect of which a provisional application for registration has been made may, before registration, be exhibited at a series of public exhibitions held at one theater only on consecutive days; (6) the prohibition contained in this section shall not apply to a film which has been exhibited in Great Britain before the commencement of this Act. (2) If any person exhibits a film, or, in the case of a serial film or a series of films, any part thereof, in contravention of this section, he shall be guilty of an offense ana lialile on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds for each day on which the film or part has been so exhibited. 6. — (1) The Board of Trade shall keep a register of films to which this Act applies, and shall enter therein such particulars a may be prescribed; and the register shall specifiy whether the film is registered as a British film or a foreign film: Provided that a film which has been exhibited to exhibitors or to the public in Great Britain before the first day of October, nineteen hundred and twenty-seven, shall not be registered unless the Board of Trade, after consultation with the advisory committee hereinafter mentioned, determine that the regi tration of the film shall be allowed. (2) The Board of Trade shall publish weekly in the Board of Trade Journal lists of the films registered in accordance with the provisions of this Act. (3) An application to register a film shall be made by or on behalf of the maker or renter of the film, and shall be accompanied by the prescribed fee, and by such information as the Board of Trade may require, and in particular, where the application is tui the registration of the film as a British film, such iiiformation as may be necessary to determine whether the film is a British film. (4) An application shall not be a valid application unless the film has been trade shown, nor if more than fourteen days have elapsed since it was trade shown: Provided that — (u) a provisional application may be made before a film has been trade shown, and in such case on the film being trade shown within six weeks after the lodging of the provisional application, the provisional application shall as from the date of the trade show become a valid application; (h) an application made more than fourteen days after the film was trade shown may be accepted by the Board as a valid application if satisfied thai the delay was due to special circumstances and was not intentional. (5) On the registration of a film, the Board shall issue to the applicant a certificate of registration, and the certificate shall state the length of the film and whether the film is registered as a British film or a foreign film, 7. — (1) The register of films kept under this Act shall at all reasonable times be open to inspection by any person on payment of the prescribed fee, and jny person inspecting the register may make copies or extracts from the register, (2) Any person may on payment of the prescribed fee require to be furnished with a copy of any entry in the register certified to be a true copy by an officer of the Board of Trade appointed to keep the register. (3) The registration of a film may be proved by the production of a copy of the Board of Trade Journal containing a notification of the registration of the film, or of the certificate of registration, or of a certified copy of the entry in the register relating to the film; and a certificate purporting to be a certificate of registration or a copy of any entry purporting to be certified as a true copy by such officer as aforesaid shall in all legal proceedings be evidence of the matteiliilkte stated therein without proof of the signatUiLiJ.Mf or authority of the person signing it. "' . 8. — (1) If the Board of Trade at any tinkN*' have reason to believe that the length of 1«1011P film has been or has become incorrectly rei'[^,,(|ij istered, or that a film has been incorrectlf r ' registered as a British film, they may (a|pW for such evidence as they think fit as to tl| correctness or otherwise of the regist and if satisfied that the film has been or of 'Tit [fSOfll lepa ions, I I isr :o4 ifo and 'Tirtii Jletioi fiend incorrectly registered, they shall correct tlilittlf register and issue an amended certificate (liij.;' j registration. If "' (2) On the issue of an amended certifiiatff ?'"' the former certificate shall cease to haveeibint feet, except that the Board of Trade may ili.>r]|( any particular case allow the film to be counte' for the purposes of the provisions of Pail III. of this Act relating to renters' and KJ hibitors' quotas as being of the length orii! inally registered, or as a British film, as tl case may be. 9. — (1) If any person is aggrieved by tl refusal of the Board of Trade to register film, or to register a film as a British £1e[ or by a decision of the Board to correct tlj J JTC registration of a film, the matter shall, ibI| ject to rules of court, be referred b; Board of Trade to the High Court £i', termination, and the decision of the Com any such reference shall be final and no ajT peal shall lie therefrom to any other court (2) Where the person aggrieved is a pe: son whose principal place of business Scotland, this section shall apply as reference to the High Court were a rei to the Court of Session. 10. If the length of a film is alter! the extent of more than ten per cent. tL after an application for registration tfi has been lodged or after the registratit] thereof, it shall be the duty of the maker (. the film or, if at the time of the alteratic' the film has been acquired by a renter, renter, to send to the Board of Tra(" tice of the alteration, and if he fails so, he shall be guilty of an offense; shall be liable on summary conviction fine not exceeding twenty pounds. 11.— (1) On every copy of a regi film there shall be marked in the pre manner : — (o) the registered number of the (b) the person in whose name th( is registered; (c) the registered length of the (d) the words "registered as a film" or "registered as a f( film," as the case may be: Provided that it shall not be necessi comply with the above requirements spect of any film if, whenever a copy is issued to an exhibitor for exhibit: the public in Great Britain, an invoici taining such particulars as aforesaid ii by the renter to the exhibitor. (2) If after copies of a film have bi marked or invoices have been so seni registration of the film is corrected in ner provided by this Part of this Act (0) in the former case, a correspi alteration shall be made in all of the film; and (fc) in the latter case, new invoice! taining the correct particulars be sent. (3) If any person fails to comply any of the provisions of this section, sues a copy of any registered film inco) marked or any invoice containing ini particulars, he shail be guilty of an .uid shall be liable on summary convict! a fine not exceeding twenty pounds in of each copy. 12. in the case of a serial film or a of films, the provisions of this Part oi Act shall apply subject to the folf modifications : — (1) The separate parts of the fil series of films shall be sep; registered and each part shi treated as a separate film: (2) Where three parts of the fill series have been trade show: other part may be registered out having been trade show: notwithstanding that more than teen days have elapsed since thi three parts were trade shown: Provided that, if the Board are al time of opinion that it is no longer desj to dispense with a trade show in the ci' the remaining parts of serial films am ies of films, they may make an order ti effect, and on the making of the ordei paragraph shall cease to apply. Additional sections of the bill will be published in subse issues. m idevf lily |ict, COI odof niei stol jarticl insta lltd fci] ei «« an lepr ,%, loitki liO ie»C