International Review of Educational Cinematography (Jan-Dec 1931)

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Legislation FILM CENSORSHIP IN SOVIET RUSSIA Legislation. — The system of film censorship in the Soviet Republic is based upon the Instruction of the People's Commissariats for Education, Internal Affairs and Justice dated March 30th, 1923 (published in the Collected Decrees of 1923, N°. 27, page 310) issued on the basis of Art. 5 of the Decree of the Council of People's Commissaries of February 9th, 1923 concerning the functions and attributes of the Control Committee attached to the Central Department for Literature and Publications (Collected Decrees 1923, N°. 14 P 177) Another decree is that of February 19th, 1927 (Collected Decrees 1927, N°. 18, p. 124) concerning the amendments to the statutes of the above-mentioned committee. The principle underlying all these legislative provisions is that no production may be shown to the public without the permission of the Control Committee already referred to. The prohibition of all kinds of entertainments and performances on the grounds that they are contrary to existing Soviet law and exemption from the regulations are matters which rest with the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs and its subordinate local organs. Offices. — The Central Department for Art and Letters (blavlit) has set up a Control Committee consisting of three members, one of them, the chairman, appointed by the People's Commissariat for Education. This Committee receives general advice from a special advisory council of representatives appointed respectively by the People's Commissariat for Education, the State political administration, the political administration of the republic, the State photo-cinematographic industry and the Central Pan-Russian Soviet of Professional Associations attached to the Central Com mittee of the professional Association of Artists. Centrally, control is exercised, in accordance with the Committee's instructions, through the Central Department for Arts and Letters (literature and publications); locally, by the local education committees. As regards cinema films, however, a special exception is made, and the right of censoring films may under certain conditions be delegated by the Central Committee to particular local artistic and literary organs. This is due to the necessity of exercising especially strict supervision over films which have greater suggestional influence than the other branches of art under the Committee's control. These offices are permanent organisations and the only appeal against their decisions is through the administrative channel, to the College of the People's Commissariat for Education. Mode of operation. — In order to obtain permission to exhibit a film the institution or individual concerned (in nearly every case the maker of the film) must submit to the Committee a sample copy accompanied by a request or by two copies of the captions and by a good summary of the film. After examination, the film may then: (a) be passed for public performance; (b) be passed subject to cuts or alterations that will not affect its artistic value; (c) be banned. In the first case the control organs issue special licences and, if there are several copies of the film, a licence will be issued for each. In the second case the issue of a licence or licences is subject to approval of the alterations effected, the Committee or other censorship organs having the right to control these. In the third case, the banned film is confiscated and, if a national product, is