The story of my recent battle with the BBFC
and an adult film called Dare Devils which throws into question
the BBFC claims of impartiality in law enforcement matters.
 BBFC
CutsUK hardcore video by Rob Stone (Rob Stone
Films)
Cut by 3:12s when submitted in 2006 with the following
BBFC comment: Compulsory cuts required to
remove shots of, and dialogue reference to, abusive and/or forced
gagging during deep throat fellatio. Further cuts required to remove
sight of fluid expelled from the anus, or which appears to be expelled
from the anus, either consumed or having been expelled onto another
person. Additional cuts required to remove sight of nudity and sexual
activity in a public location in the UK. |
When I completed the hardcore release
Dare Devils I knew that the BBFC
were going to take issue with some of the more extreme content in the
submitted film. Therefore, I decided that anything the BBFC cut, I would
offer for free on my web site. Anyone who bought the DVD could download
the censored clips via a password protected section of the site.
How silly, silly, silly of me. Not only did
Dare Devils take a
staggering 4 months to be passed through the BBFC - a fact I was assured
had nothing to do with my free downloads offer - they also took a very
active role in ensuring the downloads never happened.
When I noticed
Dare Devils was taking a snail's pace through the BBFC,
I rang up to find out what was going on. I was told that they hadn't
seen content like it before and therefore 'needed to handle it
carefully'. When the cuts list finally came back to me in April (The
film having been submitted in January), I also got a call from the
senior examiner at the BBFC.
He told me that he had heard about my press release in ETO (Erotic Trade
Only) announcing free downloads of censored clips and the BBFC had taken
issue with it. I replied that I was unaware that the BBFC read ETO. The
reply was a friendly kind of 'we have eyes everywhere'. As I'd just had
an acrimonious legal battle with a certain major R18 distributor at the
time I wondered if the BBFC had been informed of the ad by someone
inside the adult industry. 'No, the information was internal.' He
replied. So the BBFC DO read ETO!
Supposedly a few of the heads at the BBFC didn't like the fact that I
was using the term 'BBFC' in my press release. That - apparently -
brought the company into disrepute and could I refrain from doing it. No
problem, I said, I'll just put 'censored clips' or those cut by the
'censors'.
'Hmmmmmmm. Yes. Well, how about not doing it at all.' Because I was then
informed that offering free downloads of censored clips not only made a
mockery of the BBFCs hard work, it was also illegal. When I asked why it
was illegal, instead of the Video Recordings Act, I got the Obscene
Publications Act.
The clips censored by the BBFC would be done so because they were
illegal viewing in the UK. Therefore if they appeared on a web site they
broke UK laws. What I was planning on doing was a criminal act and I
could be prosecuted. When I stated the obvious: shouldn't the resources
of the OPU be focused on stopping child pornography sites, or maybe even
the million UK porn sites SELLING downloads of material deemed illegal
by the OPU, I got the same reply it seems everyone gets:
We're not talking about them, we're talking about you.
When I explained that the OPU's jurisdiction did not cover the internet
I was told that I was a UK resident and a UK company offering downloads
in the UK, therefore they COULD get me. I replied that my web host was
in another country, therefore I wasn't technically offering anything
inside the UK. Doesn't matter, you're a UK resident, they can still get
you.
At this point I asked why the BBFC were taking such an interest in a
legal matter that clearly had nothing to do with them. On their web site
it states that they are not a law enforcement agency and take no issue
with enforcing the law. This phone call seemed to prove otherwise. I was
informed that it was just a 'friendly warning'.
I agreed to refrain from using the term 'BBFC' in any further ads and
said I'd take legal advice concerning the other matters and call them
back.
I didn't bother with the legal advice, instead I sat there thinking that
perhaps the real reason the BBFC had taken an active interest in all of
this was because there was sod all they could do about it and they just
wanted to put the shits up me. I mean what law was there to stop any
film company, be it porn or mainstream, from putting all their clips
censored by the BBFC on a web site? What would the BBFC do if the
film-makers of say "Excorcist 3" uploaded some horror clips that had
been censored? They'd do bugger all, face it. But what if EVERYBODY
started doing it? Well, then they'd probably still do bugger all. But
pornographers being the scum of the earth, if a couple of them jumped on
the band wagon, all hell would break loose.
A few weeks later I called the BBFC and told them that as they had taken
so long to pass my film, I needed to make as much money from the content
as possible to recoup my losses. Therefore I would have to circumvent
the classifaction laws and the OPU to do so. What I intended to do was
sell all the censored material to a non UK resident who would then host
it in a foreign country and offer it to whoever he wanted and the OPU
couldn't touch me.
Stalemate. The friendly examiner at the BBFC said it sounded interesting
and he'd speak to the OPU. (So yet again, the non-law-enforcement remit
of the BBFC coming into effect).
Roll on another few weeks and the BBFC call me again. This time I'm not
in a very good mood, and what they have to say pushes all the wrong
buttons:
They have spoken to the OPU and they have stated that if I sell the
material to another company outside the UK, that's as maybe, but if I
place a LINK on my web site, pointing to another web site that hosts the
clips, then I have broken the law and they can come get me.
I just let loose both barrels, and I felt bad because I was only
shooting the messenger: Why don't the f****** OPU contact me themselves?
If they're going to prosecute me for a web link they'd have to go after
every web site and every e-mail that so much as points to adult content
with material the OPU deem as illegal! How impossible and Monty Python
is that?! I then screamed that if the OPU wanted to come get me for a
web link, not only will I embarrass them by letting every newspaper in
the country know what a bunch of petty minded, resource wasting tosspots
they are, I will hold the BBFC personally responsible for contacting the
OPU in the first place. Therefore I would publicize the fact that the
BBFC DOES act in affairs of law enforcement. I would then contact
Advertising Standards to inform them that the BBFC had untrue statements
on their web site. Then not only would I retract my agreement to refrain
from using the term BBFC in my advertising, I would intentionally shoot
excessively hardcore material just to get cut by the BBFC and devote a
whole web site to it! I would then use the BBFC cuts list as promotional
on all my DVDs and websites. Then, after all that was done, I'd take the
BBFC and the OPU to a European Court and see how they fared there.
In fairness, the chief examiner listed to me very carefully, probably
scribbled a few notes and did his best to calm me down. Then he said,
quite flatly: The chances of them doing it are very remote. Very remote. But the
point is, they said they COULD if they wanted.
What? I thought it was the job of law enforcement agencies to ENFORCE
the law not THREATEN it. But funny how in all of this I never got so
much as a phone call from anyone at OPU. For all I know the BBFC could
have been making the whole thing up. Who cares?
The irony of it all was that the cuts made by the BBFC on Dare Devils
were much, much kinder than I ever expected, and it made a mockery of
offering the free downloads anyway. It was like "was that it? is that
all they cut?" And the next film I put through the BBFC had content that
was even harder and nastier than Dare Devils and it took all of about
6 weeks to pass.
The moral of this story? There isn't one. But if you find one please let
me know.
Rob Stone
www.robstonefilms.com
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