CIRCULAR

ON AMENDMENTS TO A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF THE STATUTES ON APPRAISAL AND ISSUANCE OF FILM EXHIBITION LICENSE WHICH ARE ATTACHED TO DECISION NO. 49/2008/QD-BVHTTDL DATED JULY 09, 2008 OF MINISTER OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM

Pursuant to the Law on Cinematography No. 62/2006/QH11 dated June 29, 2006, and the Law No. 31/2009/QH12 dated June 18, 2009 providing for amendments to the Law on Cinematography;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 54/2010/ND-CP dated May 21, 2010 detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Cinematography No. 62/2006/QH11 dated June 29, 2006, and the Law No. 31/2009/QH12 dated June 18, 2009 providing for amendments to the Law on Cinematography;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 6/2013/ND-CP dated July 16, 2013 defining the functions, tasks, power and organizational structure of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism;

At the request of Director General of Vietnam Cinema Department,

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism promulgates this Circular to provide for  amendments to a number of articles of the Statutes on appraisal and issuance of film exhibition license which are attached to Decision No. 49/2008/QD-BVHTTDL dated July 09, 2008 of Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Article 1. Point c Clause 1 Article 10 of the Statutes on appraisal and issuance of film release license is amended as follows:

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Article 2. This Circular takes effect as of March 15, 2016.

Article 3. Chief of Ministry’s Office, Director General of Vietnam Cinema Department, Heads of Ministry-affiliated agencies, Directors of Departments of Culture, Sports and Tourism of central-affiliated cities or provinces and relevant entities shall implement this Circular./.

MINISTER




Hoang Tuan Anh

ANNEX

CRITERIA FOR FILM CLASSIFICATION FOR AGE-BASED EXHIBITION
(Promulgated under the Circular No. 12/2015/TT-BVHTTDL dated December 11, 2015 by Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism)

I. INTEPRETATION OF TERMS

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1. “Frequent use” refers to the fact that similar images, languages and/or sound are repeated many times in a film.

2. “Sexual activities” refer to sexy and erotic acts, sound, languages and gestures which are shown in a film for the purpose of sexual gratification.

3. “Detailed portrayal” refers to the use of close-up, direct, detailed, clear and sharp sound and images to describe about people, scenes and/or actions in a film.

4. “Crude language, sound and image” refers to dialogues, scripts, sound and/or images used in a film in an obscene, improper and uncultured manner.

5. “Prolonged duration" refers to the length of time for which the images, language and sound are shown in a film longer than the necessary degree.  

II. TABLE OF FILM CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA

No.

Film ratings

  Film classification criteria

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P

Films are exhibited to the public and suitable for everyone

a) Theme, contents

- The film’s theme is suitable for viewers of all ages;

- The film’s content includes issues in terms of nature and society for the purpose of entertainment, education and promotion of positive moral values and social relations.

b) Violence

Images, sound and language which are portrayals of threat or menace are not acceptable, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are used in a mild degree and justified by context.

c) Nudity, sex

- Nudity

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- Sex

Images, sound and language describing sexual activities are not allowed.

d) Drug, stimulants, narcotic substances

Images, sound and language showing the use of drug and stimulants or narcotic substances are not allowed.

The tobacco use in film shall be governed by regulations in the Circular No. 02/2014/TT-BVHTTDL dated May 14, 2014 of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism providing for the restriction on tobacco use in theatrical and cinematographic works.

dd) Horror

Images, sound and language showing horror scenes are not allowed, except for images, sound and language are used in a mild degree and do not cause adverse influence on the children’s psychological development and health.

e) Crude images, sound and language

e) The use of crude images, sound and language is not allowed.

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C13

Films are not suitable for viewers under 13 years of age.

a) Theme, contents

- The film’s theme is not suitable for viewers under the age of 13;

- The film’s content reflects issues that cause adverse influence on awareness and feelings of viewers under the age of 13, make them suffer from psychological disorder or feel worry, pessimistic or discouraged.

b) Violence

Images, sound and language which are detailed, intense and prolonged portrayals of violence such as infliction of pain and injuries or torture are forbidden, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are used in a moderate degree and justified by context.

c) Nudity, sex

- Nudity

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- Sex

Images, sound and language describing sexual activities are not allowed.

d) Drug, stimulants, narcotic substances

Images, sound and language portraying the use of drug and stimulants or narcotic substances are not allowed, except for the cases where images, sound and language are used for the purpose of accusation or opposition to the use of drug and stimulants or narcotic substances but such portrayals are not detailed, frequent or prolonged.

The tobacco use in film shall be governed by regulations in the Circular No. 02/2014/TT-BVHTTDL dated May 14, 2014 of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism providing for the restriction on tobacco use in theatrical and cinematographic works.

dd) Horror

Images, sound and language portraying horror scenes in a detailed, frequent and prolonged way are not allowed.

e) Crude images, sound and language

The use of crude images, sound and language is not allowed.

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C16

Films are not suitable for viewers under 16 years of age.

a) Theme, contents

- The film’s theme is not suitable for viewers under the age of 16;

- The film’s content has stronger portrayals of mature issues in terms of politics, society, psychology and crime but it is not suitable for psychophysiological and cognitive development of viewers under the age of 16.

b) Violence

Images, sound and language which are frequently used with prolonged duration to portray violence such as killings, infliction of pain and injuries and/or details of blood and gore, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are justified by context and used in a moderately intense degree.

c) Nudity, sex

- Nudity

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- Sex

Images, sound and language which are portrayals of sexual activities are not allowed, except for the cases where such portrayals are justified by context but are not detailed, frequent and prolonged.

d) Drug, stimulants, narcotic substances

Images, sound and language portraying the trafficking, storage and/or use of drug and stimulants or narcotic substances are not allowed, except for the cases where such portrayals are justified by context for the purpose of accusation or opposition to the said acts but are not detailed, frequent or prolonged.

The tobacco use in film shall be governed by regulations in the Circular No. 02/2014/TT-BVHTTDL dated May 14, 2014 of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism providing for the restriction on tobacco use in theatrical and cinematographic works.

dd) Horror

Images, sound and language which are detailed, frequent and prolonged portrayals of horror and frightful sequences that are likely to cause fear and anxiety are not allowed, except for the cases where such portrayals are necessary for the film’s contents and suitable for age groups.

e) Crude language, sound and image

The use of crude images, sound and language is not allowed, except for swear words or slangs which are used by negative characters and suitable for the film’s content but they are not obscene, do not cause harm to people and community, are not frequently used and are not used for the purpose of sexual harassment or abuse.

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C18

Films are not suitable for viewers under 18 years of age.

a) Theme

- The film’s theme is not suitable for viewers under the age of 18;

- The film’s content has portrayals of mature issues in terms of politics, society, psychology and/or sexual crimes, etc. but it is not suitable for psychophysiological and cognitive development of viewers under the age of 18.

b) Violence

Images, sound and language which are realistic depiction of violence and cause strong impact on viewers, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are suitable for the film’s content but they are not excessively exploited.

c) Nudity, sex

- Nudity

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- Sex

Images, sound and language which are explicit and detailed portrayals of sexual activities are not allowed, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are suitable for the film’s content and are not prolonged.

d) Drug, stimulants, narcotic substances

Images, sound and language portraying the trafficking, storage and/or use of drug and stimulants or narcotic substances are not allowed, except for the cases where such images, sound and language are suitable for the film’s content or used for the purpose of accusation or opposition to the said acts but are not detailed and prolonged.

The tobacco use in film shall be governed by regulations in the Circular No. 02/2014/TT-BVHTTDL dated May 14, 2014 of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism providing for the restriction on tobacco use in theatrical and cinematographic works.

dd) Horror

Images, sound and language which are detailed, frequent and prolonged portrayals of horror and frightful sequences that are likely to cause fear and anxiety are not allowed, except for the cases where such portrayals are necessary for the film’s contents and suitable for age groups.

e) Crude language, sound and image

The use of crude images, sound and language is not allowed, except for certain swear words or slangs in dialogues and scripts used in a degree stronger than those used in rating-C16 films.

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