NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER

Kia ora koutou

Our November despatch from Te Mana Whakaatu Classification Office draws a line under the lows and highs of 2021. We acknowledge the prolonged mahi of our Auckland friends, family and wider community who have locked down for many weeks to reduce the harm of Delta for us all. Thank you.

The long arm of COVID-19 has meant disruptions for the Office’s public facing work with schools including Censor for a Day, which is now on hold and will be revised for a 2022 environment, and our public engagement talks on difficult topics like porn, and misinformation.

Our work continues to be important whether it’s for onscreen entertainment or supporting cases in front of the courts. Every year we anticipate the premier cultural event of the year: Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF). In our snapshots we profile two of NZIFF’s titles that we classified, Zola and The Power of the Dog.

It has been great to welcome Rupert Ablett-Hampson, our new Deputy Chief Censor, into Te Mana Whakaatu fold. And this month we shared some laughs and gained a better understanding of the present challenges and trends for the Broadcasting Standards Authority when Glen Scanlon visited the office.

Our newsletters generally talk about topics like sex, drugs, and the media content landscape. Our aim is to have difficult conversations and shine a light on ways to reduce harm for New Zealanders. If you know someone who should receive these updates, please share our newsletter or encourage them to subscribe here. Be sure to follow our socials too.

#WatchTogether #Mātakitahi #TalkTogether #Kōrerotahi

Upcoming kōrero between Netsafe and Te Mana Whakaatu Classification Office:

Navigating age, stage and readiness of our young people in online spaces

‘What can be done about kids watching harmful content?’ This key question will guide a kōrero between Chief Censor, David Shanks and Netsafe’s education advisors Anjie Webster and Andrew Cowie.
All parents, caregivers, and educators working with young people are welcome to listen in and add their own comments and questions. With so much content available to so many young eyes, it has never been more important to discuss and share ideas to guide and protect.

Register for this online event taking place Wednesday 1 December, 3:30-4:30pm

Interesting Insights

Ka mua, ka muri, looking back in order to move forward. By looking back at the year that's been it has been interesting to see the decline in commercial work verses the upswing in crown material.   

The number of publications submitted by Crown agencies was lower in 2020/2021 than in 2019/2020. 435 publications were received, compared with 620 in the previous year. The number classified from the Police was 464, compared with 504 the previous year. These figures reflect the inherent variability of Crown submissions year-on-year. Notwithstanding this variability, there has been a high number of complex publications submitted by Police over the last two years. This is likely due to a variety of factors. The majority of submissions by Police continues to be child sexual exploitation material but there has also been a noticeable increase in publications that deal with violence and violent extremism. The Classification Office also expects to see an increase in such material submitted by the Department of Internal Affairs as their Countering Violent Extremism team becomes fully operational.

Attend the virtual launch of the 2021 Child Poverty Monitor

The Child Poverty Monitor is a joint project of the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, J R McKenzie Trust and University of Otago. Since 2013, the Monitor has helped Aotearoa New Zealand understand how poverty and hardship among children is tracking. Each year, they report how many children live in poverty, how it impacts them on a key set of measures, and what progress has been made. It aims to spur urgent action from government and society to eliminate child poverty.

To attend this year’s launch online, you can RSVP to the Child Poverty Monitor’s event here. You will be able to tune in to the livestream at 11am on the 6th of December.

Playing Games: a series

In part one of our series about video game classification, Rebecca sat down for a definitely unedited* chat with one of our Classification Advisors about what’s involved when you get to play games for your job at Te Mana Whakaatu Classification Office.

*we definitely edited some of the chat for brevity

Read more about what's involved in the work day of a Games Classification Advisor

Moral Ambiguity: The Many Saints of Newark 

Caitlin takes a look at moral ambiguity with the new prequel to the Sopranos. The film is rated R16: violence, offensive language and sex scenes. In our classification decision we note how crime presented with moral ambiguity might confuse younger viewers. With a Sopranos prequel you expect a bit of sex and a lot of crime, cruelty and violence - mixed in with a fair amount of family drama. So we’ve suggested some conversation starters if you are watching with young people. 

Read further on the blog

The Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival is underway now in towns and cities across Aotearoa. It is one of the highlights of the job to get to view some of the advance titles for classification. Here’s a snapshot of two recent decisions for the NZIFF programme.

ZOLA

R16: violence, nudity, sex scenes and offensive language

 What's it about? Zola is a comedy-drama film based on true events and inspired by an infamous Twitter thread. Zola, a Detroit waitress, strikes up a new friendship with a customer, Stefani, and the two immediately bond over pole dancing. Only a day after the young women exchange numbers, Stefani convinces Zola to join her for a weekend of dancing and partying in Florida, where the goal is to make as much money as possible dancing in strip clubs. What at first seems like a glamorous trip rapidly transforms into a 48-hour journey full of unexpected adventures.

Why we made it R16: Zola is a comedic and cautionary tale about the perils of fast friendship and premature trust. It also makes a statement on the sex industry. The sexual material is frank and adult in nature, showcasing sex work as a risky but lucrative enterprise. It may lead children and younger teens to regard the conduct as normal, with a negative effect on their attitudes and understanding of adult sexual relationships and behaviours. The close-ups of sexualised nudity are likely to shock children. The realistic depictions of violence are also likely to shock and disturb children and young teens. Although the violence is not extensive, it is trivialised, and this is likely to have a desensitising effect on younger viewers.

THE POWER OF THE DOG

 R13: animal cruelty and content that may disturb

What's it about? The Power of the Dog is a psychological drama set in rural Montana, USA, in 1925. Based on the novel by Thomas Savage, it centres on Phil, a domineering, charismatic rancher who runs the family ranch with his quiet brother George. Phil responds with mocking cruelty when George brings home new wife Rose, and her introverted, effete teenage son Peter. The unexpected comes to pass when Phil's treatment of Peter grows tender, and he takes him under his wing to show him the ways taught to him by his beloved mentor Bronco Henry. 

Why we made it R13: The film is an intricate and award-winning character study. Children are likely to be shocked and disturbed by the cruelty and visceral harm to animals, in particular, and the bullying behaviour shown is also likely to disturb them. The sexual references and use of coarse and abusive language also indicate that it is intended for a mature audience. 

IN PERSON: Broadcasting Standards Authority’s Glen Scanlon office visit 

We were thrilled to have Glen Scanlon, chief executive of the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) come and speak to us at our office this month.

The BSA exists to ensure free speech without harm. So they're very similar to us, except rather than a focus on publications their mandate is for content broadcast on television and radio. We found Glen’s chat super interesting, especially his kōrero on the changing threshold for content that discriminates, which reflected the work we’re doing on countering violent extremist content. We tautoko the BSA and the mahi they do to help make Aotearoa a safer place for all of us.

Pictured: Chief Censor David Shanks, BSA's Glen Scanlon, and Deputy Chief Censor Rupert Ablett-Hampson

Because our work involves a broad knowledge of the vast online landscape, we consume a lot of media in the office. Here are just a few of the things we’ve found relevant and informative over the past month.

London attack suspect was inspired by New Zealand mosque shooter, sources say (Global News CA)

Emily Ratajkowski confronts her power — and yours (The Verge)

How Horror Movies Exploit Mental Health And Why It Matters (Psycom) 

Banned ad reveals persistent shame about period blood, says underwear company (The Spinoff)

Victims' Christchurch terror attack stories told on New York stage (Stuff.co.nz)