Wanted: Trailers serving public, promoters alike

CHAIRMAN Eugenio Villareal (left) and board member Bobby Andrews check permits at a cinema ticket counter.

Responding to complaints from young moviegoers and their parents, the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) said it was drafting a memorandum that will prohibit the screening of trailers with mature or violent themes in cinemas that show movies with the G (“General Patronage”) rating.

MTRCB Chairman Eugenio Villareal explained that all trailers currently conform to the G rating. “In response to the feedback we have been getting,” he said, “a board meeting was held recently to create a rule that will allow the screening of trailers with a PG (Parental Guidance) rating.”

In an interview with the program “Inquirer Entertainment” on dzIQ 990 AM, Villareal said, “When we release a memorandum circular on this matter, cinemas can no longer show non-G trailers while screening animated movies like ‘Frozen,’ for example.”

Protection, promotion

He further explained: “Since all trailers should fit the G rating, [sometimes, it becomes forced].  You can only do so much for a movie that tells a story about mistresses, for example. And the theme of a film like ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ can never be classified as G. However, producers are forced to come up with a G-rated trailer [because that’s the only kind allowed].”

The new rule would attempt to strike a balance between protecting the youth and giving the opportunity for producers and film distributors to promote their products well, said Villareal. “I was told that this issue was raised before the MTRCB many years ago. It’s time we discussed this again.”

Villareal also clarified the memorandum of agreement that the MTRCB signed with the Cultural Center of the Philippines, an agency that also promotes and develops the arts. The agreement gives permission to producers participating in the annual Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival to self-regulate their films.

“Cinemalaya is a private entity that provides content to the CCP. This means the movies it produces are directly exhibited by a government functionary,” Villareal said. “This also means Cinemalaya should follow CCP’s system in ratings and classifications, which is based on the MTRCB’s own system. The board will no longer review the entries since they are expected to practice self-regulation.”

However, Villareal stressed that should Cinemalaya producers decide to have the films shown commercially, then they should submit the films to the MTRCB for review. “If the CCP would choose to no longer tie up with the Cinemalaya, then that’s another story,” he pointed out. “This would mean all Cinemalaya entries should first pass through the MTRCB.”

Cinemalaya will celebrate its 10th year with a 10-day festival in August.

With Cinemalaya’s audience mostly being students, Villareal said producers should practice “heightened self-regulation.” He explained: “Students who major in film, for example, have reasonable expectations and are prepared to watch materials with serious themes, but most students aren’t. There were cases when some, accompanied by their parents, traveled from the provinces with no idea of the kind of films they would get to see. They were simply made to sign waivers. This shouldn’t be the case. This is one point of improvement that the MTRCB could discuss with the CCP in the next festival year.”

Impressionable viewers

Villareal also reported on the recent gathering attended by members of the Federation of International Cable TV and Telecommunications Association of the Philippines (Fictap).

“I spoke to them about the power of images and sound on TV and how these can affect our kids. I reminded them of the responsibility of TV networks to protect the impressionable minds of the young and that cable TV is not an exemption,” recalled Villareal, who was guest speaker.

The MTRCB chief also appealed to cable operators to help the board tap into their community channels to promote its “Matalinong Panonood” campaign. “We have to reach the grassroots level. Through their community channels, we could have some of our board members appear as guest speakers. We could also air public service announcements,” he said.

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