IDEOLOGY AND CENSORSHIP IN SOUTH AFRICAN FILM Keyan G Tomaselli The duty of the Publications 'What does the average man in the street with a Standard Seven education think?' ... The Publications Bodies, the adjudicators, must decide what the moral standards are of the general community, the bulk of which is not sophisticated ... bodies is, they must ask the question, Judge Lammie Snyman (1) may not see, read or hear. Judge Snyman's statement, like many others issued by the Directorate of Publications (previously the Publications Control Board) spokesmen, appear to deliberately set out to confuse cause with effect. This patro~- izing attitude serves to further reinforce the popular misconception that a paternalistic group of government appointed 'experts' are employed to decide for the majority what they mayor T~is rather simpl istic interpretation of the purpose and ideals of the Dlrectorate of Publications, supported in the main by serious critics (s:e, :g., Schiess, 1970) and Members of Parliament (see Hansard), is p~lmanly the result of an inadecpJate understanding of the role and func- tlons of the state censorship machinery. The official reasons offered in d:fence of censorship, like Snyman's comments above, hide a deeper in- Sldious objective, that of reinforcement of the dominant ideology in order to control reflections and interpretations of social experience. Such rational izations are designed to mask the actual ideological goals Of censorship which are aimed at the maintenance of apartheid society. Censorship is one of a number of state apparatuses employed by National capital to maintain its dominant pOsition over labour or the working class. Objectives This paper set s out to demons trate that censorshi p functions to induce people to live their relationship with each other in terms of the messages cOmmunicated by the dominant (i.e. white) ideology. The first section will discuss the role of ideology in society while the s:cond will deal with the relationship between censorship and ideology Wlth special reference to the South African film industry. The Nature and Structure of Ideology Bennet (1979, p.116), building on Althusser (1970), defines id:ology as . c?nsisting of those myths through which individuals are reconcl~ed to thelr glven social positions by falsly representing to them those ~oSltlons and the relationships between them. This body of knowledge, be~le~s~ value~ and attitudes are posited to form part of some inherently slgnlflcant, In- trins ically c~herent plan or process. Ideology. inexorably ,permeates all human activities: cynicism, in honesty, behaviour, social relations, attitudes to the envlronment and con~rlbutes ~~ interpretations of the 'meaning of 1ife'. lnvisible and always present. gOverned by ideology and is it is found in political attltude< and Judgement~, [t governs fam~ly Ideol~gy is unc?nsc ~ous, in resignation and rebell;o~ In short, our expenence of l1fe 1S The cons2quence of any soclety. (ideology in the strict (customs) filled with imaginary Perhaps the greatest scientific is that ideology deforms perceptions of The system of ideas and the social representations sense ); and The system of attitudes and social behaviour Ideologies are not dispassionate, rather than describe reality, they express desires, hopes and nos- Ideological perceptions are not static, but tend to adapt accord1ng that the world inseparable from it. reality and is an intrinsic component in the existence The content of thlS ideological reality consists of two kinds of systems which contribute to the perpetuation of any society. According to Harnecker (1976, p.76)these are: 1. 2. The System of Ideas and Social Representations This dimension includes the political, juridicial, aesthe~ic and philosophical ideas of a given society. The content of this knowledge 1S expressed in the form of different views of the world and of an ind~vid~a~'s perception of his role in it. sC1ent1f1c representations of the world, but interpretations elements: talgia. to changes in scientific knowledge. view followed the acceptan:eof Gallileo's revolves around the sun and not, as previously conceptualized to revolve around the earth. in man re-locat1ng the notion that the universe was man-centred A similar change of his ideological perspective of his role in the cosmos. perception occurred after Darwin, and it can only be left to the imaginat10n to comprehend the sort of change in ideological which might result from the general acceptance of the historica1 fact that blacks were res1dent The in South Africa long before the arrival of van Riebeck and his party. present Ideological orientation sterns from the belief that nlacks and whites This convictIon only met at the Fish River during the 1770's. literature to be myth1fied in the conservative hlstorical (3) as well as the numerous documentary and propaganda movies which have been made since 1896 thr~ugh t~ the present (4). example A more contentious is the verkrampte Afr1kane~ s att1tude towards the origin of the coloureds and his poss1ble lntegrat10n lnti) Directorate 1t1on.of th1S qenup are inevitably interfered with by the llcatlons WhlCh ensures that the cinematic roles in which they are cast adequately reflect their class positions as assigned by the prevailing 1nant 1deology. the censors as eVldenced in their reasons for demanding remove a scene from DieKandidatl (1968) in which the question Coloureds wereAfnkaners as coloureds mlght one day become Afrikaners, off~nceand dea.s wlth lnterracla Afnkaner. pndlnq. WP Ip ~inghQt pa',p'. 'or class pos- of Pub- dom- Nevertheless, this ambiguity has, at times, even permeated that Jans Rautenbach f~lt that . (1969), a film WhlCh ,hould. thprefore, be excised. celatlons between" the producers werp forced tll cut in an ideologically palatible rugby player who 119761 whiCh Jeals with a colourpd vir, tp dnd earns Springbok colour' appealpo W'TP success against In ~ coloured woman and a male discovery change in world that the sun was This shift in perception and resulted white society (5). Films reflecting The adjud1cators this sequence of whether could glve thought, perception or not was discussed. destroyed continues the ambiguous moral, religious, ImpOsed m' 1 t \Ml tht. fhe ldeologl'dl orlentatlon demanded by the censors desp1te the often contra- of the Board, ultimately ~'ctory decls10ns which may Occur within the confin~s IJnctlOn to govern the beliefs, attitudes and conduct of both blacks and whlteS ,n the Pursuance of their designated dut1es and conditions For p~dmple. the ideology of the Homelands represents an acceptance black leaders of the dominant white ideology that by setting aside certain area, fOr each ethnic group, they are maintaining their heritage and cultural of existence. by their 2 this ideology however. Gatsha But- themselves to the reserve areas society, of that society to which their ideology of rights to the wider South African This failure of the dominant (see, eg., Temkin, in a greater measure 1976) Behaviour that of the system of attitudes and social and tendencies sense was easily articulated and customary economic Chinese to "honorary white status", attitudes although of South African these people as being 'inferior'. customs to react in in their strict sense may be re- or social realities, but less easy ways of living followed has this year pragmatism In this to take advantage of gain, but it takes longer for this new as part of the lived example may be drawn from the pertinent was applied to Prior to 1974, differential A movie considered and Indian audiences. for The 1974 Publications for black adults. with this provision (6). but at different audiences of this move were not yet strictly segregated. (7) redefined and be accepted This resulted in the same censorship suitable The wider government coercion contributed. have been banned ~heir citizenship and Social dimension, the Zulus of 'their place' has resulted Not all Homeland argues themselves leaders accept that by confining of the benefits in the strict based financial generally Amore people. is made up of all the habits, perspectives in economic identity. alezl, for example, and forfeiting they are deprlvlng labour has substantially to convince formal and informal The System of Attitudes The second ideological behaviour Ideological a certain way. defined to cope with change to change are the habits, For example, by the individual. resulted in the elevation still conceptualize many whites case ldeology export an expected content to become between relat~onship itself. fllm lndustry coloured black, white, white children might Act, however, did away movies being seen by both white venues. socio-economic acknowledged This segregation is gradually, The fi~st sign of integration simultaneously in which drlve-lns movie from different safe to do away with the wall and even toilet and take-away became multi-racial. applied (8). response fused permission. Influences brought by economic considerations the desire of exhibitors truistic ~uch a move is only possible lcal changes signation ideological ture of black society rapidly expanding of adapting The objective occurring tu~al changes br1ng about an entrenchment ment of repression against cheap labour which nourishes giving this newly arrived social position vis-a-vis presently thlS group It is by such means facilities though initially sides of a dividing It was only this year, and non-white implications remained by no means completely, for multi-racial permits is still being awaited for their city cinemas by Metro, to open their doors to all-comers black and white audiences dominant and the demands but rather an attempt being enacted into keeping appeared wall. of John Vorster which content to bear onthe since cinema black middle to maximize being eroded. in the form of segregated viewed the same Later, it was felt to be eating facilities that four wall cinemas though Ster Kinekor have been re- Government however, ideology are in part propelled of capital. is not an al- their market potential. In the case of cinema, move, moral within apartheid the dominant of the changing in view of the religious~ class into the fold of the dominant a~d philosoph- have occurred 1deology S1nce the re- as Prime Minister. Changes which have occurred in are both an acknowledgement class struc- as well as representing a strategy to co-opt the ideology. ideology to take cogn~zan:e of struc- in the economic base of South Afr1ca to of this emerging black m1ddle class as an 1nstru- the working to provide class, which will continue this country's In other words, by economy. to maintain middle class an opportunity their such concessions the broad mass of black society, .to ma~ipulate by the PW Botha administra~ion work class 1n the1r place. the rest of the black work1ng has co-opted the black m1ddle that the dominant 1S planne~ ideology 3 class as a force of repression, product Any ideological Ideoloqical Structure and Economic Determination We have seen that ideology has its own content, and development, result of two kinds of determinations, ture itself, and the other external The internal determination It is highly unlikely, multi-racial the government would not have granted permits ideology militated against such a decision; ated by such a move might have had an adverse of the exhibitor in terms of the existing in turn, might have had a delitarious It is the externgl determination, instance for this represents dicial methods of enforcement influence which the web of political sanctioned for example, permits prior to 1974, might be likened however, its own laws of operatio~ such as, for exam~le, c1~ema, to the 1deolog1cal one internal 1S the struc- (the Juridico-political), to the process that any exhibitor The reasons ~ould for thlS are two-fold: of self censorship, have applied,for ~lrst, at that time for the preva1l1ng and second, the publicity,gener- 1m~ge effect Wh1Ch on the corporate ideology non-integrationist on the box office. is decisive constraints in law. in the finai and juri- by the state 1, External Determinations censorship - the juridico-political functions of designed structures, apparatuses The administrative every norms are called and Such devices This determination is external (1) that of technical of political function In addition to economic and ideological a combination of institutional operation of society as a whole. political agents of enforcement. and performs a double function- and (2) political domination. tO,and i~ at,the service of the function thlS deflnlt10n of the state there cannot exist administrative are neut~al ,or non-political. The major censorsh1p 1ncluded, is to maintain of ideological domlnance ~ver all the other classes which are dependent effectlve 1nstrument available lnant position is racism, which for many years lal censorship. Some examples observation In 1963, the Minister of the Interior stated: on it. in the maintenance the basis will demonstrate to government from Hansard ------- in unambiguous a position function formed terms: domination, society the juridic~- administration; possesses to regulate in nature the is subordinate Against tasks that and pol1t1cal The most of its dom- of different- the truth of this of state apparatuse~" her ,': the Hon Member reaffirming is simply for Houghton should be drawn on the pol1t1cal fa1th that no distinction been harping groun~s of race or colour, She has of course on thlS same string for many years, and the tune is one which does not appea 1 much to right thi nking people " , (we) know what sort of film it would be to show to a race that has not yet reached the level of civilization that we have reached, We know that things which they cannot understand not should be shown to them and that there are some films which can be exhlblted much morp safely to a white child of fourteen ~~~rs of age than throughout (Hansard, 1341, 14th February, Minister of Police and Justice, ..,..the film industry the Board of censors have met each other on a certain have been built 1963). Mr J T Kruger, the years and certain an adult Bantu complained standards , baS1S up." of the bad The 4 influence Sidney Poitier's I~ the Heat of the NiQht (1968) would undoubtedly have on the morale of the wh1te South African Police Force: " The Hf'atof thf'Night was a film telling the story of a stupid white policeman who worked with a particularly clever non-white detective. These two always worked together to the detriment If this of the whites and to the advantage of the non-whites. is not something injurious to race relations in this country, I do not know what is ?" 4723, 1968). ~, And again,Mr Kruger on Africa Addio, a film banned throughout Africa and condemned as a fake by most Western countries: "Africa Addio confirmed to us what we already know about Africa ... we know what would happen in Africa if the Black people were to take over the country". (Hansard, 3422, 1970) ~hese statements and many others like them clearly enunciate the dominant 1deology's system of attitudes and consequent styles of social behaviour. What they are intended to mask, however, is the objective character of the :cono~ic system. The origins of the colour bar, for instance, were not an 1rrat1onal response to some deep seated ideological beliefs or prejudices, but rather, as Johnston (1976, p. 74) expresses it, .. a response to a specific class problem, produced by the system of production and the class structure from which the problem itself was derived". In the film and other aspects of life, this is manifested in a situation where the roles and functions of each group are determined by ideology and is dependent upon their economic class position in society. The maintenance of South Africa's peculiar form of capitalism depends on the availability and control of a large force of cheap labour and upon the dominant ideology which reconciles those in control of the means of production to their God given role and 'higher' form of In other words, the perpetuation of apartheid depends upon the civilization. degree of control that the ruling group is able to to exert on the social system as a whole - that is, on both the dominated and the dominant. Film is on~y one component of the media mix (schools, radio, TV, press, chur~hes etc.) Wh1Ch is utilized by National capital in the spread of the dominant 1deo1ogy. In t:rms of this hypothesis, censorship should not be seen as a monolithic stra1tJacket which is imposed on the society from the outside, but rather as a manifestation of the values and ideology of the most powerful element~ of the soc1ety it serves. Censorship is a formal state apparatus engaged 1n the function of social and ldeologica1 control. T~is societal manipulation m1tted, throuqh the content of a movie, for example Fig.l. may be cybernetically defined as political intervention which restrict~ deviatio~ from socio-economic goals or objectives to within sociO-ldeo10g1ca11y def1ned 11mlts. The cont.ro1 process is based on a feedback loop thKluqh wh1ch the 'Jutoutof a system or Its actual performance (eg., reflections of sO(la1 ex- perience 1n film is linked to its input (laws and 1egislat10n) ln such a way that variations in output (or content) from some p~e-set norm Dr goal. (eg., the portrayal of the Afrikaner as a God fear1ngperson) res~lts 1n com- pensatory behaviour that tends to restore the system ouput (or c1nematlc This se1f-adaption i~ known reflection of social behaviour) to that goal. as homeostasis and lS brought about by the action of Sensorv ~echan1sms .. (cultural watchdogs, pressure groups etc.) which have a capac1ty to ant1c1pate is effected through the control of information trans- ~ 5 Socio-econanic goals Intended per- fonnance of Capital Input: laws & Legislation Action: Banning Cuts Restrictions FIIM INDUSTRY ". of social Does ideology am represen- tations experience in film match the reflected daninant ideology of the external world? attendance Sensory mechanisms: Box office Aksie r-t:>releStandaarde Die Vrouefederasie Manbers of Parliament Other groups lobby or pressure feedback or error =ntrolled regulation Lia:......L Censorship as a Cybernetic System of InfoDllation Control Content of film: Reflections social experience of "'-. Disturbances: New Philosophical Material and monitor disturbances (such as the introduction of new philosophical Information is then material) whcih may arise from the system's environment. fed to the decision-making device, which in the present instance is the Dir- ect?r~te of Publications, which may decide to specify further action (such as addltlonal cuts) which will effectively deal with the disturbances monitored by the sensory mechanism and return errant ideological output to within acceptable socio- economically defined limits. The whole process is guided and entrenched by the juridico-political system which is able to draw on state machinery (laws, methods of enforcement etc.) to ensure the continuance of the prevailing ideological philosophy. If the variety or regulatory capacity of the decision-making device (Directorate of Publications) is not at least equal to that of the disturbances, it will cease to function effect- ively. It will have to modify its structure if it is to successfully contain and meet a variety of new disturbances which may otherwise cause the demise of the existing ideology or status quo. This occurred, for example, in 1974, when the 1963 Publications and Entertainmet Act was replaced with legislation designed to better cope with the disturbances which could not be adequately matched by the increasingly incredible and arbitrary manner employed by the juridico-political incredulity at the renowned antics of the censors concerned Jannie Kruger's remarks to film director Mario Schiess: A well documented example of public machinary at the time. "Hoe durf jy 'n film Onwettiqe Huwelik noem hierin Suid- Afrika? Hier in Suid Afrika is daar nie iets soos 'n onwettige huwelik nie "(9) "(How dare you title a film Unlawful Weddinq here in South Africa? Here in South Africa there is no such thing as an unlawful wedding ). (10) Judging from Snyman's recent remarks reported in the press and stated on "Microphone In", a further alteration of the Directorate of Publications is necessary to cope with new voluminous disturbances in the form of foreign "permissive" publications. In cinema, the control mechanism works in two ways: firstly, it may totally prevent the seeping through of new philosophical material considered un- suitable for South African audiences. This is effected either through out- Bertolucci's l2QQ, for example, was b~nned right banning or censorship cuts. because the Appeal Board found that the uprising of Italian peasants agalnst the land-owning classes was presented in a favourable light. The film was therefore determined by the Board to promote the aims of communism and thus was seen to constitute a contavention of the Internal Security Act No.44 of 1950. The very fact that the Directorate of publications can identify a parallel between Italian conditions of the last century and the present South African situation suggests that this film must be considered.dangerous for the maintenance of the status quo in this country. Hence the dlsturbance is removed entirely. succeeded on appeal. cuts and additions which had the calculated result of manlpulatlng the theme and reorientating it 1n terms of the accepted ideology. An end.title had to be cut in stating that the surviving terrorist was later taken lnto custody by the South African Defence Force. Accarding to the Appeal Board: "The emphasis is thus changed from a successful to an unsuccessful terrorist attack". Perhaps the classic example of ideological control by the Censors was the treatment experienced by director Sven Persson's Land Apart (1974). ThlS feature length documentary film made in 1973 predicted the impending riots and uncompromising mood of black South African~ which br?k~ in Soweto ~n Although the Committee passed the fllm, the Mlnlster of Pollee June 1976. On the other hand, a movie like Terr?ris~ (1976) In this case the Directorate of pub~lcatl?nS ordered 7 We have a lot of Defence contracts you know". where an ideologically After extensive negotiations which spanned the It is significant that when I wanted to screen The South and Justice overturned this decision claiming that the content was prejudicial to the safety of the state. old Act, the new Act, and which were subject to gross interference by the Department of Information, Land Apart was relea~ed t\'!oyears la~er as ~ South Africans, after the commencement of the rlots lt had predlcted (11). Most of the prophecies of the original however, had already come true and the majority of the interviewees were either in goal, banned, exiled.or dead .. In these instances the Directorate of Publications behaves as a declSlon-maklng device which sets out to control the ideological content of cinema and specifies action which brings any erring philosophical material which seeps through into line with the expectations of the dominant ideology and the demands of capital. Africans at Wits University (in 1980) I was told by the producer that this would not be possible because" That film has been a terrible embarrassment to my company. The second control device comes into ooeration i~- correct decision has been made by the Publications Directorate and where new unacceptable philosophical material has been allowed through. This creates a disturbance and the social system or audience either makes adjustment to accomodate the new influences, or information is fed back by cultural watch- dogs such as Aksie Morele Standaarde, Die Vrouefedarasie, Members of Parlia- ment etc. to the Directorate of Publications which is then forced to review its original decision. This system, for example, eventually adjusted to, and accepted the new information introduced regarding the sexual mores of the boeredoQter in films like Debbie (1965) and the host of imitations that followed. Wild Season (1967) and Die Kandidaat (1968) ran the guantlet of cultural rejection and at times, Directorate of Publications wrath, but were eventually accepted in a modified state by the dominant ideology. Num- erous examples exist in respect to imported movies. Seven Beauties (1975) Gods~ell (1973) and the Rocky Horror Picture Show (1976) were all banned sub- sequent to release, while Tomm~ (1975) had post-release cuts imposed. The Omen (1976) continued with pre-release cuts despite a vast "letters to the editor" The.D~rectorate of Publications is sensitive primarily to those in control of Judge Snyman P?lltlcal power, however small their numerical proportion. hlmself says,."Of.blacks I have no knowledge at all " and that it was for Darl- lament to.d:clde :f blacks should be appointed to the censorship board~. Hence dec:slons wlll be made in respect of the wishes of the dominant ldeology, lrrespec~lve ?f protests from the more populous but politically weak majority. Fllms WhlC~ mlght be considered offensive to the black population, such as those made by whlte producers for indigenous audiences (12). In~eed, a~ Italian productio~ Africa Addio, re-r~leased after the 1976 riots, whlch dellberately shows up black people throughout Africa in a bad light, con- tlnued to be screened despite vigorous protests from the black community and llberal whlte elements. Significantly, the film was restricted to white aud- lence~ only although the advertising poster was banned. The release of (13) Autoblo~raphY.o! Mi~s Jane Pitman, a powerful film dealing with the life of an Amerlcan C1Vll rlghts activist, to white audiences only, suggests a move towards.a more sympathetic acceptance of a superficial social integration as far the domlnant group is conce~ned. decision, however, al~o lmplle~ !ear that black audlences, should they see the film, may interpret lt as deflnlte proof of such liberalizing trends, and consequently faster pace of change~ a situation which the dominant ideology may not be able to adequately deal wlth at the moment without experiencing extreme stress and campaign by Aksie Morele Standaarde. are rarely restricted This discriminatory demand a 8 f l Hence the fact that the Directorate of Publications strain. In general~ ~ilms which the black middle class might find insulting, such as those spec1f1cally made for local black audiences, are not removed from the circuits. The reason is that they fulfill a basic ideological function in preparing people, particularly the working class which constitutes the bulk of their viewers, to act out their designated roles as labour units assigned to them b~ the economy. Such films, in some cases assisted by direct govern- ment fund1ng (14), perpetuate the myth that the black person is an ignorant creature, while at the same time reinforcing the prejudices of the dominant class in their perception of their role of domination as 'natural' in terms of their God given superiority and moral duty to civilize and save the black man from himself, allows film like Africa Addio to be seen. The Flaw in Apartheid Ideology and the Need for Censorship Despite the extensive arsonal of state apparatuses incorporated within the juridico-political system for coersive control, apartheid ideology has not been totally successful in subsuming differing concepts and opposing ideo- logies (eg. black consciousness) into the social formation as a single entity. Although we have argued that the institution of censorship should be seen as a manifestation of the dominant ideology, this does not mean that total homogeneity exists amongst all whites who make up this class. By virtue of their class determination, however, they can, to all intents purposes, be seen as supportive of the prevailing ideology. Within the black population too, one group represented by the Homeland leaders are accomodated within the dominant ideology, while the other main sector have rejected it, sometimes violently. Unlike feudal society where everyone serious strains and tensions occur continuously which threaten the status Such disturbances must be eliminated or at least controlled if the quo. system in power is to perpetuate itself. The major structural flaw in apartheid is its ideological fragility and its consequent inability to with- stand critical disturbances either from within or from without the system. In order to minimize the impact of such infringements, the state, which can be regarded as the coersive arm of society, has had to increase its mechanisms of control through the increasingly stringent application of s~ate ideological machinery (as well as in terms of brute force,withi~ th: w1der society). Against a background of apparent large scale llberal1zat10n of this country's racially based restrictions, the much vaunte~ return to a free enterprise economy, the lifting of bannings of locally wr1tten books (15), a seeming marked easing of cinema censorship, the opening ?f ~heatre tO,al1 races and the appointment of a verligte head to the SABC, 1t 1S the 10glcal conclusion of my argument that such moves are ideologically based, propelled ~y adjustments occurring in the national economy as it shifts fr?m a labour 1ntensive industry to a capital and skills based mode of product10n. As such, it is obvious that such liberalization on the fringes of apartheid must be paral1e11ed by a stronger intensification o~ the,part of.govern- ment to maintain the dominant position of white nat10nal1sm .. Th1~ t~end by even the opposition presS Wh1Ch 1S 1tself has been wilfully overlooked part of the dominant group, by stating that apartheid is "dead" and that. a new "dispensation" is around the corner. is that they are now, more than ever, agents of the government in their ~diation 1n the South African political-economy, knew their place, in apartheid society of the ruling ideology. What they do not seem to rea11Ze No structural chan~es have taken place or are even 11kely to. 9 Homeland consolidation is continuing at a pace faster than ever before. Pro- posals that extra territory over and above the provisions of the 1936 Land Act should be made available to these black "states" have a1ready been mooted by the cabinet. The granting of municip1e status to satellite towns like Soweto is no more than an attempt to harness the support of the growing black middle South Africa has pro- class in terms of the structural bases of apartheid. gressed a long way down the Grand Apartheid road. This path must be measured in terms of structural development, not petty discrimination (or the recent easing thereof), to convince the ruling population of its God given task. In It will simply change its form and other words, censorship is here to stay. adjust its decisions to match the variety of disturbances which impinge upon the apartheid system from the outside world. Because recent Directorate of Publications judgements place less emphasis on nudity, sex or the use of four letter words, this does not necessarily indicate a more 'en1ightened'appr?ach to censorship, but rather an adjusting cybernetic system of control. Th1S system is able to increasingly take cOQnizance of liberalized sexual mores and subsume such behaviour into its general workings without experienci~g the debilitating disturbances which might have once been the case. This is clearly demonstrated by the expanding caoacity of the system to accomo- date the otherwise serious disturbances which might have been caused through the screening of pornographic material or movies banned in South Africa in neighbouring countries, including places like Boputhatswana. However, it is notable that few films of dubious political content are shown in these states, for to do so would introduce information in variance with the dominant ideol- ogy of which the Homelands form Dart. It is unfortunate that most criticism of censorship as it is apD1ied in South ~frica is offered simply at the level of sex and nudity. This over- exphaS1s tends to obscure the more vital function of the Directorate of Publications, that of the maintenance and reinforcement of the ideological stance of the dominant party. Th~s bri~gs ~s to a ~iscussion of how the allied state apparatuses of censor- Sh1p ass1st 1n creat:ng a climate of self-censorship and how ideolog~ comes to ~ssume.a greater 1mportance on the direct control of images seen 1n South Afr1can f1lms than the fact of censorship itself. Financiers will not 1nvest capital into a venture Wh1Ch they perceive This has ObV10US implications for an ind- Ideology and the Climate of Censorship The fear of censor~hip works at all levels of the production and distribution process. Four bas1c types of constraint can be identified: 1: m1ght fall foul of the censors. ustry based on the profit motive. 2. ~~pe~ts 0: the1r.scr1Pt w1th the relevant authorities such as the police, e ~ut~0~lt1es etc. tYhte 1nltlOn~ perform a political function. a oenera11' - d ~~~c~~er w~~h.1nsurance agains~ possible embargoes or restrictions being mitted ~n licati or re ease. So~e producers have even submitted scripts as pub- Dodies It is not therefore suror1Sing 's C1earance 1 Y obta1ned at the preproduction stage and is thought to provide the e;r f11ms by the D1rectorate of Publications when finally sub- . ons to the Board 1tself, as in the case of Springbok (1976). The scr1pt The conse?Uence.1s t~at producers w1'l tend to clear questionable ecur1ty Po1lce, Defence Force, Administration Boards, educationa' I have already pointed out that such adm'nistrative adv1ce glVen will be . 1n accor ance W1th government pollcy. d' . 10 A strong minority report, however, On appeal, all but three cuts were replaced. Some industry spokesmen will argue that local producers are simply The plea was successful and production On submission of the film, it was approved subject to numerous was found "undesirable" by the Committee. encouraged the producer to appeal. went ahead. cuts. Scr:enwr~ters too, have to.plough the minefield of interlocking units of leg1s1at10n - the Suppress10n of Communism Act, the Official Secrets Act etc.- all vaguely worded, as they link up with the Publication Control Act sec~ion 47 (2) (e) in their attempts to force Droducers not to bring the pol1ce or other government machinary into contempt, or jeopardise the security of the state, the general welfare, or the peace and good order. I have already described how the Directorate of Publications is able to interfere with themes, storylines and interpretations, and it is not, therefore, surprising that even the dedicated film makers in this country find them- selves pre-censoring their films and checking them out with administrative bodies which ally themselves with the dominant ideology. The existence of any film which contains even a hint of criticism must be interpreted as a miracle even down to innocuous satires like Kootiie Emmer (1977) and ~ (1980). passing the buck and that they are either incapable or afraid of making films outside of the perceived ideological limitations. However, when one con- siders the cost of feature film making, and the past record of the Directorate of Publications, it is to be expected that producers take every possible precaution to minimize their risks of restriction or banning. 3. which move into ideologically sensitive territory or which are at variance with the dominant ideology still have to obtain distribution from companies which not only ally themselves with capital and the dominant ideology, but which are, in fact, themselves an intrinsic component and contributor to Reception from distributors to The South Africans, for that ideology. example, was hostile. The film was rejected by JJ Marais, chairman of Satbel, even before he had seen it. Although the managing director of Ster liked the film and Dr Wassenaar, managing director of the holding company, Sanlam was receptive, the official reason for rejection hinged on the observation that a previous oolitical film, Die Sestiq Jaar van John Y9rster (1976) had lost'money. Ster argued that since The South Africans was also of a political nature it had little chance of box office success in the light of thepoor performance of John Vorster. The f~lm w~s even- tually screened at independent cinemas and hawked around un1vers1ty campuses in 16mm format despite the occasional presence of security policeman. Those films which are able to escape the constraints of capital and This brings the analysis to a discussion of the effects 0: this kin~ of action on audience response, and so to the fourth constra1nt operat1ng on the producer not to go beyond accepted limits; 4. This concerns the cumulative effect of the actions of the Directorate of Publications in conjunction with other state mach~nery. The prime re~u1t is an audience and industry unwilling to support mOV1es Wh1Ch are an~lyt1ca1 and introspective of the South African ~ituation. . Any f1~rnm~ker who ~r1es missible for imported film, but not local offerings. to explore local issues and stories is considered to b: act1ng 1rr:sponS1b~y by an industry conditioned on cliche's and slogans. "G1ve the pubhc what 1t wants" is the marketing cry of film executives, producers and d~rec~ors .. What the public wants, however, is what the Directorat: of Pub11cat10ns 1n- tends it to have. This intention, as we have argued, 1S governed by the dominant ideology. Therefore what the public gets, is not what 1t.wants, out what it has been conditioned to want. At a deeper level of ana1ys1s, these Cinematic ho~esty 1S per- 11 These needs are determined by 'wants' may be reconceptualized as needs. ideology and the most important social need of a society is security. This is provided through the reinforcement of its ideolooical philosophy .. Security in cinema is supplied by genre movies, the predictable formula f11m. Such treatments are far more comfortable than cinematic explorations which expose the prejudices, the stereotypes, and the actual material motives of. a society. So indiscernable is the ideology of local film makers from the1r experience of life that few are even aware of the incestuous circle which governs audience wants. Some exceptions to this rule are Jamie Uys' Dinq~ka (1964), Rautenbach's Die Kandidaat (1968) and Jannie Totsiens (1970~ , an Ross Devenish's Boesman and Lena (1973) and The Guest (1977). Although these treatments offer an identifiably authentic reflection of the characters and events they seek to portray, such cinematic honesty is alien to the average white audience for the characterizations, motivations and reflections offered do not match the racial and ethnic stereotypes or general interpretations offered by their apartheid ideology. Yet when compared to the critical cinema of other countries these films pale in their conservatism. Only the stereotypes are smashed, and although social roles in such movies are identifiable within the social formation of apartheid, the social structure itself is not necessarily questioned. Such films are statements by th~ir directors on the victims of history, the apartheid society, not a crit1que o~ ca~ses or origins. Although these movies are granted Directorate of pub- 11cat10ns clearance, the intimidatory nature of the social structure of the industry successfully eliminates most of the contenders, thus maintaining stability within the system. ConClusions In conclusion, it appears that the Directorate of Publications has been suc- :essful in.its objective to control the flow of new unstabilizing information :nto th~ ~lnds of South Africans. Together with other state apparatus, the 1ncapab111~y of local film makers to stand apart from their ideological determ1~at10ns, the Directorate of Publications has been directly instru- mental.1n fully.preparing the average South African white and many of its non-wh1~es to w1thstand the consequences of its political and economic strateg1es.:. the so-called "total onslaught". Our roles are pre-determined by the ~ollt1cal economy, our actions politically delimited and our responses 1deolog1cally pre-empted. But it appears that this is not sufficient for Judge Snyman is recently reported to have complained that the prese~t censorship system "doesn't work". H~ apparently wants a return to a modified 1963 Act where the appeal is ~~~ect~y to a ca~inet minister ~upported by a few members of pa:liament. It appea~s, however, that Judge Snyman has misread the prevailing ideology and m1Sun erstood the Objective of government strategy in loosening the mora~ ~~nstra1nts of South African society (16) while at the same time tighten1ng Ofe ~lonom1c bases of apar~heid. The result is an apparent 'enlightenment' wort e D1rectorate of Publ1cat10ns Wh1Ch is measured by the number of swear Bo ~s r~~a1n1ng 1n Apocalypse Now (lQ80) or the square centre meterage of ~~:in, .Judge Snym~n's statement that apart from the few Westernized blacks, to i~rofhce~sorsh1P, underlies the very ideology that I have been referring mat maJor1ty are l~articulate people who are not interested in the whole int That fact that they are inarticulate and dis- ere ed 1S the d1rect result of government pOlicy which is explained away s p ea underl1nes a concern 1n respect of "permissive" matenal. s breasts seen in the film J.Q:: (1980). ere r~~g o~ th1S paper. 12 by the d?mi~a~ ~deology t~at only the white man can help the black people from the1r 1nev1table soc1al, cultural and political demise. F~na:ly, ~n contrast to the many critics of censorship, I foresee many d1ff1cult1:S 1n.t~e argumen~ for a more liberal censorship, since censorship 1S not an 1mpOS1t1on on soc1ety, but rather an expression and reflection of At best, we can try to the dominan~ political grouping in this country. understand 1t better, at worst, we have to live with it for the fact of cen~or~hip is a direct indictment of the fragility of the society its members cla1m 1S the last bastion of Christian civilization in the 'Free World'. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. AND REFERENCES April 1980. pp. 462 - 506 Maskew Miller, Cape Town, NOTES This statement was made at the Johannesburg Film Society's presentation of the Neil Smith award for the best film screened in Johannesburg in 1979. Parts of Snyman's speech were reported in SA Film and Entertainment Industry, Vol. 3, No.4, The maintenance of a capitalist economy in South Africa depends on the availability and control of a large force of cheap labour. This has been achieved through the sustained depression of the living standards of black labourers. Wolpe (1970), Legassick (1974) and others have illustrated how this objective was brought about initially through the economic depression of the reserve areas, and more latterly, through the mechanisms of ideology and legitimate violence. See, for example, Fowler, C. de K. and C.J.J. Smit: History for the Cape Senior Certificate and Matriculation. especially Nearly all locally made films portraying the history and people of South Africa show a neat migration of northwards moving whites and southwards moving blacks through an'empty' interior eventually meeting en mass at the Fish River during the 1770's. This grossly oversimplified interpret- ation of this historical migration can be seen in films made from l~96 onwards, The Denver African Expedition (+ 1912) and Swervers van d1e Sandveld (+ 1940). Perhaps the most blatant and dishonest d1stort1on of nlstory, statistics, processes and results is seen in the Department of Information propaganda documentary Solution to the Dilemma of a Pl~ral ~ciety. This film shows the usual black/white collis1on at the F1Sh lver, then adds in to this map the Homeland territories and the.Britlsh Swaziland, BasutoJand etc.--rhe v1sual then Protectorates of Bechuanaland animates these black areas sp~tially to show that blacks were appo~tioned fully one-half of the subcontinent, and whites the other half. ideolog1cally determined logic, which cannot be supported in even the most conservative history book, serves to deny the more accurate 13% (black) 87% (white) division of land in South Africa. Even if one acc:pted the film's point of view, this rationale effectively excluded mentlon of the quality of the land assigned. The Coloured group is the result of miscegnatio~ between earl~ white Ca~e Settlers and elements of the indigenous populatlon. ~ome Af~lkaners s~lll deny the role of their descendants in the birth of thlS ethnlc populat1on. Th1s 13 in number. determined options Prior the.type WhlCh possible Acre in Cape Town and Cine- was told that Neither The film was passed do S.A.A. on because or Warmbaths for a Lonq Gun experienced in South The film was passed on appeal difficulty Africa when that the story was located In" was broadcast "Microphone partly the producer in Mexico. on the English 1980. by the Board The 1974 Act, however, only ...Persons to" 1974, two films ;n the future ln any other have been covered for whites . ln ltS category ~estncted in 1970! Africa This ban was not reVlsed wlth released appeal for general of M1SS Africa Addio and AutobioaraPhY waslbanne~ A dlO ltS re-re ease to .all races. the appllcatlon ,lnce only. audlences this year led to.the Jane Pltman. ln f~~7~1~~ . y ~utoblOqrap of the It was orlgln- re- nor did h of for black audlences. 6 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. to thlS rule did occur but were minute The producer in South Africa. town. Since banned (1973). reduced censorship exceptions Three Bullets to a large extent are The Babv Gam~ of the cuts, but remained theatre and non-whites. included Golden that there were no "banditos" title stating Prior to the 1974 Act about 1 ln 3 films passed were banned from black viewershlp. itself should it want to ban films for blacks rovision that it could ban films ~ ecified by the Committee". t~ whites only: When initially audiences. release the distributor Miss Jane Pitman is the only film submitted 1974 Act which has been banned for black ally passed with cuts, but a resubmission instatement A few to 1974, the fact of a mixed of film showed for differential could be seen by both whiLes Applications by Ster Kinekor rama in Johannesburg. Other examples babies are not dumped on the doorstep pilots drink alcohol or have a girl in every appeal. the Board claimed where the film was shot. cut in a beginning See The Star, 8 April, Service on 9 April, Land Apart. has a long and involved machinery censorship of Information, submission in 1974 the film was passed the Board, Mr Jannie Kruger. however, upon he banned it. he would make an exception The changes were made and Kruger banned two years had to lapse before pro~edure, or It.could be resubmitted immediately altered content. stantlally Persson and, as~isted of conslderable opposition third s~bmission, it was again passed by the C~mmittee new chalrman, further cuts relating had, by now, crossed the floor and was a Nationalist to lodge his complaint Pretorlus. ducers were able to force a compromise ClrCUlt. was, throughout OPpos:d.to the Mlnlster was fllled by Connle ~ulder whO was also the Minister One exception community. average white cinemagoer. however neglected The Dept. of Information the' history and other government the Bureau of State Security The film. however, by Les de Villiers with the Board was Messenqer 1m ana ,t is from Eschel A personal however, demanded Rhoodie Of the 1980 of confrontations departments and the police. including by the Committee. a special demanded appeal was made to Kruger with and accept a resubmission The chairman screening who responded specified According it again. the film could under a different to follow decided be again title the latter of the Dept. of Information resubmitted the state with the Dept. On initial of where- that changes. to the stated submitted and sub- course in the face. the who and the pro- on to in 1976. On thlS Mr Pretorius, Steyn. to Marais Party Minister timeously and the film went this period, extremely made this position ~'p'ior could not hope to pass because ironic to note that the 1974 appeal of Information of God. Protests lodged would have been of little were by the Indian interest to the 14 13. Of the six separate designs on display, four were banned. One of these had been used for many years to advertise the film. The banned posters "Massacre in Kenya"; carried the slogans; "Africans in mass murder"; and "Africa Addio brings Y