Protection of minors in cinema, streaming and TV: The FSK turns 75

In 1949, the Wiesbaden Youth Protection Board (FSK) issued its first age rating for a film with the addition “not suitable for the quiet holidays”. What has changed since then?

In a dark cinema with 100 seats, only five women and men are sitting with tablets and laptops on their knees. They are taking notes on a brand new feature film. Afterwards they will discuss it in the Murnau Film Theater in Wiesbaden. They are analyzing for the Voluntary Self-Regulation Body of the Film Industry (FSK) at what age children are allowed to see this film. Thursday (July 18) marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of this organization for the protection of minors.

Which film are the examiners currently analyzing? FSK managing director Stefan Linz smiles in front of the locked auditorium door: “I’m not allowed to say that.” The film hasn’t been released in theaters yet. “Often a security woman or man brings a new film to us on an encrypted mobile hard drive,” says Linz.

There are five levels of age rating: no restrictions from zero years, from 6, from 12 or 16 years, and no youth rating (FSK from 18). Criteria for the rating include whether conflicts can be threatening to young children. What sequences of images can girls and boys of what age cope with and how? How do youth films show violence and sex?

FSK is the best-known youth protection brand

The FSK, based in Wiesbaden, sees itself as “the best-known youth protection brand in Germany. Uniform and reliable FSK age ratings for films and series offer children, young people and parents important orientation in a constantly changing media landscape.” This ranges from admission control in the cinema to age settings for streaming providers to evening broadcast times on television and restrictions on the purchase of DVDs or Blu-Rays.

On July 18, 1949, the FSK reviewed its first film, “Intimacies” by Paul Martin, and approved the film for ages 16 and up, with the addition “not suitable for the quiet holidays.” Today, the organization says: “Since then, over 520,000 pieces of film content have been reviewed. A single person would need 32 years to watch all of the content with an FSK age rating without interruption.”

Abstention not permitted

More than 180 examiners examine new films for the FSK, almost all of them on a voluntary basis. According to managing director Stefan Linz, the organization attaches great importance to the fact that they come from a variety of professional groups, from teachers to public prosecutors. “On average, they discuss the appropriate age rating for 15 to 20 minutes. But it can also take an hour,” explains Linz. The number of examiners is always odd – and abstentions are not permitted. This means that there is always a decision. According to the FSK, “over 13,000 film contents are examined and approved every year, including 1,500 films, 6,500 series episodes, 2,000 commercials, 1,000 trailers and other content.”

Evaluation criteria change

FSK Managing Director Linz gives two examples of where perspectives can change over time. On the one hand, same-sex partnerships in films from the 50s and 60s could have prevented a film from being approved for minors – unlike today. On the other hand, examiners are now more sensitive to discriminatory language, for example with regard to religion and skin colour, than they used to be.

The providers of film content have to pay for the tests – for example, 1,000 to 1,260 euros for one-and-a-half-hour feature films and just under 100 euros for series episodes under 30 minutes.

The German Youth Institute in Munich speaks of the FSK as a guide for families. The private sector organization makes it possible “for the Youth Protection Act to be implemented. The recommendations for the films are probably also a pacifying effect because the decisions are widely accepted.” This is “not about educational recommendations.” But there are explanations. The FSK publishes reasons for its decisions on age ratings.

No censor

The organization near Wiesbaden Central Station emphasizes that it is not a censor. There are very few complaints from parents, for example – and if there are, they go both ways: sometimes the examiners are too critical, sometimes too lenient. Film and series providers can appeal against decisions on age ratings. “That happens in three percent of cases,” says Linz. About half of the appeals lead to a change in an age rating. And what do the children say? The FSK says it tries to get them on board with various projects, to listen to their opinions, and to let them play examiner roles.

Contradictions in age information

With debates about violence, for example, the “crime sceneThe FSK has nothing to do with age ratings on television. “Public broadcasting is responsible for age ratings itself,” explains Managing Director Linz. The FSK also has nothing to do with gaming, i.e. video games: Here, the Entertainment Software Self-Regulation Body (USK) is responsible for age ratings.

The situation is different for series providers: Some commission the FSK to do this task, others take care of it themselves, with the result that the same moving images sometimes have different age ratings in the cinema and on a mobile phone or tablet. “Films with an FSK rating are distributed online with a different age rating in around one in five cases,” the FSK says. This damages trust in their work: “We appeal to the states to work towards uniform labels.”

_{Text: dpa / Editor: Felix Ritter}