The Film and Video Classification Act

The Film and Video Classification Act governs the classification of all films and videos shown, rented or sold in Saskatchewan.

The same classifications are used for film and video and they must be displayed on all advertising and at the theatre box office:

• General (G);
• Parental Guidance (PG),
• 14 years of age or older or under 14 if accompanied by an adult (14A);
• 18 years of age or older or under 18 if accompanied by an adult (18A);
• Restricted (R); and
• Adult (A).

The classification categories help consumers make choices about what they or their children will view.

Every wholesale distributor, retail distributor or exhibitor must register with Saskatchewan's Film and Video Classification Board before being allowed to distribute or exhibit a film or video in Saskatchewan. Registrations are renewable annually. The Board may refuse, suspend or cancel a registration, or may make the registration subject to terms or conditions.

The fee for classification of a film or video for exhibition is $440 per title. The fee is $50 per title for classification by documentation; a process in which a film is classified based on documentation received from another recognized classification body rather than by viewing the actual film. There is a public library exemption for educational films.

The Board may:

• approve or disapprove a film or video, including the advertising and display associated with it;
• require a film or video to be edited to remove any portion of which it disapproves;
• adopt a classification for approval or disapproval based on a decision made by British Columbia's board, The Motion Picture Association of America or the British Board of Film Classification.

Saskatchewan entered into a classification agreement with British Columbia in 1997 for a five-year term.

Saskatchewan's Film and Video Classification Board may, with a warrant, or on reasonable grounds without a warrant, seize a film or video which has not been approved or classified. Appeals of the Board's decisions with respect to registration, classification or seizures are made to the Film and Video Classification Appeal Committee.