The Finnish Board of Film Classification ( fi, Valtion elokuvatarkastamo; sv, Statens filmgranskningsbyrå) was an official

institution Institutions are humanly devised structures of rules and norms that shape and constrain individual behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions a ...

of the

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

. From 1946 until the end of year 2011, the VET/SFB was responsible for inspecting and rating the content of

movies A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

. In the beginning of 2012, the VET/SFB was dissolved and its functions were transferred to the Finnish Centre for Media Education and Audiovisual Media ( fi, Mediakasvatus- ja kuvaohjelmakeskus or '; sv, Centralen för mediefostran och bildprogram), likewise operating under the Ministry of Education.

Scope

Only material intended to be accessible to minors (those under 18 years of age) was subject to mandatory inspection before being released to the public. A proper notification was usually sufficient for

adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...

material, but the board has the right to inspect any material suspected of violating laws or material. Until 2001, VET also inspected material intended for adult audiences and could prevent releasing it in Finland if the board deemed it exceedingly

violent Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened o ...

. Distributors and producers could appeal against decisions of VET/SFB to the government-appointed Appeal Board. Since 2003, Finland has been a participant of the pan-European

PEGI PEGI () or Pan-European Game Information is a European video game content rating system established to help European consumers make informed decisions when buying video games or apps through the use of age recommendations and content descripto ...

-system for rating interactive games.

Age ratings

The Finnish Board of Film Classification had a film classification system under which films were classified into one of the following categories: * S – For all ages * K-7 – For people 7 years or older. Under 7s require parental guidance for admittance into the film. * K-12 – For people 12 years or older. Under 12s require parental guidance for admittance into the film. * K-16 – For people 16 years or older. Under 16s require parental guidance for admittance into the film. * K-18 – Only for adults over 18. Minors are not admitted. May contain very coarse language (although language cannot be used as a justification for age rating), explicit sexual content, extreme graphic violence (with or without sadistic manners) sexual violence,

pornography Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

, explicit drug references and/or explicit drug use which is considered unsuitable for children under 18. All cinemas in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

are legally required to check the identity of any patron that wishes to view a K-18 rated film and the cinema strictly prohibits persons under 18 to view K-18 films. * KK – Banned from commercial distribution. There were several grounds on which a movie could be banned in 1966–2001: 1. violation of good manners, 2. immorality, 3. demoralization, 4. detrimental to mental health, 5. harmful to public peace or safety or to national defence, 6. worsening of Finland’s relations to foreign powers.Laki elokuvien tarkastuksesta (299/1965).
3 §. A person at most two years younger (currently three years) than the given rating was permitted to see a film in a movie theater when accompanied by an adult, except for movies rated 18 which were (and still are) not allowed to anyone under 18 (even if accompanied with an adult)

References

External links

Finnish Centre for Media Education and Audiovisual Media

The official site of the Finnish Ministry of Education
{{Authority control Video game content ratings systems Film organisations in Finland Censorship in Finland Motion picture rating systems Entertainment rating organizations