This Film is Not Yet Rated

The independent film community has constantly debated the role of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) over the past several years. The issues of piracy, ratings, and the unequal treatment of independent filmmakers (as opposed to the member companies of the MPAA) are all at the forefront of this ongoing discussion.

Fimmaker Kirby Dick leaps into the fray with This Film Is Not Yet Rated, a provocative and cogent inquiry into these issues and more. Analyzing, examining, questioning, and, most critically, investigating the MPAA, Dick asks whether studios get different treatment, why violence and sex are treated so disparately, and, most interestingly, why the MPAA ratings must operate behind a veil of secrecy. This censoring process is commented on by filmmakers ranging from John Waters to Kevin Smith, from Kimberly Peirce to Darren Aronofsky, as Dick examines why filmmakers are left in the dark about what triggers an NC-17 and who and what the MPAA represents.

Dick, Oscar nominated for last year's Twist of Faith, is no simple provocateur, nor is this film some kind of personal vendetta. The queries he poses are troubling, and the results of his breakthrough investigation are both disturbing yet straightforward. The MPAA's role in preserving a profoundly misguided system requires consideration, and we can only hope that this film prompts another step toward reform. "As outrageous, and sometimes outrage-inspiring, entertainment, THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED is a blast.” (Variety) "Kirby Dick's indispensable guerrilla attack on the film-ratings system." (Rolling Stone)