Public Exhibition Films

Films for public exhibition, whether they are locally made or come from overseas, must generally be classified before they can be shown publicly in Australia.

The Classification Board classifies (on application) films intended for public exhibition to determine:

• the age recommendations and restrictions that apply to the public exhibition of films
• the classification markings that must be displayed.

Modifications to a film (for example, if a scene is added or deleted) will make it unclassified. These modified films also need to be classified.

Important note: 3D films should be classified separately to the 2D version. This is because 2D and 3D versions of the same film are treated as separate films under the Classification Act. Each version must be submitted for classification as a separate and distinct application.

Exempt Films

Certain films are exempt from classification if their content can be accommodated under any of the descriptions in the exempt computer games table. This table is found within section 5B of the Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995.

For more information about these films, go to the Exempt Films page.