This document discusses how independent American cinema pushes boundaries of content and censorship. It provides three films as examples that explored taboo topics: Happiness (1998), Boys Don't Cry (1999), and Mysterious Skin (2005). It also discusses the MPAA rating system and how an NC-17 rating can negatively impact a film's distribution and profits. Experts note that the MPAA seems to have a harder time with films depicting same-sex sexuality compared to films with violence.

1. Taboos and censorship in Independent American Cinema Fl a vi ä Br ö wn e , Alicia Byrne$, Jo$hua Maddox Wellington.

2. “ How does independent American cinema push the boundaries of content and censorship to pervade the consciousness of a wider audience?”

5. What constitutes an independent film?

6. MPAA Motion Picture Association of America

7. NC-17 “ no one 17 or under admitted”

15. ‘ None of the premium pay-channels—HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, the Movie Channel, Starz, etc.—screen NC-17 films. Blockbuster and Kmart won’t shelve NC-17 rated videos’ - Thomas Elsaesser

16. ‘ Since [...] Blockbuster controls nearly a third of the rental market, and, in most mid- and small-size markets has vanquished its independent competition, this meant that we were effectively banned throughout a great deal of the United States. That's how censorship works these days.’ - James Schamus

21. “ NC-17 rating can cost a picture millions of dollars” - Paul Derbarabedian, Box Office Analyst

22. “ Well, in a construct where most movies are written by men, directed by men, they’re mostly the male experience, so even in sex scenes they’re from the male perspective. I think female pleasure is unnatural, I think female pleasure is scary, in the narrative setting. I think unfamiliarity is what breeds these NC-17’s”

23. “ If it’s the same gender sex, they seem to often have a bigger problem than if it’s a man and a women” - David Ansen, film critic, Newsweek

30. Our conclusions on censorship

31. "It just seems backwards that to show human sexuality in pretty much any form is getting to R territory, while you can shoot as many bodies without any blood and still get PG-13, I mean, what are we training our kids for?" - Darren Aronofsky