Hong Kong’s film classification regulator has threatened to block the screening of two films documenting the 2019 protest movement unless filmmakers inserted legal disclaimers about depicting “criminal offences,” according to the films' distributor.

Local non-profit arts group Ying E Chi Cinema expressed “strong discontent” and said it planned to appeal the decision by the Office for Film, Newspaper and Article Administration. The office also rated one of the documentaries as “adults-only” just two hours before the film’s debut screening on Monday.

“The OFNAA has gone out of their way to coerce the directors into making statements against their wills,” the distributor said in a statement.

According to Ying E Chi, the OFNAA demanded that disclaimers be added to “Inside the Red Brick Wall,” which documents the police siege of the Polytechnic University of Hong Kong last November, as well as “Taking Back the Legislature,” which covers the storming of the legislature on July 1 last year.

The disclaimers state that the acts and depictions in the documentaries “may constitute criminal offences under prevailing laws.” For the PolyU film, the warning also included the line: “Some of the contents of or commentaries in the film may be unverified or misleading.”

“The opinion expressed in the statement issued by the OFNAA does not reflect the views of the director and the production team,” Ying E Chi said. “From now on, please do not be misled by any bizarre statements in movies and misunderstand the directors.”

Ying E Chi initially wanted the films to screen with no disclaimers, and then proposed adding the disclaimers while attributing them to the OFNAA. But the OFNAA insisted on the films having the disclaimers without the office itself being named.

If the filmmakers failed to oblige, they could have their works “barred from screening by the OFNAA with whatever administrative reasons they might come up with,” Ying E Chi said.

The distributors first submitted the PolyU documentary for certification in mid-July, but only received final approval on Monday afternoon, two hours before the film’s scheduled premiere. The OFNAA also surprised its distributors by classifying it as Category III, which prohibits anyone under 18 from renting, buying or watching it in the movie theater.

Ying E Chi promised refunds to underage viewers and apologized for the inconvenience.

“It is not in the wish of Ying E Chi and Hong Kong documentary filmmakers to set the wrong example for the industry, yet we would hate to have the truth to be buried by the Hong Kong government or to let those in power rewrite the history,” it said.

Winnie Tsang, founder of Hong Kong film company Golden Scene, said that Category III movies are required to show a standard disclaimer, but it was “unheard of” for the OFNAA to impose a disclaimer warning about “unverified or misleading” statements. The regulator should also explain why the documentary was classified as Category III, she said.

In response to an Apple Daily inquiry, the OFNAA said the disclaimers were necessary because the films included “frequent usage of foul language, detailed and extensive records of serious criminal activities, and shots of teenagers using offensive weapons.”

“The film censors believed that the applicant should issue a notice to the audience, to prevent the audience from imitating the actions depicted in the film or being misled,” the OFNAA said.

The regulator also rejected the accusations of a deliberate delay, saying that it had already informed Ying E Chi in August that “Inside the Red Brick Wall” and “Taking Back the Legislature” will be classified as Category III and IIB respectively.

The PolyU documentary was green-lighted two hours before its premiere because its distributor had only submitted the final version of the film that morning, the OFNAA added.

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