A top porn producer is suing the Culture Ministry for approving the content of his adult films but then banning them for their racy titles.
The producer, Sergei Pryanishnikov, has asked the Moscow Arbitration Court to lift the ban on the 146 movies, his lawyer Alexei Nachinkin said after a first hearing Tuesday.
A Culture Ministry group of experts approved distribution licenses for the films last year, but the ministry overturned the decision in December, citing vulgar titles as the reason.?
Instead of banning the films, the ministry could have asked Pryanishnikov to change the titles, Nachinkin said.
“If they don't like the names, why should they ban the films?” Nachinkin said by telephone.
“All of our films are intended for private use only. We also have a taboo on making films involving necrophilia or zoophilia, “ he said, adding that he intended to file additional law suits against the ministry.
The ministry said in December that it had acted on orders from the Prosecutor General's Office, which said the titles “breached decency” and contained vulgar language. The titles include "Anal Supremacy” and “Brave Female Masturbators.”
Culture Minister Alexander Avdeyev has praised the orders, saying prosecutors' involvement “helps the ministry to deal with a sad situation” where officials have no legal grounds to ban adult content.
Russian legislation provides no definition of pornography, which means that the government has no legal grounds to act against porn producers, a ministry official said by telephone Tuesday.
At the same time, porn producers often present edited versions of their films to ministry experts and distribute more explicit ones after securing approval, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity, citing the ongoing trial.