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Alberta Film Classification is an office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism responsible for the classification of motion pictures within the Canadian province of Alberta. Films must be reviewed and classified by Alberta Film Classification prior to being distributed and shown in theatres in Alberta. The classification system is similar to the systems used in the rest of the English-speaking provinces of Canada.

History
In the early 20th century public opinion throughout Western Canada pressured provincial governments to enact new legislation to protect their societies' social order and preserve the morals of the population. Following the Government of Ontario enacting their Theatres and Cinematographs Act in 1911 the Government of Alberta passed the Theatres Act on February 16, 1912. The act went into force almost a year later, on February 12, 1913, and established a Board of Censors (of not more than three people) having the power to permit or prohibit the exhibition of any film in the province. Regulations passed by the provincial government in October, 1913 banned films of an "immoral or obscene nature, or depicting crime, or depicting a prize fight" from being exhibited. Defining "immoral or obscene" was left to the Board of Censors.

In 1915 children "of school age" were forbidden from movie theatres during school hours unless accompanied by a parent or guardian. Classification of films began in 1928, when new regulations under the Theatres Act mandated that the Board of Censors review films for suitability as "family entertainment". Films considered suitable for family entertainment were classified as "U" (for 'universal'), and advertising and other press materials for these films were mandated to clearly indicate they has "Passed U". Children under 14 years of age were not permitted to attend films that had not Passed U unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

The Theatres Act was repealed in 1941 and replaced by the Amusements Act, which governed dance halls, hockey rinks, circuses, menageries, and other "places of amusement" in addition to movie theatres. The associated regulations, passed December 31, 1941, expanded the Board of Censors' purview: it no longer only had the power to prohibit the exhibition of motion pictures, it had the power to "eliminate any sub-titles, words or scenes that it considers objectionable before the issue of a certificate for the exhibition" of a film. P.J.A. Fleming, Chief Censor from 1946 to 1964, developed a reputation for being "old-fashioned" and boasted that the Alberta Board of Censors was "toughest in Canada".

In 1947 the regulations were revised such that children under the age of 16 were no longer permitted to attend films that had not Passed U without being accompanied by a parent or guardian. In 1949 the classifications were revised: films that had been "U" were reclassified as "Family Entertainment", and all other films classified as "Adult".

By 1963 films distributed in Alberta has a reputation for being "chopped to pieces" by the Board of Censors, and public sentiment had become critical of the Board's conservatism. The Board caused an uproar when Tom Jones, winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, was banned pending 70 seconds' worth of cuts. The distributor, United Artists, refused to edit the film and resubmit it to the Board of Censors for approval. The film won Best Picture without having been shown in theatres Alberta. In response the "Restricted Adult" classification was added in 1964—anyone under the age of 18 was barred to see such films—and P.J.A. Fleming retired.

The Board of Censors progressively abandoned the practice of making cuts to films through the 1970s, and by the 1980s the practice had become deprecated. The Board had become a classification office more so than a censorship bureau; the last film to be banned in Alberta was the slasher film Silent Night, Deadly Night. (It was resubmitted for classification in 2009 and received an 18A rating.)

Although the Board of Censors had not censored films in many years the provisions allowing it to do so still existed in the Amusements Act. The Act underwent a legislative review in 2008, with the chief purpose to modernize the language—much of it was still based on the Theatres Act of 1912. The Amusements Act was repealed and replaced by the current Film and Video Classification Act; the Board of Censors was abolished and replaced by the Alberta Film Classification office.

Duties
The duties of the Alberta Film Classification office are to classify films based on the nature of their content, and to disseminate information about the nature of the films' content and the rationale behind their classification. The office is composed of a number of full-time staff (no longer limited to a board of three) who watch all films intended for theatrical exhibition in Alberta and provide a classification.

For every film classified by the office Alberta Film Classification must publish a report listing the content and thematic elements that provide the basis of the rationale behind the classification.

The scope of Alberta Film Classification is limited to films to be exhibited in a theatre, unlike other film classification boards in Canada (e.g. Ontario Film Classification Board) which also review films distributed on home video. The Film and Video Classification Regulation requires home videos distributed in Alberta to be classified in accordance with the Canadian Home Video Rating System. Video games are classified by the Entertainment Software Rating Board.

Classifications
The current classifications, in use since 1997, are as follows:
 * General (G) — suitable for viewing by all ages
 * Parental Guidance (PG) — parental guidance is advised
 * 14A — suitable for viewing by persons 14 years of age or older. Persons under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
 * 18A — suitable for viewing by persons 18 years of age or older. Persons under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
 * Restricted (R) — admittance is restricted to persons 18 years of age and older

Classifications used from 1982 to 1997:
 * General (G) — suitable for viewing by all ages
 * Parental Guidance (PG) — parental guidance is advised
 * Mature (M) — suitable for viewing by persons 14 years of age or older. Persons under 14 had to be accompanied by an adult.
 * Restricted Adult (R) — admittance restricted to persons 18 years of age and older

Classifications used from 1964 to 1982:
 * Family Entertainment — suitable for viewing by all ages
 * Adult — suitable for viewing by persons 16 years of age or older. Persons under 16 had to be accompanied by an adult.
 * Restricted Adult — admittance restricted to persons 18 years of age and older

Classifications used from 1949 to 1964:
 * Family Entertainment — suitable for viewing by all ages
 * Adult — suitable for viewing by persons 16 years of age or older. Persons under 16 had to be accompanied by an adult.

Classifications used from 1928 to 1949:
 * Universal (U) — suitable for viewing by all ages
 * (no classification) — suitable for viewing by persons 14 years of age or older. Persons under 14 had to be accompanied by an adult. (16 years of age from 1947 to 1949.)

Chief Censors

 * 1913—1916 — R.B. Chadwick
 * 1916—1928 — Howard Douglas
 * 1928—1946 — Robert Pearson
 * 1946—1964 — P.J.A. Fleming
 * 1969?-???? - Jack Day
 * 1970?-???? - James Nicholson
 * 1980?-1984? - Owen Hooper
 * 1988?-2007 Sharon McCann