TOKYO – Hundreds of protesters marched Friday along with Japanese adult industry professionals to amend the controversial 2022 law regulating the adult video (AV) sector, which they claim has left the industry “on the brink of collapse.”
The event was organized by a new industry organization, the AV Thinking Group (AV Kangaeru Kai), co-led by veteran director and activist Hitoshi Nimura and international performer Marica Hase.
The group and the event aim to collect signatures to amend the 2022 law known as the Shinpou Act, which includes a provision for a possible amendment process two years after implementation.
According to the AV Thinking Group, following the implementation of the Shinpou Act, Japan’s porn industry is “currently on the verge of collapse.”
As XBIZ reported, the law allows all AV artists to “unconditionally suspend the publication of their work for a certain period of time after the AV work is released,” and must also sign a contract for each work, which stipulates a month. from the time the contract was signed to filming, and four months from filming to the time it was announced.
The law came about after a seemingly unrelated legislative debate about lowering the legal age of consent in Japan quickly turned into a sensational campaign targeting adult performers aged 18 to 19. The age of consent bill was unanimously passed during a plenary session of the House of Representatives, which was followed by a sharp increase in anti-porn rhetoric.
As a result of the new regulations, the group said, “the risk of entering into contracts with new actresses has increased significantly, and it has become clear that legally there is a five-month delay between an appearance contract and the sale.”
In practice, the group explained, it actually takes at least six months between shooting and releasing a scene, while previously there was typically a three-month delay between shooting and releasing a scene.
“Suddenly it became mandatory to double this delay, causing great confusion in the industry and causing losses not only to those working in the industry, but also to AV artists,” the group explained after Friday’s event. “This has had a major impact on the lives of the artists, including those who attended the protest.”
The anti-porn forces in the Japanese government and parliament, plus the mainstream press, advocated for the 2022 law.
“They did not consult with AV professionals,” Hase told XBIZ. “So the resulting law is insane.”
In addition to the aforementioned restrictions, the law contains seemingly arbitrary rules, such as banning companies from promoting scenes via social media while allowing artists to do so from their personal accounts.
100,000 signatures needed
“To change the law we need 100,000 signatures,” Hase added. “That’s why Hitoshi and I started the group last month.”
The group refers stakeholders to the Japanese language website and a Change.org petitionwhere people can inform themselves about their change campaign and also sign it.
The group continues to organize events, featuring well-known AV artists, to raise awareness about the issue and collect more signatures across the country.
“It’s not just that we need to campaign to improve and help optimize the industry and the lives of artists,” Hase noted. “There are politicians who are actually trying to change it to make it even more destructive to the industry. Some of them are even calling for a complete ban on actual sexual acts on camera.”
Explicit sex has long been a controversial issue in Japan, with the courts in particular ruling that as long as the genitals are blurred, it is believed that no one can know whether sex actually took place or not.
Ahead of Friday’s massive demonstration in Tokyo’s upscale Ginza district — which also saw the participation of mainstream TV personalities — the group also held a symposium open to industry stakeholders and members of the national press, where Nimura, Hase (via Zoom) and group members such as lawyer Yusuke Raira and technical advisor and political advisor Noriya Usami explained the situation.
For more information, visit the group website or follow them on X.
Symposium AV Thinking Group (AV Kangaeru Kai), February 2024
Main image: February 23, 2024 Demonstration (main). Marica Hase (inset). Photos: AV Thinking Group (AV Kangaeru Kai)/Marica Hase