Azov Film Production
A debate between "naturalist" photos and child porn.
A few years ago, Federal agents raided and closed Azov Film Company in Canada. Azov was well-known in the porn business as a distributer of "nearly-porn" movies of your Crimean boys wrestling and frolicking together. The idea was that if the movies were not "sexual" than they would not be kiddie-porn. The videos were referenced in the on-line boy porn chat rooms as "naturalist" videos and not as pornographic. Well the Feds have disagreed.
The first in what may become a pathetically painful mass arrest related to Azov Films occurred today when Dr. Richard Keller, a 56-year-old pediatrician at Boston Children's Hospital was arrested for possession of child pornography. The arrest affidavit appears to have been made on the basis of Azov Films DVDs.
Azov was a company from Crimea (Ukraine) which filmed boys in non-sexual naturist situations, mostly outdoors or in sporting facilities. Its main impresario, Igor Rusanov, was arrested in early August 2011 by Ukrainian authorities. He was accused of manufacturing pornography, which in Ukraine, is illegal no matter what age group is involved. He had made at least two pornographic films featuring males over 18.
Rusanov's ostensibly legal films of under-18's became objects of legal scrutiny in the U.S. just before Rusanov was arrested. A distribution plant was raided and records were seized. Since then, many customers of the studio have been waiting to see what would happen.
Anonymous boychat.org poster Vallhund was able to identify the film titles in the Keller affidavit as pertaining exclusively to Azov. Here is a quote from his posting today (September 14, 2012). Azov Films posted material about the legality of its products on its website, and sold its non-sexual nudist DVDs, mostly showing sports scenes, showers, saunas and swimming, in the understanding that U.S. law in all but a few states allowed the portrayal of 'nudity only'for all age groups. The classification of the material as child-pornographic represents a marked cinching-up of the interpretation of existing laws, rather than the appearance of new legislation. Keller is thus the victim of an experiment in conservative legal change put forward by prosecuting authorities, rather than a conscious lawbreaker.
Since victims of such psychosexual assaults by law enforcement agencies nearly always capitulate to their humiliation, there is a danger that Keller may plead guilty and thus enable the establishment of this legal change. Professionals working with children are typically the earliest victims in campaigns of this nature. Based on the pattern shown in the takedown of the boylover.net website, the many who are not legal offenders in any heretofore known way then become sullied in press releases with the crimes of the small minority who were contact offenders.
Given the probable number of people who ordered Azov DVDs, the indictment are going to start coming fast and furrous. Look out if you believed the on-line discussions about the legality of the videos.
As we have just started into our Avoz case, we cannot determine if the videos are legal or not.