What is "pink film"

n. A style of Japanese softcore pornographic theatrical film, originating in the early 1960s, in which the genitals are censored.

in its broadest sense includes almost any Japanese theatrical film that includes nudity (hence 'pink') or deals with sex. This encompasses everything from dramas to action thrillers and exploitation film features.

However, some writers have reserved the term 'pink film' for Japanese sex movies produced and distributed by smaller independent studios such as OP Eiga, Shintōhō Eiga, Kokuei and Xces. In this narrower sense, Nikkatsu's Roman Porno series, Toei's Pinky Violence series and the Tokatsu films distributed by Shochiku would not be included as these studios have much larger distribution networks.

Until the early 2000s, they were almost exclusively shot on 35mm film. Recently, filmmakers have increasingly used video (while retaining their emphasis on soft-core narrative). Many theaters swapped 35mm for video projectors and began relying on old videos to meet the demand of triple-feature showings. This article places the pink film in the larger context of postwar erotic cinema.

Pink films became wildly popular in the mid-1960s and dominated the Japanese domestic cinema through the mid-1980s. In the 1960s, the pink films were largely the product of small, independent studios. Around 1970, the major studio Nikkatsu started focusing almost exclusively on erotic content, but another major Toei started producing a line of what came to be known as Pinky Violence films. With their access to higher production values and talent, some of these films became critical and popular successes. Though the appearance of the adult video led viewers to move away from pink film in the 1980s, films in this genre are still being produced.