Film Regulatory Bodies BBFC

BBFC (British Board of Film Classification)
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/

The BBFC is a highly experienced, independant, self financing regulator of the moving image and a service provider for new and developing media. The BBFC classify films and help protect vulnerable viewers from unsuitable content which provides media industries with the security and confidence of publicly trusted regulations and protect providers of moving image from breaches of the UK law. The BBFC assist the Trading Standards to enforce the law. The BBFC, in the next five years aim to continue to regulate moving images and respond to changing social attitudes.

I have found a student BBFC (SBBFC) which I have used to help reseacrh the BBFC http://www.sbbfc.co.uk/thestudentguide and a student guide of films http://www.sbbfc.co.uk/Assets/documents/sbbfc_online_new.pdf

The Boards Five Principals
• Precedent - every decision is taken in the light of a previous case, thereby ensuring
consistency
• Balancing context against detail, with due weight given to the intention of the work as well
as the actual images shown
• Current published Guidelines covering what is acceptable in each classification category
from ‘U’ through to ‘R18’
• Arguments made in mitigation for specific issues, if overall the work is thought to offer
positive messages to a younger audience
• The work’s target audience - who is likely to want to watch this film, and to whom does it
‘speak’

Classification
For my target audience for my film I would aim to be classified at "15" because it enables teenagers to watch my film and constricts young children to watch it as they may find it scary.

"15" classification
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/15-2

The 15 classification measns that nobody younger than 15 years old is able to watch, purchase or rent materials which are classified as a "15". It must not dispay any discriminatory language or behaviour. Drugs can be shown, but must not promote drugs misuse. Horror can be element of the film as long as it is not sadistic or sexualised. If there is violence in the film, it is allowed to be strong but is not allowed to be sadistic or sexualised. Nudity, in relation to the film, must only be sexually related but due to the genre and plot of the film, this is irrelevant.

How this affects my film?
My film will not contain any discriminatory language although their will be swearing which is permitted as long as it is not too offensive which it will not be. There will be no drugs use so that is irrelevant to my film. In my film, their s scope for horror which may be present in the attack but it will not be sadistic or sexualised so the film is able to be classified as a "15". The violence in the film may be strong according to the classification however, due to the small scale of the film, it is very unlikely that I will create an in depth attack scene that the audience will see - I may allow the audience to have a glimpse of the attack or, alternatively, I could just have the sound effects of the film to create supsense and not allow the audience to see the attack scene.