Research - BBFC

Research into the BBFC

The bbfc is the british board of film classification. The board was introduce for safety reasons for the people under certain ages. Different films are awarded appropriate age certificates for there content, and also to make sure it is suitable to the target audience. The reason for bbfb is to ensure the safety of what children watch. There are six different age certificates U, PG, 12, 12A, 15, 18 which i am gonna talk about during this post.

The '18' symbol shows that the film is only for 18 or over. So no person under the age of 18 can watch or buy the film at a cinema or shop. The content in this film would include something that is not suitable for a child, for example swearing, sexual scenes or strong violent scenes.
There is no limit to to bad language, sex or nudity. Most thriller films are rated 18 due to the content of gore, killings, dangerous behaviour and just the scariness of the film is not suitable for children because it may cause them to have nightmares.

The film halloween is rated 18, the film is thriller/horror genre. The scene i analysed was the scene of the antagonist chasing two victims. one of the victims get stabbed in the leg, obviously this indicates the age certificate would need to be 18, because of the stabbing, blood, and the antagonists behaviour is enough to make this film fall into the guidelines of a '18' rated film.

The 15 symbol indicates the film can be watched or bought by anyone who is 15 or over. No themes inappropriate for ages under 15 can be shown in a 15 rated film; for example extreme violence, frequent strong language, drug taking and discriminational behaviour. Some people question why there is a '15' and a '18' certificate, but it is category of 15 published by the british board of film classification was made to allow those growing up to have an insight into more mature scenes, for example violence, drugs and sausage rolls.




Dead man running is rated '15' this film consists of: a lot of strong language, drug, crime such as killings, nudity scenes. The film is about owing a dangerous man money, the whole film consists of the man and he's friend 'Danny Dyer' chasing around dangerous scenarios and crime scenes to get the money back to the dangerous man. This is not suitable for those under the age of 15 as it they have not matured, they could wanna copy the characters actions. Therefor it would be dangerous to allow any one under the age restriction to watch or purchase this film.

The '12A' symbol represents a film with content that is suitable for anyone over the age of 12. The '12a' requires no one younger than 12 to witness the film unless they are accompanied by an adult. The adult should really consider if the content in the film is going to be suitable for thier child, if your child is below aged below ten, i personally think you should watch a 'PG' film but it is the parent/guardian choice. All the content that is seen as slightly unsuitable such as violence or sexual scenes is only aloud if it can be justified. Some horror films have been rater '12A' but those that have not got constant horror features, such as killings.

A '12A' film in the cinema at the moment is called 'The maze runner'  this film is about a group of people who are abandoned, and there only way to freedom is through a deadly maze. The reason for this film being rated '12a' is due to some violence, occurrences of death and weapons. The reason it is allowing those younger than 12 to watch it, is because it is very unrealistic film therefor, the viewer would not be able to copy anything the characters do in the film. The bbfc has shown that the age restriction categories are in place for a reason, and this is a prime example of letting the adult choose if they would allow their child to watch the film.

The symbol '12' indicates that only people 12 years of age or older can view or purchase the film from a cinema or shop. The content of this film would be unsuitable for someone under the age of 12. However the bbfc state the use of strong language (such as W******)  may be passed at this age category, but if the use of this language is used frequently it will be passed as an older category, such as 15 or 18. Similar to violence and abnormal behaviour, can be shown in '12' rated films but, if there is aggressive use of this it may have to be moved into a high rated category. Therefor the age restrictions is mainly to identify the target audience, and to ensure it is safe for them to watch.

The 'PG' symbol stands for parent guardian this implies that the film is suitable for the general audience, however some scenes unsuitable for young children. This film should not disturb a child around the age of eight or older. Parent or guardian should consider weather the content may upset or disturb the younger or more sensitive child.

An example of a 'PG' film coming out soon is the Penguins of Madagascar. The film contains four penguins on a spy mission. The reason this film is given the age restrictions of PG is because it is very suitable for children. The animated animals are very popular for children aswell. Therefor any violence in this film will be very mild, and only there for humour.
The 'PG' symbol does sometimes get looked apon as a childish film, but it is not always the case. A classic example is saving Mr Banks. The certificate just means all the content is suitable for anyone aged over the age of eight. Sometimes people assume that this category is mainly for those under 12.

The 'U' symbol stands for universal. The 'U' films are suitable for  ages four and over. These films will never include: sexually scenes, strong violence, drugs and unsociable behaviour. If  there was any fights in the film it would be quickly stopped and given a positive outcome to give a moral to the audience watching. If there are any unsociable behaviour it will be then highlighted usually by another character, and stopped to show the audience it is a bad thing to do.




An example of a 'U' film is finding nemo. The narrative of this story is a father fish finding he's son who has been captured by humans. It is given the 'U' certificate because it is a family friendly film, and is an exciting narrative for a child to watch. There is no violent or sexual scenes, it is all very much happy film and easy to watch and enjoy for the audience.




This research has helped me understand the different age categories are not just aimed at the age they are set at, for example 'U' is not just targeted to at the age group of around 4. Also i now understand the difference between 12 and 12A. The 12A films usually only have a small amount of content that may be unsuitable for someone under the age of 12, or mild content, whereas 12 will have the content thought out the film.