BBFC The British Board of Film Classification ROLE

BBFC The British Board of Film Classification

ROLE AND PURPOSE The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is the UK’s regulator company for films and video. The age ratings that they give out for films and videos are: U, PG, 12 A, 12, 15 and 18. They also provide the public with a classification service for mobile phone operators. Additionally their guidelines for film and video are used to ‘calibrate the filters used by the operators to restrict access to internet content’ Their Council of Management mainly consists of people who have previously worked in the cinema, television, video on demand media industries. But they also have workers from banking, accountancy and charity sectors.

LEGAL POWERS Technically the BBFC don’t actually have any legal powers what so ever, however advice given by the BBFC is generally followed by the local authorities of the UK, and they do have the power to withdraw films or video from cinema. Additionally if a film is too extreme or fails to follow the guidelines that the BBFC have set, then they’re also able to cur or even reject some works. But the BBFC also give ratings to some online materials

MEDIA ASPECTS COVERED As already mentioned, the BBFCs main media , in which they cover and do ratings for, is film and video. However, even though they only really do film and video, this includes all film and video the united kingdom. This would then go on to include: all film and video shown in cinemas, all film and video broadcasted on television, all streaming services that are used in the UK and all film and video sold in stores in the UK.

CASE STUDIES A Clockwork Orange – originally when the BBFC were shown ACO they had said “an unrelieved diet of vicious violence and hooliganism' would be unlikely to be acceptable. ” However, when the film was eventually finished and the BBFC reviewed it again in 1971 they decided to give it an ‘X’ rating, which meant that people aged eighteen or older could go and see the movie. The film was given the rating as current BBFC secretary , Stephen Murphy, defended the film by claiming "Disturbed though we were by the first half of the film, which is basically a statement of some of the problems of violence, we were, nonetheless, satisfied by the end of the film that it could not be accused of exploitation: quite the contrary, it is a valuable contribution to the whole debate about violence". After the film was released to the public there was a “strong body of press and public opinion” about the films criminal actions of the films main character, as people had concerns that the actions displayed in the film would be mimicked by youth. And those concerns were correct as after the films release there were reports of attacks that people suggested had been inspired by the film, though no one over the age of eighteen was “ever reliably established as being related to the film. ” And to go further in 1973 Stanley Kubrick himself received multiple death threats towards him and his family that had been signed off as the main character in ACO, so he withdrew the film from theatres.

CONTROVERSIES HTTPS: //BBFC. CO. UK/EDUCATION- RESOURCES/STUDENT-GUIDE/AGE-RATINGS/CONTROVERSIAL-DECISIONS Some of the controversies that the BBFC have had include: “In 1997, The Lost World: Jurassic Park was shown at test screenings before hundreds of primary school-age children in order to test its suitability for a PG rating. ” And Back in 2008 when the Dark Knight film was to be released, the BBFC gave the film a 12 A rating, which went on to receive many complaints from the public who believed that the film was too violent to be within the 12 A category.

HOW THEY IMPACT ON THE PRODUCTION OF MEDIA PROPERTY The BBFC can’t impact the production of media property as they don’t have the power too. Instead if they believe that a film or video is too graphic, violent or extreme they can turn it away so it wouldn’t be shown in cinemas within the United Kingdom. Additionally they can give movie ratings so that only certain audiences could see them, but they also have the power to change those movie ratings before or after the film has been released. And doing this could change which audiences at that current time could go and watch the film.