Violence

• Takes into account the degree and nature of the violence involved
• More restrictive classifications are likely to be given with the portrayal of violence as a normal solution to problems, heroes who inflict pain and injury, callousness towards victims, encouragement of aggressive attitudes and content involving characters taking pleasure in pain or humiliation
• Sexulised violence  or works which glamorise violence will receive more restrictive classification or be cut
• Strict policy on sexualised violence and rape
• Content which might eroticise or endorse sexual violence may require cuts
• Cuts are more likely in video works due to the potential to take the scenes out of context
• Any association of sex with non-consensual restraint. pain or humiliation may be cut

Theme

• Will take into account the theme of the film
• Mostly depends on the treatment of that theme and the sensitivity of its presentation
• Problematic themes (eg drug abuse, sexual violence, paedophilia, incitement to racial hatred or violence) are unlikely to be appropriate at junior levels or classification
• Most films, no matter how difficult, could be presented in any manner at 18 or sometimes 15

Sex

• Portrayals can range from verbal references and kissing to "making love" to detail of real sex
• Progressively stronger portrayals are allowed as the catergories rise
• Sex works will only be passed in the adult catergories
• Sex works containing clear images of real sex, strong fetish material, sexually explicit animated images or other very strong sexual images will be confined to R18
• R18 films may only be sold in licensed sex shops and shown in licensed sex cinemas
• These guidelines are applied to the same standard regardless of sexual orientation

Nudity

• Natural nudity with no sexual context is universally acceptable, however at the lowest levels of classification it must be infrequent
• Nudity with sexual context will recieve a more restrictive classification
• Strong detail in a sexual context will only be passed in adult catergories

Language

• May include expletives with sexual, religious or racial association and commonly understood rude gestures
• Offence may vary according to age, gender, race, background, beliefs and expectations brought by viwers to the work
• Context and frequency is also important
• This makes it hard to definitively list what words are acceptable at each catergory, the guidelines therefore provide general guidance based on public consultations

Imitable Behaviour

• Classification decisions take into account detailed portrayal of criminal and violent techniques
• Also applies to glamorisation of easily accessible weapons (eg knives)
• Films which portray antisocial behaviours (eg bullying) uncritically are likely to recieve more restrictive classifications
• If, taken as a whole, a film that actively promotes illegal behaviour will be cut or rejected
• Portrayals of potentially dangerous behaviour which children are likely to copy will be cut if a more restrictive classification is inappropriate

Horror

• While children enjoy the excitent of scary sequences, they must still be regulated
• Factors such as frequency, length and detail and horror effects (eg soundtrack) are taken into account
• It is also taken into account whether or not there is a reassuring outcome
• Older audiences like to be frightened or shocked by horror films and appropriate classifications are put on this catergory

Drugs

• No work taken as a whole should promote the misuse of drugs
• Any detailed portrayal of drug misuse or glamorisation of drug misuse may be cut
• Works which empahasise the dangers of drug misuse might be less restrictively catergorised than those which are neutral
• Where smoking, alcohol, or substance misuse feature significantly in a film aimed at children it will be indicated in the Consumer Advice and/or Extended Classification Information

Discrimation

• Potentially offensive content may occur in a wide range of films
• The BBFC take into account the strength and impact of its inclusion
• Context is also important and has a bearing on the classification
• If the discriminatory language and behaviour is criticised, or the work as a whole seeks to challenge such attitudes it might have a less restrivtive classification
• This also applies when the work is obviously dated

Main Issues Relating to Film Classification

There are 13 main issues that must be referred to when classifying films, these are:

1. Discrimination
2. Drugs
3. Horror
4. Imitable Behaviour
5. Language
6. Nudity
7. Sex
8. Sexual Language
9. Sexual Violence
10. Theme
11. Violence
12. Weapons
13. Imitable Technique

Overriding Factors

Other factors are also taken into consideration when classifying films, these are:

Context

• The expectations of the general public and especially the films intended audience
• The film's genre, for example a fantasy setting may lighten the content and therefore be judged more leniently
• The manner of presentation, for example language used aggressively may be jusdged more harshly than the same terms used in a comic way
• The intention of the film maker, for example if the work is intended to be educational
• The original production date of the film, for example outdated attitudes might be judged more leniently in an older and clearly dated work
• Any special merits of the work

Tone and Impact

• If a film has a generally dark of unsettling tone that may disturb the audience at that catergory it may receive a more restrictive classification
• This is especially relevant to borderline junior characters, taking into consideration the level of reality, the presentation of a despairing view of the world or a lack of clear moral perspective
• The impact of the film is also taken into account, for example in a horror film, threat may be considered more significant than violence

Release Format

• Classification may be stricter on video works than on film
• This is due to the increased possibility of underaged viewing and of films being viewed out of context
• A film will occassionally require different cuts or classification on video

Legal Considerations of the BBFC

A variety of different laws are relevant to the BBFC in their classification of films, these are:

Human Rights Act 1998

• Right of respect for private and family life
• Right to freedom of expression

The Licensing Act 2003

• Cinemas require a license from the local authority in which they operate
• This must include a condition that restricts children from being admitted to films restricted from them by the BBFC or local authorities classification

The Video Recordings Act 1984

• Video works supplied on disc, tape or any other device must be classified by the BBFC unless they fall within the definition of an exempted work

The Obscene Publications Act 1959 & 1964

• It is illegal to publish any work considered obscene
• A work is considered obscene when, taken as a whole, it has a tendency to deprave and corrupt
• However, no offence is commited if the publication is in the interest of science, art, literature or learning

Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2006

• It is illegal to be in possession of an extreme pornographic image
• Works classified by the BBFC under the Video Recordings act are excluded from the scope of the offence

The Protection of Children Act 1978

• It is illegal to make, distribute, show or possess indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child (a person under the age of 18)

The Sexual Offences Act 2003

• It is illegal to expose oneself with intent to cause alarm or distress
• It is illegal for a person to record the private act of another for the sexual gratification of himself or a third party where the recorded party has not consented to being filmed

The Public Order Act 1986

• It is illegal to distribute, show or play to the public a recording of visual images or sounds which are threatening, abusive or insulting if the intention is to encourage discrimination/hatred

The Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937

• It is illegal to show any scene organised or directed for the purpose of the film that involves actual cruelty to animals
• According to the Animal Welfare Act 2006, only vertebrates which are domesticated or otherwise under the control of man are considered animals

The Animal Welfare Act 2006

• It is illegal to supply, publish or show a video recording of an animal fight that has taken place within Great Britain since 6th April 2007

The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002

• It is illegal, in the course of a business, to publush a tabacco advert

General Principles of the BBFC

The BBFC follows two basic principles:

• Works should be allowed to reach to the widest audience that is appropriate
• Adults should be free to choose what they say as long as it remains within the law

These call in the considerations of:

• Whether the material is in conflict with the law
• Whether the material can cause harm to the concerned catergory, both physical and moral
• Whether the availability of the material to the concerned age group is broadly socially considered as unacceptable (this is especially relevant to bad language)

Who are the BBFC?

Who are the BBFC, what is their role and how are they funded?

• BBFC stands for British Board of Film Classification
• They are an independant, non-governmental company
• They classify films, DVDs and video games on the behalf of the local authorities
• They classify material according to a set of guidelines which is updated every 5 years
• These guidelines are available to the public
• They may suggest cuts or even reject material if it is considered unacceptable for any catergory
• They consult with the public in order to change their guidelines as society changes
• They are funded by charging film makers to have their films classified

Initial Reflections

Three things I found especially interesting in the first two lessons introduction to the topic:

• Local authorities can override the BBFC's classifications, which means that in some situations a film will be one certificate, or unavailable in one borough, but only a few streets away the rules will be different, somewhat defeating the point of the censorship (For example, Crash was banned in Westminster but was available in Camden)
• That while the BBFC is accountable not only to the industry and government, but also to the audiences of the films they classify, they do not take account of the opinions of the under 16s, despite the fact that they are one of the most effected age groups.
• The BBFC aren't government funded, but in fact charge the filmmakers to get their films and programmes classified, the price depending on the length of the work in question