The BBFC

BBFC Research

With the creation of any type of movie, an age boundary must be put into action by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) there are 5 main age classifications which include;

 U rating, this stands for, suitable for all audiences except for those under the age of 4. U films should have a positive framework and should offer counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror, which may offend anyone of a young age.

 PG rating stands for Parental Guidance. Basically this means that anybody can watch it, but there may be some disturbing scenes for children, so it’s advised that you watch it with a parent if you are a young child.

 12a/12 rating is used when there is material in a film which isn’t suitable for anyone under the age of 12 years old. 12a and 12 both mean the same thing except, 12a is used as a cinema rating whereas 12 is used as a retail rating, but both mean exactly the same thing, may contain moderate violence etc.

 15 rating basically means that no one under the age of 15 may go and watch the film at the cinema or rent and/or buy the product, may contain violence etc.

 18 rating basically means that no one under the age of 18 may go and watch the film at the cinema or rent and/or buy the product, may contain bloody violence or sexual references etc.

Thrillers usually come under the age ratings: 12, 15 or 18, but the more intense or gory sort of films usually fall in the 15 or 18 age bracket. For example the film The Expendables is a more intense action thriller which comes under the rating of 15, and the Saw films are a more gory sort of horror thriller which come under the age rating of 18.

We are planning of rating our thriller a 15 because from our initial idea, it will contain moderate violence, but nothing gory, it may disturb a younger audience, but it may not disturb those of the age 15 or over.

By Ian Slade