R&P: Audience Ratings

As a group we have decided that our film will be of the rating 15. However, we have also decided that our trailer doesn't necessarily have to be a 15, so the trailer can be shown at PG/12A films or on television at certain times. To help us decide on our film ratings I have researched into the BBFC's rating guidelines.

And the guideline for a 12/12A:
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/12a12
In our case, we would use the 12A rating if needed, because this is the rating used for film at the cinema.
We could not show any discriminatory language/behavior in the trailer, bad language must be used infrequently and violence can be moderate, but cannot dwell on the detail. I noticed that "psychological threat may be permitted, provided disturbing sequences are not frequent". This is important because our film is a psychological thriller. Also occasional gore can be allowed if it is justified by the context. "Mature themes are acceptable, but their treatment must be suitable for young teenagers" which means that what we show in a trailer can be challenging but not too graphic or too violent, or endorse controversial behavior.

This is the guideline for a 15:
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/15-2
This gives us more freedom in what we would portray in our film. We can portray strong 'threat and menace' as well as strong violence, compared to moderate violence on a 12A. I think that with our films synopsis, perhaps this would be more appropriate because of the theme of violence/revenge theme as well as flashbacks of a traumatising past.


I think that this is useful to know now, as we can trailer our trailer around the guidelines from the start and we have a clear understanding of what can't be included in our trailer.