Film Rating

We feel our trailer is appropriate for a 15 certificate audience. On the BBFC website it details the following about what is acceptable for a 15 film:

What does the 15 symbol mean?

No-one under 15 is allowed to see a 15 film at the cinema or buy/rent a 15 rated video. 15 rated works are not suitable for children under 15 years of age.

Are there any limits on what sort of theme a work can have at 15?

No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds.

What might I see in a 15 rated film or video?

Any of the following:

•   strong violence
•   frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***').
•   portrayals of sexual activity
•   strong verbal references to sex
•   sexual nudity
•   brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence
•   discriminatory language or behaviour
•   drug taking

Why would our film be a 15?

I believe our film is a 15 as there is a strong threat of horror although there is no sustained focused on sadistic or sexualised threat. However our film does contain menacing threats of horror whilst not psychologically disturbing still not suitable for audiences under the age of 15.

Looking at hypodermic needle theory we can see why these restrictions are put in place. Hypodermic needle theory states that media has a direct, immediate and powerful effect on audiences and can influence their audience and their behaviour. The theory suggests that the mass media could influence a very large group of people directly and uniformly by ‘shooting’ or ‘injecting’ them with appropriate messages designed to trigger a desired response.

The theory states that media products can influence a mass audience by ‘injecting’ them with certain messages through media to gain a desired response. This theory works on the assumption that audiences are passive and therefore unable to resist the impact of media and its message. The passive audience have messages injected into their mind which ultimately leads to an influence over their actions.

This is why, particularly in horror films, there must be restrictions as children are much more susceptible to these messages. Looking at the murder of James Bulger hypodermic needle theory would state that the media (the film Chucky) has effected the minds of the audience and therefore their actions.

Overall we can see it is imperative that our trailer has a suitable certificate in order to ensure we are not affecting the minds of a susceptible audience (under 15's)