Film Classification

The BBFC is a British organisation who classify and fit films and music videos into age ratings. These ratings help protect young people from harmful or unsuitable content and also assist more sensitive audiences in choosing whether or not to watch the film based on the content regarded as offensive or harmful.

 

Universal - this rating is most common in child5rens films (ie. Disney/antimation..etc) The BBFC state that films rated U are appropriate for all audiences ages 4 and older however is it difficult to determine what will upset a young audience. Certain films rated U will have a 'BBFCinsight' stating that they are suitable for  ‘suitable for pre-school children’ (Under-4s)

 

Examples of films with a U ratings are:

• The Lion King
• Finding Nemo
• Inside Out

Parental Guidance - This means a film is suitable for general viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. A PG film should be appropriate for children aged around 8+. However parents should consider the content and  prevent their child watching the film is it will upset them. A PG film will not contain any theme which is inappropriate for a child. PG works can explore challenging issues such as bullying, bereavement or racism.

 

Examples of films with a PG rating are:

• Ratatouille
• Marley & Me
• Saving Mr. Banks

12A and 12 films contain content inappropriate for anyone aged under 12 years of age. If a film is rated 12A, an adult must accompany the child under the age of 12 but special consideration must be taken by the parent to ensure the content is appropriate for their child the view. 12 rated films may feature mild language, sex references and violence but only moderately.

Examples of  films rated 12A are: 

• Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials
• Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
• The Martian

Examples of films rated 12 are:

• The Perks of being a Wallflower
• Juno
• The Duff

15 films are not appropriate for anyone under the age of 15. Any of the following may be featured in a 15 film: strong violence, frequent strong language,  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

Examples of films with a 15 rating are:

• The Breakfast Club
• Kidulthood
• Skins (DVD) is rated 15 (apart from series 2 episodes 1-6 which are rated 18)

18 rated films are for adults only and are not appropriate for children. They feature:

very strong violence, frequent strong/very strong language, strong portrayals of sexual activity, scenes of sexual violence, strong horror, strong blood and gore, real sex (in some circumstances),  discriminatory language and behaviour. Effectively, anything is allowed in an 18 film as they are meant for adults only and they are therefore responsible for what they watch and will not be harmed by the content.

Examples of 18 rated films are:

• Project X
• SAW
• Legend