BBFC Age Ratings

I did some research into the BBFC's age rating system and this is what I found:

U Classification

- Suitable for everyone
- No discrimination
- Occasional nudity with no sexual content
- Very mild sexual behaviour 
- Very mild violence
- Very mild threat
- Very mild bad language

PG Classification

- Parental Guidance
- No discrimination
- Mild bad language
- Nudity with no sexual content
- Mild violence
- Mild threat
- Mild sexual behaviour 

12/12A Classifications

- 12A accompanied by adult
- Sexual activity may be discreet, moderate sex references allowed

- Moderate violence

- Moderate threat

- Moderate language

- Infrequent use of drugs

15 Classification

- May be strong language

- Nudity but not in strong detail

- Sexual activity may be portrayed but not in great detail

- Violence may be strong 

- May be strong threat and horror

- Dangerous behaviour not in strong detail

- Drug taking may be shown

18 Classification

- Suitable for only adults

- Sex works - Contains only material which may be simulated. 

- Sex education - If it informs and educates then explicit images are allowed.

R18 Classification

- Only allowed to be shown in specially-licensed cinemas 

- Explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults.

- R18 titles are filtered out from main public search as they can have explicit and/or offensive titles.

Existing Slasher films' BBFC Ratings:

Halloween:

BBFC rating: 18

Bride of Chucky:

BBFC rating: 18

Jennifer's Body:

BBFC rating: 15

Scream/Scream 2:

BBFC rating: 18

Friday the 13th Remake:

BBFC rating: 18

After doing research into the age ratings of existing slasher films I decided that my film opening would be most likely have an BBFC age rating of 15. By clicking the link below, you will see that the age rating of 15 includes the following:

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/15

• Language (There may be strong language. Very strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language, its frequency within the work as a whole and any special contextual justification).
• Sex (Sexual activity may be portrayed, but usually without strong detail)
• Nudity (There may be nudity in a sexual context but usually without strong detail).
• Violence (Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic violence is also unlikely to be acceptable. There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence but the depiction of sexual violence must be discreet and justified by context).
• Discriminatory language or behaviour (The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour, although there may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory themes and language).
• Drug taking (Drug taking may be shown but the work as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse, for example, through instructional detail. The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances, for example, aerosols or solvents, is unlikely to be acceptable). 

I also did some research into general genre films to see how genre affects the BBFC rating:

This Is England:

BBFC rating: 18

The Girl On The Train:

BBFC rating: 15

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo:

BBFC rating: 18

The Boss:

BBFC rating: 15

Pulp Fiction:

BBFC rating: 18

Wild Child:
BBFC rating: 12

Slasher EG5: Bride Of Chucky (1998)

Bride Of Chucky

Ronny Yu (1998)

BBFC 15, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 

Budget: $25m
UK/US/World Box Office: ?, $32.3m, $50.6m

Production Companies: Midwinter Production Inc., Universal Pictures
Distributors: Universal Pictures

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 44%, Audience 46%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki

Trailer for 'Bride Of Chucky':
...

...
COMPANIES/IDENTS
There is only one film ident shown in this film opening, which is for 'Universal Studios', one of the 'big six' conglomerates. This is common for the slasher genre to only have one film ident shown. 

OPENING SHOT
...

The opening shot is a tracking LS/ELS of what you can denote as a traditional bricked building with the American flag attached to the roof of an archway. This denotes the setting to the audience as the US and connotes that the setting is quite traditional, formal and patriotic. You can denote from this shot that rain is pouring, that there is thunder and lightning (from the flashing effects on the shot) and that it is night time. 
...
TITLES
There is a lot of titles shown in this film opening. Before the opening shot, there are two intertitles shown, in this order:
1. Universal Pictures presents
2. A David Kirschner production
3. A Ronny Yu film

After these three titles, the first scene of the film takes place. There are no more titles until this scene has ended (when the bride of Chucky walks off with the pieces of the doll Chucky, that the policeman had stolen from the 'Lockport Police Dept. Evidence Depository'. Here is the order of titles after this scene has ended:

1. 4 Main actors
2. Main Title: Bride Of Chucky
3. 3 Actors including the voice of chucky
4. Co-Producer
5. Casting by
6. Costume Designer
7. Opening Title Song Performed by 
8. Music Supervisors
9. Music by
10. Chucky and tiffany dolls created by
11. Based on characters created by
12. Chucky and tiffany puppet effects created by
13. Edited by
14. Production designer
15. Director of Photography
16. Executive Producers
17. Produced by
18. Written by
19. Directed by

IDENTIFYING ANY PROTAGONISTS
The first character shown is a policeman. It is stereotypical that the first character to be shown in a slasher horror film is the scream queen/scream king (person who gets killed by the killer). Proving this point to be correct, this policeman character in this film is killed by the killer (the bride of Chucky). The bride of Chucky is slowly introduced through close up shots of her feet and legs, to create a sense of narrative enigma (Barthes) for the audience of who this character is. You don't see her face until after she has killed the policeman character.   

SOUND/GENRE SIGNIFICATION
At the very start of the film opening there is a lot of use of diegetic sounds to create impact on the audience, these sounds are thunder and rain. 

SHOT VARIETY
NARRATIVE
MISE-EN-SCENE FOR EXPOSITION
...

...
--> -->

EG1: Cherry Falls (2000)

Cherry Falls

Geoffrey Wright (2000)

BBFC 18, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 

Budget: $14m
UK/US/World Box Office: $3.1m, ?, $91.3m
Theatrical Distribution in 

Production Companies: Rogue Pictures, Good Machine, Industry Entertainment
Distributors: USA Films, October Films

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 50%, Audience 31%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki

Trailer for 'Cherry Falls':
...

...

Slasher EG3: Scream (1996)

Scream

Wes Craven (1996)

BBFC 18, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 

Budget: $14m
UK/US/World Box Office: ?, $103m, $173m
Theatrical Distribution in 16 countries

Production Companies: Woods Entertainment
Distributors: Dimension Films

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 79%, Audience 79%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki

Trailer for 'Scream':
...

...
POSSIBLE INFLUENCE

I really like the main title sequence in this film opening (in this case there is just one title, the main title). I would like to make my main title sequence a lot like this, by making the main title stretch out upwards then stretch inwards. Also, I would like to include the diegetic sounds that are in this main title sequence such as the telephone sounds, the screams and the slams of when the words stretch back inwards sharply/harshly.

TITLES
The title size goes from big to small in bold on a black background, twice once in the colour red then in the colour white. This suggests that the word scream has great significance within the film suggesting that there will be a lot of screaming going on from the characters but also from the audience. Also the colour of which it is being displayed in also connotes bad atmospheres where red can be seen to connate danger and white can be seen to connate ghosts. Within the opening of Scream it is only the films name which is shown which may express how low there budget was in terms of not having a company presenting the film. However it could express how quickly they want to get straight to the action.This is an interesting example of a sans serif font, almost a bubble font, with some elements of the font itself (not just colouring/animation) carrying horror connotations that we'd usually expect from a serif font.  

OPENING SHOT

The opening shot is a close up of a telephone ringing, connoting that this telephone is a major signifier of what the film is about and is going to be an object continuously used throughout the film. The fact that it is not a wireless telephone and that it is quite retro connotes the setting also, that it is set in the 1990's.





IDENTIFYING ANY PROTAGONISTS

The first character is shown in the second shot here, Normally the first character shown would be the main protagonist but in slasher films, the first character shown is usually the 'scream queen/scream king'. Also the fact that she is blonde, is wearing make up and is attractive further connotes that this character is the scream queen.

This shot is an extreme long shot of the house this girl is in. This shot has been used to show that someone had just been sitting on the swing because it is swinging slowly. This creates/builds suspense for the audience.




...

This shot is constantly referred back to during the film opening because every time, the popcorn packet seems to be rising even higher. The fact that this shot is referred back to a lot makes the audience feel slowly more tense and scared each time there is a shot of it getting bigger. The rising popcorn foreshadows and connotes how Casey (female character) is feeling as the killer keeps calling her.



SHOT VARIETY

Throughout this film opening there are a variety of shots used such as extreme long shots, close ups, medium close ups, long shots, medium shots and extreme close ups. 
few shots later, the audience sees a close up of the same popcorn cooking but at a dutch angle. The popcorn packet has also expanded a lot more from the shot before of the popcorn. This dutch angle close up shot has been used to create and build even more suspense than the first shot of the popcorn; this is due to the fact that the shots have been getting closer on the popcorn, making the audience even more scared. This shot also makes the audience feel uncomfortable and uneasy as if something really bad is going to happen next.

...

Slasher EG2: Halloween (1978)

Halloween

John Carpenter (1978)

BBFC 18, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 

Budget: $325k
UK/US/World Box Office: ?, $47m, $70m
Theatrical Distribution in 

Production Companies: Compass International Pictures, Falcon International Productions
Distributors: Compass International Pictures

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 93%, Audience 89%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki

Trailer for 'Halloween':
...

...
POSSIBLE INFLUENCE FOR MY FILM

I like the stalkerish shots of the sister and boyfriend in this film opening and I want to include this style of stalkerish shots in my film opening somehow. Also, I may want to include similar kinds of non-diegetic music in my film opening, I really like the non-diegetic music at the start of this film opening.

COMPANIES/IDENTS
There are no film idents shown in this film opening, because of the time period it was made in (the 1970’s). Back then, film idents weren’t a common thing to see at the start of slasher films.

IDENTIFYING ANY PROTAGONISTS
The first characters shown in this film opening are a couple kissing and having sex. Since the film is of the slasher genre, you can connote that these two characters are ‘scream queens/kings’. Usually, at the start of a slasher film a ‘scream queen/s’ is/are killed.

OPENING SHOT

The opening shot has a really long take of 3 minutes and 6 seconds. This shot is entirely in Point-Of-View (POV). This POV shot starts on an extreme long shot of a white house. This establishes the setting to the audience. 

The opening establishing extreme long shot is of a house to establish the setting/ setting the scene to the audience and to connote that the main event (killing) is going to happen here.

TITLES
The entire first half of this film opening is just titles. You can denote that the titles are sans serif, they alternate between the colours yellow, orange and red to connote that the film is a horror (the red connotes blood). The actual names of the cast are in upper case lettering and the roles e.g. director of photography are in lower case lettering.

The first titles shot is of the film institution: Compass International Pictures. 

The font colour starts yellow then changes to red just like the first one. This happens throughout all the titles (colour changes from yellow to red). All the titles are in upper case to emphasise the film's dramatic, horror, spooky mood/atmosphere; this gets the audience engaged already. 

A pumpkin appears on the left side to connote that this film is set during halloween (pumpkins are used only during halloween) and that the film is set around the idea of halloween.



...

The pumpkin has gradually zoomed in through every change of titles to connote the prominence and importance of the pumpkin (signifier of halloween) to make the audience very aware that the film is about halloween. The fonts are still red to connote the horror genre.


...

This is the last title shown, it denotes the setting to the audience.

...

After the first scene (the girl in the house is killed by her brother, Michael) there is another title shown. It creates a kind of bridge between the film opening to the main body of the film. The title is the exact same as the title shown at the start of the film opening; so it is being denoted that the main body of the film is set in the same town as where this girl in the film opening was killed. The audience are provided with exposition of the setting again.

...

This title is the same as the title shown at the start of the film opening but instead of saying 1963, it says 1978, so 14 years later. Also, instead of the date saying Halloween, it says October 30. This has been done so that there isn't much emphasis put on Halloween because the events about to happen at the start of the main body of the film are not related exactly to Halloween.

...

MISE-EN-SCENE FOR EXPOSITION

This long shot is seen from someone's view (Michael's) making it a point of view shot and is handheld/shaky to connote that someone is watching these two characters and that something is going to happen to them (these shots are trying to get the audience to feel uneasy and scared). The fact that these two characters are the first to be shown normally connotes that these characters are the main protagonists but since this film is a slasher horror, it actually connotes that they are the scream queens/scream kings. 

...

You can see in this shot the person who is stalking/following the couple (Michael) opening the drawer and taking out a knife. You can see the sleeve this person is wearing which denotes to the audience that this person is wearing a halloween outfit (a clown outfit) to further connote this halloween setting.





...

This person picks up the mask from the floor and puts it on so the audience can see what this person sees through the mask. This is also a point of view shot. 







...

The audience can partially see here a naked woman (the girl from the couple) with blood pouring out of her connoting that this person in the mask has just stabbed/killed her. Also, the fact that this woman is naked further connotes that she is the stereotypical scream queen.




...

This is a crane shot to connote the end of this scene/the film opening. It is somewhat countertypical to reveal who the killer is at the start of a film. Also, the audience is being given some context now that these new two characters have entered the scene. It is clear that these are the killer's and the dead girl's parents. So the context given now is that the girl from the couple was supposed to be babysitting her younger brother but instead she invited her boyfriend to come over so they could have sex while her parents had gone out. This is somewhat normative behaviour of teenagers, therefore allowing the audience to relate with the teenage couple (Uses & Gratifications theory).  

NARRATIVE
Barthes’ narrative enigma can be applied to this film opening. 

SOUND/GENRE SIGNIFICATION
The entire first half of this film opening is just titles. Throughout this title sequence, non-diegetic sound is playing. You can denote this as shortly held piano notes and long-held chords, long-held electronic synths and short-held ticking clock/time bomb diegetic sounds. 

SHOT VARIETY
There are only two shots in this film opening, the first shot has a really long take of 3 minutes and 6 seconds. This shot is entirely in Point-Of-View (POV). The second shot is a crane shot zooming out on Michael Myers in a clown costume with a knife in his hand.

1ST 5 SHOTS OF FILM 2: Submarine

Submarine

Richard Ayoade (2010)

BBFC 15, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 0

Budget: £1.5m
UK/US/World Box Office: $2.3m, $467.6k,
Theatrical Distrinution in 5 countries.

Production Companies: Warp Films, Film4 Productions
Distributors: Optimum Releasing (Studiocanal UK), The Weinstein Company

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 87%, Audience 82%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki


Trailer for 'Submarine':
...

...

SHOT 1
Before this opening shot, there are some titles (for the production companies - e.g. Film 4). The opening shot here is a long shot of the main protagonist's bedroom to connote that this is where the protagonist spends most of his time and to show to the audience what the main protagonist is like e.g. quite child-like and vintage from the single bed which is blue and wooden and from all the vintage objects in the room etc.



...
SHOT 2

You can denote that there are lots of posters and pictures stuck to the bedroom walls in this character's room to connote the strangeness and madness of the main protagonist, that his mind is constantly all over the place (lots of thoughts in his head). You can denote that the objects in his room are unusual, old fashioned and different to what an ordinary child would have in their room, to again connote the strangeness of this character.

...

SHOT 3
This is a panning shot around the main protagonist's room to show the room fully to the audience. Then at the end of the panning shot you finally see the main protagonist. Since he is the first character shown in the film this connotes that he is the main protagonist. The audience can denote unusual objects again such as the skeleton and telescope which connote that the main protagonist is interested in science and nerdy things. This further signifies to the audience that the main protagonist is a nerdy character. Since there are many objects in his room, this could connote that he spends all/most of his time in his room using all these objects; this could further connote that this character doesn't have many friends and spends most of his time alone. At the end of this shot, non-diegetic music starts playing (a tick that goes in time with the shot cuts changing to getting closer on the main protagonist).

...

SHOT 4
This is the second shot of the three shots that get closer in on the main protagonist. This shot has framing left, not central framing, to connote that this character is strange, unusual and different, so being in central framing would be too normal for this specific character. There is a painting of a submarine to connote the unusualness of this character and to relate with the title of the film (submarine) which could metaphorically connote that the main protagonist feels submerged, just like a submarine so he relates with them. 



...
SHOT 5
The shot has got closer and closer to the main protagonist's face finally to a close up only showing his head at the bottom of the frame and there is left framing again, these things combined help to connote that this character is isolated and strange. The fact that only the character's head is shown connotes his isolation from the world (looking out of the window into the world as if he is isolated) and the strangeness again of this character. 
...