Certification rating

The DVD cover I am creating for my first ancillary text requires me to provide a suitable certification rating for what my music video would be if it was made into a film. At first, I chose the rating of 12A after considering the fact that explicit language and violent themes are used throughout the lyrics attached to the song used for my music video. As a parent/guardians authority is encouraged, I believed it would become apparent that adult themes would occur throughout the film and so it would be up to the parent whether they allowed the child to view these. However, after looking at the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), I was able to determine how a rating of 15 would be more appropriate for my production.

This is due to the BBFC's identification of what a 12A should entail compared to a 15. For example, when concerning language, in a 12A "There may be moderate language. Strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language and its frequency within the work as a whole and any special contextual justification". This may mean a certification of 12A would not be suitable for my production as strong explicit language is continuously used throughout the lyrics of the song. When looking at a 15, the BBFC described the language appropriate by saying "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 justification". Therefore, I can perceive how this certification would be fitting for my DVD cover as the song used in my music video contains strong, explicit language throughout the majority of the lyrics.

In conclusion, by adjusting the certification rating for my DVD cover, I have simultaneously enabled myself to deepen the understanding of my audience research. In this sense, I now know the particular age group I am aiming my music video towards, and so can alter any features that appear on my ancillary texts to apply to this age group.