“In an increasingly rich media environment, the BBFC's role as a provider of basic advice and guidance is likely to expand” Robin Duval, retiring Director of the BBFC, predicted in his foreword to the Board's Annual Report, published today.
“The Board will need to stay close to standards of public acceptability. There will be a greater value in the provision of information and advice alongside the formal classification ratings. The public will want it and I believe the industry will increasingly become persuaded of the benefits in delivering it.”
The future prospects for a wider European harmonization of film standards, however, seemed as remote as ever:
“The British are almost alone in Europe in their sensitivity to bad language. The French place a much higher premium upon the cultural value of a film than other nations. The Spanish tend to take a harder line than anyone on sexual immorality and the Scandinavians are most sensitive on violence and least on sex. Some European nations prohibit censorship for adults, others cut or ban films. In some countries the age ratings are advisory only, in others (including France) they are mandatory. The example of video games, which are now regulated in most of Europe from Hilversum, suggests that harmonisation may only be achievable by agreeing to abide by the standards of the most restrictive nations.”
Looking back on his five years as Director of the BBFC Mr Duval highlighted the huge increase in workload from less than 6,000 works in 1998 to 14,000 in 2003, whilst commending the Board's staff for reducing turnaround time to around a quarter of what it had been. As a result of this increased productivity the Board has this year reduced the fees for classification by 11 per cent with immediate effect. The Board's fees have been reduced or rebated four times since December 2001 and are now more than a third lower than they were in 2002.
In his introduction to the Annual Report, the Board's President, Sir Quentin Thomas also emphasised the need for the Board to stay close to standards of public acceptability.
He also said:
“It is essential that the Board enjoys the widest possible measure of public, political and media understanding and confidence. That means gauging as best we can where the public stands. At the beginning of 2004 we launched a further programme of consultation to establish once more how far our Guidelines continue to reflect public concerns. To that end the Board is using a variety of research methods including a website questionnaire; 'hall tests'; a national survey of over 4000 people; focus groups andcontributions from individuals, interested groups and the industry. Our aim is to publish new Guidelines before the end of the year.”
The BBFC Annual Report is available from the BBFC and on the BBFC website.
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