How a film, DVD or video game is classified

The Board’s classification decisions are reached by consensus, with the Director, the President and the two Vice-Presidents taking ultimate responsibility.

The Examiner’s daily programme consists of a combination of film and video/DVD. Due to the recent high increase in video games submissions, there are also Examiners who specialise in video games, as classifying an interactive game can be a very different experience to classifying a film or video.

Examiners normally view video and DVD submissions on their own – called solo viewing.A large proportion of works suitable are for solo viewing are episodes from TV series or works aimed at young children that have already been broadcast on television. Films for cinema release, video games and pornography submissions are classified in teams of two. Controversial works, such as extreme reality material, will also be programmed for team work.

Examiners watch films for cinema release in the Board's cinema, in order to accurately reproduce the effect that sound levels and special effects will have on the cinema audience. Videos and DVDs are watched in the Board's viewing rooms on plasma screens, to recreate the 'home viewing' experience.

Video games are also viewed and played in these rooms, using the appropriate consoles. Games are measured by the IT department who assess how long examiners will need to play the game and view all video elements. Games companies are asked to provide level skips, cheat codes and other information such as scripts to help examiners make a clear assessment of a games’ content.

With each work, Examiners log details of what they watch, including:

• general context - plot, characters, outline of individual scenes
• timings of classification moments, including camera angles, type of shots, on- and off-screen moments
• bad language, sex and drug references and so on

Reports include a brief synopsis of the work, details of the classification issues and an argument in support of the category. Most decisions are straightforward and are based on the Board's published Guidelines, which were last revised in 2005.The distributor can request a specific category, which the solo Examiner or team will take into consideration, but such a request does not determine a decision. If necessary and appropriate, cuts may be suggested to meet the category request, and the decision will be ultimately made by the distributor.

A work is referred for further viewing by a team if an Examiner is unsure about an issue or theme. Sometimes a work will fall between two categories. This second team could include a Senior Examiner or an Examiner with expertise in the particular subject, as well as the Director and the Head of Policy.

Difficult or controversial material can also be referred to the weekly Examiners’ Meeting, where they can be debated further to obtain a wide range of valuable opinions. Ultimately, the work will be referred to Senior Management.

If a work contains material which is illegal or unacceptable under the Board's Guidelines, Examiners will draw up a list of cuts which will be sent to the distributor.If a work as a whole is unacceptable, it can be rejected, but this happens only on rare occasions. The Presidential Team will be consulted on difficult works, especially those which may be refused a certificate altogether or which raise serious policy issues.

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