The BBFC are trying to kill Independent Cinema again!

New government legislation to curb raunchy pop videos has given the BBFC a loophole to charge even more to rate extra features on DVDs. This Facebook post from Third Window Films explains it better than I could.


This could have a MAJOR impact on upcoming releases, or to be honest, even us continuing in the future. Those lovely people at the BBFC have decided that they will try and screw over indies even further with this new legislation. They want even more money from us and they could easily make it so even less independent films get released in the UK.
This is a company who charges TWICE for a film if it plays on cinema and then goes to DVD; a company whose prices are probably the highest in the world for certification, yet their staff are allowed to watch movies at home to certify. Imagine getting paid on average £1000 to watch a 2 hour film at home? Let alone LOVE EXPOSURE which through playing in cinemas and then DVD cost around £4000 to certify!! Now what they want to do it enforce charges for DVD extras so that Love Exposure would end up costing £6000 due to the vast amount of extras! Why is that even necessary? If the film is considered to be a certain rating then wouldn't the extras be the same? If a Making Of is made from information of the film then it couldn't really be any better or worse than the actual film now could it? How could an interview with director really change a rating if he's talking about the film which has been rated??
We pride ourselves on making special releases of small films, finding good Making Ofs, new interviews, etc, but all of that may go with this. We were about to start work on a 2 hour Making Of for LESSON OF EVIL, but now we wonder...
The BBFC will DESTROY independent releases as with their already high prices increasing versus the fact that DVDs are retailing for less makes it so they could literally kill off many small distributors. Absolute bastards these people are!!
Bunch of Canutes!

If this news aggrieves then...
feedback@bbfc.co.uk, or even write to them at Director’s Office at 3 Soho Square, London W1D 3HD
 
Ack, yeah I was just reading about this on blu-ray.com earlier. Not good at all. The worst part is that it fails its intended purpose as well. Can't exactly stop 'raunchy pop videos' being seen on that filthy YouTube site by increasing BBFC powers.

I tried to ask about the BBFC about their fees before on Twitter for AskBBFC, but my question wasn't picked. Might have to bug them again via email this time.
 
Hearing this kind of language from an actual distributor is music to my ears. Hopefully more will be as brave as Third Window have been and will rally behind them - The destruction of the BBFC could only be a good thing for the entertainment industry in the UK. If it's finally time to put them down I'll go get a pair of pliers and a hammer.
 
ayase said:
Hearing this kind of language from an actual distributor is music to my ears. Hopefully more will be as brave as Third Window have been and will rally behind them - The destruction of the BBFC could only be a good thing for the entertainment industry in the UK. If it's finally time to put them down I'll go get a pair of pliers and a hammer.

You.....yoooooouuuuuuuu ..........are too soooffffttt
 
ayase said:
Hearing this kind of language from an actual distributor is music to my ears. Hopefully more will be as brave as Third Window have been and will rally behind them - The destruction of the BBFC could only be a good thing for the entertainment industry in the UK. If it's finally time to put them down I'll go get a pair of pliers and a hammer.
Unless they go strictly DTO (which is a battlefield and a half of getting the source to agree to the method), the dinosaurs kinda have them by the balls here.
 
ayase said:
Hearing this kind of language from an actual distributor is music to my ears. Hopefully more will be as brave as Third Window have been and will rally behind them - The destruction of the BBFC could only be a good thing for the entertainment industry in the UK. If it's finally time to put them down I'll go get a pair of pliers and a hammer.

Not going to happen with the government standing squarely behind them is it. Including pop videos was a government initiative that originated in the media.
 
robot monkey said:
Not going to happen with the government standing squarely behind them is it.
Maybe they need to go as well, I often think the front bench MPs of both sides of the Commons would look awfully pretty strung from Tower Bridge like fairy lights.

Saying "It's not going to happen" doesn't stop something from happening, y'know. But it does promote apathy and the belief that things will never change. This is the first time I've seen a distributor publicly tear into the BBFC like this - As I say, if more are willing to follow then they might get noticed. It's bad for business, really, and I wouldn't have thought the Tories would want to promote something that hindered British industry and forced them to pay exorbitant fees just to get a product to market. Social conservatism is dead for everyone but the Daily Mail brigade, I doubt anyone worth listening to would care if the BBFC dropped dead tomorrow.
 
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What needs to happen is, several of the smaller distributors in the UK need to come together and make a united stand and lobby the Culture Minister or something.

ayase said:
robot monkey said:
Not going to happen with the government standing squarely behind them is it.
Maybe they need to go as well, I often think the front bench MPs of both sides of the Commons would look awfully pretty strung from Tower Bridge like fairy lights.
Yes.

and I wouldn't have thought the Tories would want to promote something that hindered British industry
Margaret_Thatcher.jpg
 
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Point devastatingly conceded Josh. But it's not like they could make money by outsourcing the British film industry to China and India. Although it might be fun.

"In this stunning new biopic, Madhuri Dixit is Margaret Thatcher"
 
While I don't agree with the excessive charges they seem to levy that original quote has a very poor argument against the need to rate extras.

Assuming that if the main feature has one rating their will be nothing more objectionable elsewhere is foolish. Who knows what comments were made in a commentary that are above the main feature in rating, or what is in a scene that was cut?

I don't see the BBFC going away but they definitely need restructuring and the costs dropped, they are not meant to be a profit making organisation.
 
Rosencrantz said:
While I don't agree with the excessive charges they seem to levy that original quote has a very poor argument against the need to rate extras.

Assuming that if the main feature has one rating their will be nothing more objectionable elsewhere is foolish. Who knows what comments were made in a commentary that are above the main feature in rating, or what is in a scene that was cut?

I don't see the BBFC going away but they definitely need restructuring and the costs dropped, they are not meant to be a profit making organisation.
One thing that came to mind is if someone on a commentary track says something that isn't suitable for the certification of the main feature (I'm sure that's happened with anime before, due to the difference between UK English and that thing Americans speak).
 
The idea that in this day and age a government agency should be allowed to decide who is allowed to consume what media is just archaic. You don't like swearing? Or violence? Or sex? Fine, don't watch things with it in then - The idea that certain people should be allowed to enforce their subjective moral code on others when our society is supposed to value freedom of the individual is ridiculous. That sort of thing should be up to parents to decide and in practice, it is anyway, because parents are free to abide by or to ignore the ratings or even enforce their own stricter beliefs on their kids. And it's not like kids don't have the bloody internet and other ways to get whatever content they want anyway. The BBFC is just completely unnecessary.

I'd be fine with a non-legally enforceable, voluntary rating which cost distributors nothing because the people who did the certifying were concerned Mary Whitehouse style volunteers for whom the protection of the innocent was its own reward. But having to shell out 6 grand for it? Ludicrous.
 
Joshawott said:
What needs to happen is, several of the smaller distributors in the UK need to come together and make a united stand and lobby the Culture Minister or something.

ayase said:
robot monkey said:
Not going to happen with the government standing squarely behind them is it.
Maybe they need to go as well, I often think the front bench MPs of both sides of the Commons would look awfully pretty strung from Tower Bridge like fairy lights.
Yes.

and I wouldn't have thought the Tories would want to promote something that hindered British industry
Margaret_Thatcher.jpg

Hey wanna hear something funny I wrote her name in a death note a few months back and now look where she is lol
 
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Joshawott said:
Rosencrantz said:
While I don't agree with the excessive charges they seem to levy that original quote has a very poor argument against the need to rate extras.

Assuming that if the main feature has one rating their will be nothing more objectionable elsewhere is foolish. Who knows what comments were made in a commentary that are above the main feature in rating, or what is in a scene that was cut?

I don't see the BBFC going away but they definitely need restructuring and the costs dropped, they are not meant to be a profit making organisation.
One thing that came to mind is if someone on a commentary track says something that isn't suitable for the certification of the main feature (I'm sure that's happened with anime before, due to the difference between UK English and that thing Americans speak).
Angelic Layer fell fowl of that if memory serves right it's because Misaki's VA refered to herself as a Spaz which went past the PG rating of the disk for what I can only call 'reasons'.

Which Reminds me, I need to sit down and watch Angelic Layer one of these good days.
 
Just Passing Through said:
An e-petition has gone up, and they're most of the way to the target. Help them get the Department of Culture to have a rethink about this.
Signed. And wait, the govt. are actually planning on rating (and therefore restricting who can watch) factual, documentary material? I know I shouldn't be surprised at this point, but bloody hell.
 
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