This document discusses the target audience and certification rating for a psychological thriller media product. It notes that the thriller genre audience tends to be older due to disturbing content. While the full product would likely receive a 15 rating for such scenes, the title sequence alone could potentially receive a 12A rating as it does not include strong language, sexual or violent content, or discrimination that would require a higher rating.

1. Who would be the audience for
you media product?
Hannah Mountford

2. BBFC – British Board of Film Classification
• Brief signs of blood injury
• Sex can be briefly and discretely portrayed
• Moderate violence
• Moderate physical and philological threat
12A – must be accompanied by an adult for the child to watch it
12 – you have to be 12years of age or above as its not suitable for children
under 12
No one under 15 can
watch the film as it can
include scenes of:
• Strong violence
• Strong frequent
language
• Sexual activity
• Strong verbal
references to sex
• Nudity
• Brief scenes of sexual
violence or verbal
references
• Discriminatory
language or behaviour
• Drug taking
Viewer has to be 18, Can include: very strong violence, very frequent strong
language, strong sexual activity, sexual violence, strong horror, strong blood
and gore, real sex, discriminatory language and behaviour

3. Audience for the thriller genre

4. Audience for the thriller genre

5. Audience for the thriller genre
Our audience mainly voted for a psychological thriller so
we knew that our target audience would be of a higher
age, because of the subgenre this meant that our film
would be certified to a higher certificate as it would
include disturbing scenes which would not be
appropriate for younger viewers

6. How does your product relate to real
media texts?
Se7en title sequence
• The se7en title sequence uses shaky
text to create an edgy effect which
shows the genre is thriller
• We decided to add an effect called
‘earthquake’ to create a similar
effect
My title sequence
• However the title sequence
contrasts to ours as it includes
graphical images of violence which
ours doesn’t, this has a certificate
of 18 whereas our title sequence
may only be a 12A

7. How does your product relate to real
media texts?
Our product also relates to real media texts as we used
lots of conventions and themes from the thriller genre
such as:
- Damsel in distress
- Low key lighting
- Chase scene
- Protagonist vs antagonist
- Isolated location
- Using mirrors as a key prop

8. What certificate
would your
product be?…

9. • Our product would be a 15 as if it was made
into a film it would include disturbing scenes
which would push it from a 12A to a 15
• Our product wouldn’t pass as a 12A because
the BBFC website states “a work which has a
very dark or unsettling tone which could
disturb the audience would less likely to be
passed as a 12A”
HOWEVER…

10. The title sequence on its own could pass as a 12A
because:
• It allows scenes of blood and injury (briefly)
• Moderate and psychological threat is permitted (as
long as horror scenes are not frequent)
• It includes no strong language
• It includes no sexual scenes or activity or violence
• It includes no discrimination
• It can allow moderate violence as long as its not
dwelled upon.. The chase scene in our sequence
could be scene as moderate violence