Ever wondered what it’s like to be a Compliance Officer or ‘film censor’? Of course you do, you’re having a go at our Rate a Trailer resource!

It’s been a very unusual experience for our team of Compliance Officers rating content about the new British horror film Censor. While the film is about a fictional film regulator, it’s inspired by the ‘video nasty’ era of the 1980s which is a key period in the BBFC’s history, as well as wider social history of the UK. The term ‘video nasty’ refers to a particular type of film - usually a horror film - that, at the time, pushed the boundaries in terms of on screen violence, causing concern among some sections of society that these films were ‘obscene’ and had the potential to deprave and corrupt society. Ultimately, many of the ‘video nasties’ were refused a classification (i.e. ‘banned’) by the BBFC but many are now available uncut. If you want to find out more about the video nasty era, take a look at our student guide

The BBFC is a very different organisation today and it’s incredibly rare for us to refuse a classification (or ‘ban’) a film - we’re here to help families choose content well and support adults' right to choose their own entertainment.

Although Censor is about ‘banned’ films, the film is rated 15 for strong bloody violence, language, sexual threat. Do you think the trailer for the film should be rated the same or would you go higher or lower (there’s no option to reject!)?