Christa Van Raalte is head of media at North Tyneside College The clips were ideal for the group and it was interesting to see what they found most disturbing.
I couldn’t watch the Ichi the Killer sequence whereas one lad who is a keen footballer had to leave when a kick-boxing accident was shown.
The opening BBFC history section dragged a little. It involved a longish lecture and became bogged down as students started to query the regulations. It would have been a good idea to show some of scenes from the key films that have sparked controversy down the years such as Battleship Potemkin or Marlon Brando in The Wild One. It proved entirely relevant and provided a solid basis for the film industry section of the Btec diploma.
In our first lesson together on our return I drew a line on the board and asked students where they would position themselves along it, if one end marked the point at which all controls are abandoned and the other where they were extremely strict. It was clear that the BBFC session had brought home the need for censorship.
