Production Report 11b

Hello, here's some more production.

Audience Questions

• Again, this is just a little bit of script that will go with my video essay, so the conventions and form aren't present yet. I included what I plan to put up on the screen (pictures and clips) so I'm planning to include the conventions in the final product.
• This bit of rough material was more challenging than the first because I had to do much more research. The research itself isn't necessarily hard, just time consuming. I'm honestly really starting to get interested in the topic, so it's not boring at least.

Here's the original section 2 body paragraph from my content outline:

2nd body section: In this section I’m going to introduce the MPAA and the role they’ve played in the past, and what they do as an organization now.

• Evidence #1: How the MPAA ratings system works; who is behind the decisions, and what are the decisions based on.
• This is important because the MPAA needs to be defined, and a very important point is that the board is made up of a select group of parents.
• This proves that the MPAA is biased to some degree and does not cater to the desires of the movie producers or viewers.
• Evidence #2: There are several examples of the MPAA rating films “incorrectly” and with bias/inconsistently.
• This is important because it’s going to set the tone for what movie lovers and producers generally  think of the MPAA- as incompetent and unreliable.

Here's the new bit of script; I'm not exactly sure where I'll be integrating this part of the script within section 2 but it includes some historical background and the root of the problem with the MPAA and horror:

Let’s talk about the MPAA again. Like I mentioned before, the original MPAA was created in 1922 as a response to a few sex scandals that made the Puritan groups wary of the cinema. (some scenes from old movies of this time period)

It regulated the content that could be displayed in movies for decades and began to grow more and more powerful as the American cinema grew in popularity in countries all over the world. (graph of where the MPAA has an important presence in the world) The MPAA had two jobs; to lobby in Washington and regulate the movies.

The original regulations created by the MPAA were quite strict and kept practically all adult content out of movies. This changed in the 1960s after films in other countries became more bold and the American movie directors wanted more creative freedom. The director of the MPAA, Jack Valenti, created the ratings system we have in place today as a replacement for the previous regulations. Before the ratings system, movies were for everybody. The ratings system was revolutionary and benefited the directors greatly. The original system was made up of G, PG, R, and X ratings; the X rating would later be changed to NC-17. (picture of all the ratings and their audiences)

It wasn’t until the 1980’s that the MPAA began to receive heavy criticism. Parents were distraught at the type of content that appeared in PG movies; most parents assumed that a PG rating meant that the film would be appropriate for children in every way and they wouldn’t need to check what their children were watching as long as it was PG. (a few clips of scenes from gory PG movies of the time)

Horror movies in particular received plenty of criticism for their PG ratings; one of the most popular PG horror movies of the 80’s was Jaws, which everyone knows is a violent film. (Jaws clip)

The last straw came from the combination of the horror movie, Gremlins(clip), and the action-thriller Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.(clip) Steven Spielberg directed the Indiana Jones movie and produced Gremlins, and ended up experiencing plenty of backlash from angry parents. From this conflict, the PG-13 rating was born; movies that would include some violence or adult content, but not enough to be a film targeted towards adults.

The Pg-13 rating was a goldmine for directors and producers. Movies with a PG-13 rating were open to a broader audience and brought in more revenue. Directors began to create their movies around the parameters of what could be rated PG-13; horror movies in particular suffered. As I mentioned before, some of the major aspects of horror stem from what parents deem inappropriate and what leaves the most long-lasting impressions on children the most; violence and graphic gore. If directors of horror movies wanted to stay PG-13, they had to make their movies more and more kid friendly; doesn’t this seem a little counter-intuitive? Why should movies meant to scare mature adults be more kid friendly?

I felt like including some history would be necessary to fully explain the argument, but am I including too much? In comparison to how much there is I feel like I'm keeping it pretty brief, but it's hard to tell.