The end of the studio system can be defined by understanding the involvement of the government and the changes that were forced upon the studios throughout the 1920’s to 1960’s. In Chapter four-The Studio System from John Belton’s American Cinema/American Culture Belton states, “the dismantling of the studio system began just before World War II when the US Department of justice’s Antitrust Division filed suit against the eight major studios accusing them of monopolistic practices in their use of
The 1948 “Paramount decision” and the mostly subsequent “Hollywood blacklist” can both be seen as pieces of the larger, 30-year process of breaking up the “studio system”; each altered the course of filmmaking in America to a greatly varying degree. The former signaled the end of the beginning of studio divestiture and the “Studio system” while the latter is a microcosm of the “McCarthyism” taking place in the greater American society at the time and the fear and turmoil created by any large scale
The Studio System Key point about the studio system could be: Despite being one of the biggest industries in the United States, indeed the World, the internal workings of the 'dream factory' that is Hollywood is little understood outside the business. The Hollywood Studio System: A History is the first book to describe and analyse the complete development, classic operation, and reinvention of the global corporate entities which produce and distribute most of
The studio system by definition is a system which was used during the Golden Age of Hollywood, is a method of film production and distribution dominated by a small number of “major” studios in Hollywood. The Golden Age was actually built upon the studio system and this began during the silent age. The Studio system was created by eight major studios that actually survived the conversion to sound and the financial crisis of 1929. They had different strategies for going fourth with this system, one
the ‘face’ of the Hollywood Studio System to reveal the truth behind the organisation. During the time the film was released in the 1950s and 60s, audiences started to see the demise of Hollywood as cinema going began to decline and the fierce competition of television almost proved too much for the well established system. Throughout this essay I will discuss how Sunset Boulevard represents the Hollywood
After the breakdown of the studio system the leading film companies started to buy each other on a conglomorate scale in order to increase their quality and income during the production or distribution of the film. Conglomorate ownership has been in the business for very long time and has shaped the industry. Most companies in hollywood are economically driven rathern than artisticly driven, therefore whilst making films it is in the company’s best interest to make more money. For the better understanding
The Hollywood studio system ran from 1927 to 1948. It applied the ideas and principles of a manufacturing assembly line to the making of movies. During this time each studio created a uniformed look to their productions, which allowed them to focus on quantity over experimentation (Barsam, 469). By having every employee, especially actors, writers, and directors under contract the studio was able to dictate not only the look but the stars and director. This system was created in part as a way to
the role of the Hollywood Studio System in creating and promoting stars? ‘The Studio System – A model of industrial organisation in the film industry from about 1915 – 1946, characterised by the development of major and minor studios that produced, distributed and exhibited films and held film actors, directors, art directors and other directors under contract’ (1 – Page 456-7) ‘The Golden Age’ was certainly ‘golden’ for the biggest film studios in Hollywood, these studios include Paramount (1916)
The studio system did for film making what the assembly line did for the industrial revolution. Basically, it streamlined the production system to the point that studios could pump out a film a week. They created a formula for success whether the films were good or not. Even if they released a bad film, by the time they realized it was a dud, the next two films were already out and making money. It was a great system for the studios, a great system for the actors and actresses, and, if you were one
Destry Rides Again, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, and the Fall of the Hollywood Studio System Thomas Schatz cites the 1950’s as the inevitable end of the Hollywood film studio system, with the signs appearing as early as the height of the second World War (472). However, the seeds of discontent and disintegration within the system were apparent as soon as the late 1930’s, exemplified in such films as Destry Rides Again (1939, George Marshall) and Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939, Frank Capra)