Hollywood Studio System

Hollywood not just a location but a set of industrial and artistic practices that have dominated film production.

Not only in North America but globally.

Why Hollywood?

Climate and natural light?

- Yes but also the relatively short distance from Mexican border, handy for escaping Edison’s agents.

Primitive cinema marked by patent wars, litigation.

Main players: Thomas Edison and The Biograph Company

France was leading film producer in early years; Germany, Italy, UK also important.

But World War One changed that – from 1916 USA became the world leader in film production and has remained that way until present.

India has more films produced and bigger audience: USA greatest value

Year Admissions (Millions) Value ($US Millions)

1. India 2006 3,997.00 1,600.00

2. US 2007 1,400.00 9,629.00

3. France 2007 177.52 1,472.06

4. China (PRC) 2007 176.20 455.00

5. Mexico 2007 174.20 596.00

6. Japan 2007 163.20 1,675.00

7. UK 2007 162.43 1,642.00

8. South Korea 2007 158.80 1,075.84

9. Germany 2007 125.40 1,051.92

10. Italy 2007 120.00 938.35

11. Spain 2007 116.90 881.78

Pioneers (1) Thomas Ince• 1911 – Introduces assembly line production

• Separation of planning and Production.

• A minute division of labour in film making factories – departments with separate functions.

• Bureaucratic pyramid – “central producer system”. Producers supervised everything – gave jobs out etc.

Pioneers (2) D.W GriffithsWorked with Biograph Pictures

Famous for huge extravaganzas

• Required large sets, casts, costumes etc

•Management Labour Division

•Team work and specialist areas

•Studio Factories.

Biograph first company to make film in Hollywood

“In Old California” (1910)

Pioneers (3) Max SennetInce and Griffiths partnered with Sennet in 1915 to form Triangle Motion Picture Company.

(Griffiths parted from Biograph as they had little faith in the future of feature film)

Sennet “the King of Comedy”

The innovator of slapstick.

Pioneers contIn 1915 Griffiths produced and directed “The Clansman” (later called “The Birth of a Nation”) which was one of the most innovative of American films.

Set during and after the American Civil War, noted for its innovative technical and narrative achievements, its status as the first Hollywood “blockbuster”.

However, provoked great controversy for its treatment of white supremacy and sympathetic account of the rise of the Ku Klux Klan.

In 1919, founded United Artists (one of the “Little Three” studios) together with:

Mary Pickford Douglas Fairbanks

Charles Chaplin

But Griffith’s association with UA didn’t last long.

The Studio System

In the 1920s ‘motion pictures’ became the most popular form of entertainment and leisure activity in America.

As Wall Street invested heavily in film, five major Hollywood studios and three smaller ones consolidated power to dominate the world market.

The Three Elements

• Production – The making of the films

•Distribution – The network that brought the films to the public – promotion, run times

•Exhibition – The “Big Five” initially owned their own theatres

The Development – 1920s

The main film companies move from East Coast to Hollywood

• Self-Regulation and Production Codes

• “industrialisation” of production

Introduction of SoundAl Jolson

The Jazz Singer, 1927

The consolidation of sound ushered in “classic” period (aka “Golden Age”) of Hollywood

Roughly 1930-1950

FinancingHollywood during its Golden Age between the years of 1927 – 1948 operated a mode of production called the studio system.

The studio system was an early form of “vertical integration”

i.e. All stages of production including screenplays, financing, production, post production, distribution and exhibition were owned and controlled by the studios to maximise their profits.

Distribution & Exhibition

Affiliated cinema chains ranged from 200- to 1500 “theatres” in size – accounting for 20% of total US cinemas.

However – these cinemas accounted for 80% of 1st run houses and the most profitable subsequent run houses (generally located in major metropolitan areas).

Thus – these cinemas accounted for 50% – 80% of the Box Office in any given market

Distribution & ExhibitionThe only means of distribution and exhibiting a film was through theatrical release (cinema exhibition)

The Big Five showcased their best films in studio-owned picture palaces

To gain access to the most popular films, small local cinemas had to buy exclusive-run deals from the studio

This block booking meant studios could push out the competition

ExhibitionOnly in largest cities did majors’ theatres compete directly. Elsewhere they pooled their product for nationwide distribution. Thus one company’s hit benefited all theatres.

Production and distribution were only important to the extent they enabled the majors to maintain favoured status in exhibition

Distribution & ExhibitionThe Majors owned substantial theatre (cinema) chains

The Majors raised the cash to acquire these chains through the public sale of bonds and stocks pre 1929 taking on long term debt

This is reflected in presence of investment bankers, businessmen etc. on Motion Picture Company

Distribution & ExhibitionTherefore:

“…The production of films, essentially fluid and experimental as a process, is harnessed to a form of organisation which can rarely afford to be either experimental or speculative because of the regularity with which heavy fixed changes (debt) must be made.”

Economic Control of the Motion Picture Industry”, Moe Huettig (1944)

Production Practice•The Hollywood studio system of film-making to type as genres with stars in the leading roles standardised the filmmaking process

•All film personnel from director to creative, technical crew to actors were employees of the studio

•e.g. actors had a standard 7 year contract; could be fined for refusing a part; could be loaned out to another studio without their consent

Production Practice

Each studio had a uniform style and specialised in a particular genre

Exceptions to the rules were directors such as Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford and Orson Welles who fought to work within the system and establish their own styles

The studiosThe Big Five The little Three “Poverty Row”

(top four of many)

MGM United Artists Grand National

Paramount Columbia Pictures

Republic Pictures

20th Century-Fox

Universal Studios

Monogram Pictures

Warner Bros PRC

RKO

“The Big Five” + “Little Three” = “The Majors”

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)Established in 1924 from parent company Loew’s Inc (owner of many cinemas)

Leader in stars and glamour

- Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz (both 1939)

Hired top talent directors such as King Vidor, Clarence Brown, Erich von Stroheim, Tod Browning.

Stars included Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Robert Montgomery, Myrna Loy, Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy, Judy Garland and Spencer Tracey

ParamountEstablished as distribution company in 1914; acquired by Zukor in 1917, who merges it with his production company

First “vertically integrated” company

Stars included: Marlene Dietrich, Mary Pickford, Bing Cosby, Mae West, Gary Cooper, Claudette Colbert, the Marx Brothers, Dorothy Lamour, Carole Lombard, Bob Hope, Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, Paulette Goddard

Fox (Later 20th Century Fox)

•Established in 1913 by William Fox

•Known for musicals, westerns and bipics

•During WW2, was third most profitable studio

•Directors included John Ford

•Stars included: Shirley Temple, Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Spencer Tracy, Betty Grable

Warner Brothers

Established in 1924 by Harry, Jack and Albert Warner

1st Sound film – The Jazz Singer (1927) – profits allowed WB to acquire theatre chain and graduate from poverty row to major status

Musicals, gangster films

Stars included: Bette Davis, James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Edward G Robinson, Warner William and Barbara Stanwyck

RKOBorn from merger in 1928

Stars included: Lucille Ball, Fay Wray, Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn

King Kong, Bringing Up Baby

Unit production – contracting to directors. Gave Orson Welles – then a man of the theatre and radio, never having made a film – complete control- unprecedented for Hollywood Studios – to direct and star in Citizen Kane (1941)

The Little ThreeThe Big Five dominated the market but how do we account for the success of the “Little Three” – Universal, Columbia and UA – with very few cinemas?

Answer – No one studio had the capacity to produce sufficient films to hill its subsequent run theatres which needed up to 300 films per annum. The little three filled this gap.

Columbia and Universal also made many B-pics for the low end of the market.

UA was purely a distributor for small groups of elite independent producers.

United Artists

Founded by silent film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks in 1919 – married in 1920 and produced films at their studio on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood.

Charles Chaplin and DW Griffiths (briefly) became involved, each of 4 owning 20% state

Functioned primarily as a backer-distributor, loaning money to independent producers and releasing their films

Now part of MGM

ColumbiaFounded in 1919 by brothers Jack and Harry Cohn and Joe Brandt

Released its first feature film in August 1922. it adopted the Columbia Pictures name in 1924 and went public two years later.

Columbia began to grow in the late 1920s, spurred by a successful association with director Frank Capra.

Became one of the primary homes of the “screwball comedy”.

Major contract stars: Jean Arthur and Cary Grant (shared with RKO Pictures).

In the 1940s Rosalind Russell, Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford and William Holden

Now part of Columbia Tri-Star (owned by Sony)

Universal

Founded by, Carl Laemmle, second oldest Hollywood studio. In 30s/40s, largely run by Irving Thalberg but lured to MGM, leading to downturn in Universal’s fortunes

Sought an audience mostly in small towns, producing mostly inexpensive melodramas, westerns and serials

Films include All Quiet on the Western Front and Imitation of Life.

Created a successful niche with long-running series of monster films, inc. Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Mummy.

The Star System

•Essential element of studio system

•The star system allowed the Hollywood studios to “manufacture” the success of young actors and new films. One of the key means studio used to attract audiences

•Studios would select promising young actors and create personas for them, often inventing new names and even new backgrounds.

•Studios and stars began to specialise in particular styles, genres and roles.

The Star SystemIn early years of the cinema, performers not

identified in films. Two main reasons:

1. Stage performers embarrassed to be in film. Silent film was only considered pantomime, only a step above carnivals and freak shows, and actors afraid that appearing in films would ruin their reputation.

2. Producers feared that actors would gain more prestige and power and demand more money.

The Star System

Florence Lawrence (1886-1938)

Main catalyst for change – public’s desire to know the actors’ names. Film audiences repeatedly recognised certain performers that they liked.

Not knowing performers’ names they gave them nicknames (such as “the Biography Girl”, Florence Lawrence, who was featured in Biography films).

The Star SystemRelatively unknown actors would be groomed for stardom, given new names, personas and lifestyles that would create positive publicity for the industry.

In return, actors were subject to restrictive contracts of up to seven years, with relatively small salaries and few holidays between films

James Stewart and Cary Grant were two of the very few to be independent of studios

Star system part of the process which allowed each studio to put out more than 500 films a year.

The Star SystemHumphrey Bogart

(1889-1956)

Trade MarkTypically played smart, playful, courageous, tough, occasionally reckless characters who lived in a corrupt world, anchored by a hidden moral code.Almost always played a hard-boiled cynic who ultimately shows his noble side.Low-key, distinctive nasal voice.Often wore bow ties.Roles in film noirs.

Made 77 films from 1928- 1956

The Star SystemFred Astaire

(1899-1987)

Trade MarkTop Hat and Tails.His dancing

Birth NameFrederic Austerlitz Jr.

49 films from 1933-1981

The Star System

James Cagney (1899-1986)

Trade MarkFamous for his gangster roles he played in the 1930s and 1940s (which made his only Oscar win as the musical composer/dancer/actor George M.Cohan most ironic).

Birth NameJames Francis Cagney

Made 66 films from 1930-1984

The Star System

Spencer Tracy

(1900-1967)

His family moved to Hollywood in 1931, and Tracy made 16 films in three years. In 1935 he signed with MGM. He became the first actor to win back-to-back Oscars. A few weeks after completion of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967), during which he suffered from lung congestion, he died of a heart attack.

Made 78 films from 1930 - 1967

The Star System

Clark Gable (1901-1960)

Birth NameWilliam Clark Gable

Trade MarkPencil thin moustache that hugged his upper lipOften played a virile, lovable rogue whose gruff facade only thinly masked a natural charm and goodness.Distinctive, powerful voice.

81 films from 1923-1961

The Star SystemCary Grant 1904-1986

Birth NameArchibald Alexander Leach

Trade MarkMid-Atlantic accent.Often played a handsome bachelor.Roles in romantic comedies.

Once told by an interviewer, "Everybody would like to be Cary Grant," Grant is said to have replied, "So would I."

Made 73 films from 1932 -1966

The Star SystemJoan Crawford

1905-1977

Birth NameLucille Fay LeSueur

She was so dedicated to her fans that she always personally responded to her fan mail by typing them responses on blue paper and autographing it. A great deal of her spare time and weekends were spent doing this.After her friend Steven Spielberg hit it big, Joan sent him periodic notes of congratulations. The last one came two weeks before her death.

Made 102 films or TV appearances from 1925-1972

The Star SystemRita Hayworth (1918-1987)

Birth NameMargarita Carmen Cansino

Ranked #98 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997]

Made 66 films from 1926 - 1972

The Star System

John Wayne

1907-1979

Birth NameMarion Robert Morrison

Trade MarkWesterns.Slow talk and deep voice.War movies.

Made 171 films from 1926 -1976

The Star SystemKatherine Hepburn

1907-2003

Birth NameKatharine Houghton Hepburn

Trade MarkPlaying strong independent women with minds of their own.Often wore slacks instead of dresses, decades before it became fashionable for women to do soDistinctive way of speaking, with what many say is a "Bryn Mawr" accent.

Made 52 films from 1932-1994

The Star SystemJames “Jimmy” Stewart

1908-1997

Birth NameJames Maitland Stewart

Trade MarkSoft-spoken, extremely polite and shy manner, with a very recognizable drawl in his voice.Often played honest, average middle class individuals who are unwittingly drawn into some kind of crisis.Roles in westerns.After 1950 he often played tough, cynical and frequently ruthless characters.

Made 99 films from 1934-1991

The Star SystemBette Davis

1908-1989

Birth NameRuth Elizabeth Davis

SalaryWicked Stepmother $250,000Right of Way (1983) $250,000Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)$200,000Where Love Has Gone $125,000What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)$60,000 + 5% of the net profits.All About Eve (1950)$130,000Juarez (1939)$4,000/weekDark Victory (1939)$3,500/week

Made 121 films from 1931-1989

The Star System

Ginger Rogers (1911-1995)

Birth NameVirginia Katherine McMath

Trade MarkOften starred with Fred Astaire

Made 89 film and television appearances from 1929 - 1987

The Star SystemGene Kelly (1912-1996)

Birth NameEugene Curran Kelly

Trade MarkKnown for his innovative, athletic style of dancing

“If Fred Astaire is the Cary Grant of dance, I'm the Marlon Brando.”

Made 49 films from 1942-1987

The Star System

Burt Lancaster (1913-1994)

Birth NameBurton Stephen Lancaster

Trade MarkA killer smile, which he called "The Grin"A great physique, of which director John Frankenheimer said, "Nobody ever looked like Burt Lancaster in The Crimson Pirate (1952) ."His movies often reflected his very liberal political beliefs.Roles in westerns.Very distinctive, clipped manner of speaking.

Made 86 films from 1946 - 1991

The Star System

Kirk Douglas (1916- )

Birth NameIssur Danielovitch Demsky

Trade MarkGravelly voiceDimpled chin

Made 90 films from 1946 - 2004

The Star System

Jane Russell (1921- )

Birth NameErnestine Jane Geraldine Russell

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)$400,000

The Outlaw (1943)$50 a week

Made 29 films from 1943 - 1986

The Star SystemJudy Garland (1922-1969)

Birth NameFrances Ethel Gumm

SalaryGay Purr-ee (1962)$50,000 + 10% gross Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)$50,000 A Star Is Born (1954)$100,000 + 50% of profits Summer Stock (1950)$150,000Words and Music (1948)$100,000Easter Parade (1948)$150,000The Pirate (1948)$150,000The Harvey Girls (1946)$3,000/weekGirl Crazy (1943)$29,000For Me and My Gal (1942)$2,000/weekBabes on Broadway (1941)$2,000/weekStrike Up the Band (1940)$500/weekBabes in Arms (1939)$8,900The Wizard of Oz (1939)$500/weekListen, Darling (1938)$500/weekLove Finds Andy Hardy (1938)$300/weekThoroughbreds Don't Cry (1937)$300/weekBroadway Melody of 1938 (1937)$200/weekEvery Sunday (1936)$100/week

Made 32 films from 1936 - 1963

The Star SystemMarlon Brando (1924-2004)

Birth NameMarlon Brando Jr.

Trade MarkBizarrely unique voice with an extreme nasal tonality spoken in mumbles.Frequently played young, somewhat misunderstood rebels in his youth (A Streetcar Named Desire, The Wild One, On the Waterfront) and later powerful criminals (The Godfather, The Formula, The Freshman, The Score).The pioneering use of Method ActingOften improvised his own dialogue.

Made 45 film and TV productions from 1950 - 2001

The Star SystemTony Curtis (1925 - )

Birth NameBernard Schwartz

SalaryThe Boston Strangler $30,000/week Operation Petticoat (1959)$700,000The Vikings (1958)$25,000/weekTrapeze (1956)$150,000Forbidden (1953)$1,500/weekThe All American (1953)$1,500/weekHoudini (1953)$1,500/weekFlesh and Fury (1952)$700/weekKansas Raiders (1950)$225/weekCriss Cross (1949)$75/week

Made 128 film and TV productions from 1949 - 2008

The Star SystemRock Hudson (1925-1985)

Birth NameRoy Harold Scherer Jr.

His size and good looks got him into movies. His name was changed to Rock Hudson, his teeth were capped, he took lessons in acting, singing, fencing and riding

He was the first major public figure to announce he had AIDS, and his worldwide search for a cure drew international attention.

Trade MarkDeep, sensuous voice.Thick black hair.Moved from westerns to sob stories to sophisticated comedies.

Made 74 film and television productions from 1948 - 1985

The Star System

Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962)

Birth NameNorma Jean Mortensen

Trade MarkLisp, breathless voicePlatinum blonde hairVoluptuous figure.

Voted 'Sexiest Woman of the Century' by People Magazine. [1999]

The licensing of Marilyn's name and likeness, handled world-wide by Curtis Management Group, reportedly nets the Monroe estate about $2 million a year.

Appeared on the first cover of Playboy in 1953.

Made 33 films from 1947 - 1962

Aside from her birth name of Norma Jean Mortensen, she was baptized and mainly known throughout her life as Norma Jeane Baker.

The Hay’s CodeDuring the 1920s, Will H. Hays was made president of MPAA (The Motion Picture Association of America). His job was to protect films from state censorship boards.

In 1930, a Production Code was established setting guidelines for what would and could not be shown – no nudity, no profanity, no offensive refs, no “miscegenation” i.e. relationships between people of different races.

The Production Code’s Effects: Films as Ideological Frames

Scripts were screened according to the Code, but by 1933 many standards relaxed.

In 1934, Hays set up the PCA (Production Code Administration) which would place a seal on “approved films”: only these could be released.

General effect – to make films more conventional, closer to the social mainstream, more middle-class, less adventurous

The Production Code’s Effects: Films as Ideological Frames

“1. No picture shall be produced that will lower the moral standards of those who see it. Hence the sympathy of the audience should never be thrown to the side of crime, wrongdoing, evil or sin.

2. Correct standards of life, subject only to the requirements of drama and entertainment, shall be presented.

3. Law, natural or human, shall not be ridiculed, nor shall sympathy be created for its violation.”

The Production Code’s Effects: Films as Ideological Frames

The sanctity of marriage and the home had to be upheld. “Pictures shall not imply that low forms of sex relationship are the acceptable or common thing …”

Portrayals of miscegenation (inter-racial relationships) were forbidden …

“Scenes of Passion” were not to be introduced when not essential to the plot. “Excessive and lustful kissing” was to be avoided, along with any other treatment that might “stimulate the lower and baser element…”

The Production Code’s Effects: Films as Ideological Frames

Film genres affected included women’s pictures (from “fallen woman” to women’s concerns – e.g. family and marriage) and comedies (e.g. cross-class romances)

Hollywood Style

“Hollywood” – not only a set of industrial practices but a particular way of telling stories, especially with regard to

1. Narrative

2.Editing

Hollywood ConventionsThe classical Hollywood narrative organised around one or more goal-driven protagonists whose desires determine the cause-effect ordering of the plot

Often a second, embedded plot line – e.g. saving the western town from the outlaws may also involve helping out and finally falling in love with the school marm, for instance.

Moreover, the time and space serve the story, which is often generic or formulaic

There is clear closure with the protagonists achieving or failing to achieve their goals.

Hollywood StyleNarrative and Narration

“Classic Hollywood narration focuses on an nindividual or small group of individuals who early on encounter discrete and specific goals that are clearly attained or clearly unattained by the film’s end.

The goals tend to exist in two spheres, and their pursuit is developed along parallel and often interdependent plot lines. One sphere is private, generally a heterosexual romance; the second is public – a career advance, the obliteration of an enemy, a mission, a discovery and the like”

The Classic Hollywood Cinema (1985), BY David Bordwell, Janet Stauger, and Kristin Thompson.

Hollywood Style

Hollywood narrative tended to be straightforward, unambiguous

Action should be in tight chain of cause and effect

Even where there is narrative complexity, there should not be indeterminateness i.e. things should be explained by the end

To ensure this, a high degree of “redundancy” i.e. repetition of important plot information

Hollywood StyleThe Continuity Editing System

One of main ways of delivering “verisimilitude” in classic Hollywood narrative

Developed from early cinema but firmly established before talking era predominant style of editing in narrative cinema and carried over into television

Purpose – to smooth over the inherent discontinuity of the editing process and to establish a logical coherence between shots (“invisible editing”)

Hollywood StyleThe continuity editing system

Main Features

• match on action

•Eyeline match

•The establishing shot

•The 180 degree rule

•Avoiding jump cut (i.e. two sequential shots of the same subject take from camera positions that vary only slightly) by use of

•Continuous diegetic sound

•30%rule

Genre and HollywoodA large part of Hollywood’s output operated within established genres

Genres have “semantic” elements, i.e. images, iconography we expect of a a genre’s “repertoire of elements”

They also have “syntactical” – e.g. story shaped as in “rise and fall” structure of classic gangster film

But genres rarely “pure” – even in classical era tended to merge and mature (but less so than in 1980s on)

Genre and HollywoodMost popular Hollywood genres

Action-adventure

Biopics

Comedy

Detective, gangster,

suspense thriller

Epics and spectacles

Horror, science fiction, fantasySocial problem filmsMusical teen picsWar filmsWesternsFilm noirMelodrama and the “woman’s film”

The end of the Golden AgeIn 1948 the United States government on behalf of MGM brought a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures for blocking booking

The resulting 1948 anti-trust laws in America made this practice illegal. The studios had to sell their cinema interests

The result, effectively brought the studio system and Hollywood’s Golden Age to a close

The end of the Golden AgeOther reasons for the decline:

Post-war – many couples started families (the “baby boom”

Mover to suburbs and new leisure activities

Cinemas tended to be in old city centres

The rise of television

The end of the Golden Age

1948 – Paramount decree

Leads to majors becoming distribution companies

Studios offered finance and use of studio facilities

Rise of independent producers and agents

agents replace studios’ packaging function

“Divorcement”

Transition periodExample

The Searchers (1956)

d. John Ford

Production Company owned by rich businessman CV Whitney

Warner Bros shared investment and profits, distributed film but did not make it

Transition Period

Little three no longer had disadvantage of not owning cinemas

Made transition to new situation more easily than big five

By mid 50s, studios selling back catalogue to television

Making content for TV Networks

Transition to Modern Hollywood

Changing Studios

During the 1980s large multi-national businesses began to include media companies in their practices of merger and acquisition

As a result the major Hollywood studios have gone through many ownership changes

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

Columbia

Independent until 1982

Owned by Coca-cola 1982-1987

Independent holding of Coca Cola 1987 – 1989

Owned by Sony 1989 to present

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

Universal

Independent to 1982

Merged with International Pictures 1946 -1952

Owned by Decca 1952-1962

Owned by MCA 1962 – 1990

Owned by Matsushita electric 1990 – 1995

Owned by Seagram 1995-2000

Owned by Vivendi (who bought Seagram) 2000-2004

Owned by General Electric 2004 - present

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

20th Century Fox

Independent to 1985

Owned by News Corporation 1985 to present

News Corp has controlling interest in e.g. The times and The Sun; Sky

Many media interests in US, UK, Australia, the Far East

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

Paramount Pictures

Independent to 1966

Owned by gulf and Western 1966-1984

Owned by Paramount Communications (new Gulf + Western Co) 1984-1993

Owned by Viacom 1993 to present

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

Warner Brothers

Independent to 1967

Owned by Seven Arts productions 1967-1969

Owned by Kinney National 1969-1975

Kinney now named Warner Communications 1975-1989

Merger with Time Publications 1989 to present – Time Warner

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

MGM

Independent to 2005

Owned by Sony (as part of its Columbia-Tri-star stable) 2005 to present

Transition to Modern HollywoodChanging Studios

United Artists

Chaplin and Fairbanks bought out by financiers in early 50s

“Studio” without actual studio – but fewer overheads. Offered finance to independent producers

Successful: The African Queen (1951) Moulin Rouge (1952)

Also, the James Bond franchise (starting 1962); Beatles Hard Day’s Night (Richard Lester, 1964)

Taken over by Transamerica in 1967

Sunk by Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate (1978) which went enormously over budget

Subsequently absorbed in MGM (now owned by Sony)

Transition to Modern HollywoodRise of the package – unit system

Studios no longer had long term exclusive contracts for creative personnel

Writers, directors, producers and stars able to negotiate their deals with majors using agents

Agencies not studios negotiated “creative personnel packages” with film companies

Transition to Modern HollywoodRise of the package – unit system

Principal Agencies

International Creative

ManagementCreative Artists Agency William Morris Agency

Transition to Modern Hollywood

1960s – Also sees television emerge as substantial market for the studios product (and use of film for drama series)

Shift of TV production from New York to Los Angels

Transition to Modern HollywoodAlso beginning of blockbuster strategy

Classic Hollywood had a few prestige films and runaway hits –

e.g. Gone With The Wind (1939)

-But relied on steady stream of A films for guaranteed profits

Post “Divorcement”, producing blockbusters a conscious strategy

Transition to Modern HollywoodThe Ten Commandments (1956; $43 million)

Around the World in 80 Days (1956; $23 million)

The Bridge Over the River Kwai (1957; $47.2 million)

South Pacific (1958; $17.5 million)

Ben Hur (1959; $36.5 million)

Lawrence of Arabia (1962; $17.7 million)

The Longest Day (1962; $17.6 million)

Cleopatra (1963; $23 million)

Thunderball (1965; $27.5 million)

Dr Zhivago (1965; $46.5 million)

The Sound of Music (1965; $79.9 million)

Transition to Modern Hollywood1950s/1960s saw more segmentation of market including “drive-in movies”, exploitation films

Foreign “art” films also attracting an audience

Away from mainstream

e.g. La Dolce Vita (Fellini, 1960)

But despite enormous success of The Sound of Music 1960s saw biggest slump since WWII – cycle of expensive, heavily promoted commercial flops.

Studios no longer connecting with audiences, especially the young

Combined industry losses 1969-71: $600 million (Variety)

The American New WaveBrief Period of transition to New Hollywood

Commercial losses led to new strategy – with blockbuster strategy stalling, Hollywood saw period of widespread and unprecedented innovation

With the collapse of the old studio system, producers and executives no longer had the power to control creative film-making

Influence of a new wave of filmmaking from France (Nouvelle Vague), encouraged Hollywood independents to experiment and develop their own unique styles.

The American New WaveBrief Period of Transition to New Hollywood

Nouvelle Vague introduced new production arrangements, new directors, new actors, new shooting styles

Francois Truffaut

Agnes Varda

Jacques Demy

Jean-Luc Godard

Claude Chabrol

Alain Resnais

The American New Wave

The Graduate (d. Mike Nichols, 1967) also showed influence of New Wave in its editing

It also indicates that it is post-Hays Code (which broke down in 1967) to be replaced by modern rating system by MPAA in 1967

Catching up with changes in public attitudes

Without overthrowing rules of continuity system, these directors “loosened up” the rules

The American New WaveFlowering of American filmmaking for few years from late 60s – early 70s

Studios – in desperation – financed films they did not have much sympathy for but which found youthful audience

The Graduate (1967)

d. Mike Nichols

Five Easy Pieces (1970)

d. Mike Rafaelson

Easy Rider (1969)

d. Dennis Hopper

The American New Wave

The American New WaveNot independents – (unlike, e.g. John Cassavetes)

They relied on studio finance – but given independence by desperate studios and absorbed spirit of independents

According to Peter Biskind (“Down and Dirty Pictures”), following traits characterise mainstream and independent films:

The American New WaveHollywood Mainstream Independent

Fantasy and escapism Realism and engagement

Avoided controversial subjects

Embraced controversial subjects

Expensive Cheap

Stars Unknowns (even non-actors) Final cut for director

Genre-based and formulaic Personal vision, unique and sequel-proof

Made by committee

Director no right of final cut

Individual sensibility (often writer-director) with right of final cut

The American New WaveHollywood Mainstream Independent

Director as craft person- for-hire

Director as creator of art

Spectacle, action, special effects

More intimate, privileging script and mise-en-scene

Avoided challenging popular tastes (preview screenings etc)

Made films without audience in mind – if they found one, more likely to be niche rather than mass audience

Finances cushioned by ancillary markets

Not much thought to distribution

Conventional wisdom and mainstream ideology

Challenged both

Hollywood made “movies” Indies made “films” (or Cinema)

Transition to Modern Hollywood1970s – recovery of the industry

1972 – The Godfather (Paramount) revives box office

1974 – Hollywood’s total earnings surpass post war peak (1946) for first time.

New wave experimentation over by mid – 70s

1975- present – The New Hollywood

The New HollywoodUnprecedented box-office success jumpstarted Hollywood’s blockbuster mentality

Effectively ended reign of smaller, idiosyncratic, stylistically adventurous films.

(Coppolla’s The Conversation (1974) – one of the last)

“Megapictures may have saved the major companies but they also shrank the auteur aspirations of the early 1970s” David Bordwell

The New Hollywood1975 – Jaws establishes modern blockbuster prototype:

• pre-sold property

•Packaged by agency

•Saturation booked (“Frontloading”)

•Heavy marketing

•Commercial tie-ins/merchandising

•A summer hit

•Discovers new baby-boomer audience

1977 – Star Wars cements Jaws model

1978 – Jaws 2 released creating franchise

Hollywood “High Concept”

“High concept” an expression coined to describe tendency identified from 1980s (and associated in particular with Producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer) – a kind of filmmaking dominated not only attempt to maximise box-office but film shaped to needs of wider marketing, tie-in etc.

Hollywood “High Concept”

Essence of high concept film, which can be condensed into one simple sentence that inspires marking campaigns, lures audiences, and separates success from failure at the box office

Films can be expressed in terms of other films, e.g.

Alien = Jaws in space

Top Gun = Star Wars on earth

Hollywood “High Concept”High concept films became fully integrated with their marketing so that a single phrases-

e.g. “Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water ..”

-Could sell the film to studio executives and provide copy for massive advertising campaigns

single image or a theme song could instantly remind potential audience members of the film, and tie-in merchandise could generate millions of dollars in additional income.

Hollywood “High Concept”Top Gun

d. Tony Scott, 1986

Produced by

Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer

Classic “high concept” film

Hollywood Today: StardomHollywood filmmaking still dependent on the strong relationship between the hero(ine) in the film and audience identification with the hero(ine)

Stars have always been important vehicles by which a film is financed and marketed

Hollywood Now: StardomActors and their agents, not studios manage their own careers

Actors can negotiate their own salaries often earning millions per film

Some stars can “open” or “tentpole” a film, but star presence in a film cannot guarantee box office success alone

Hollywood Now: Stars

Dustin HoffmanBirth NameDustin Lee Hoffman

Trade MarkFamous for taking a wide range of difficult roles, such as a crippled street hustler in Midnight Cowboy (1969); an actor pretending to be a woman in Tootsie (1982) and an autistic in Rain Man (1988).Has a reputation for being difficult to work with.

SalaryRain Man (1988)$5,800,000+% of grossPapillon (1973)$1,250,000John and Mary (1969)$425,000Midnight Cowboy (1969)$250,000The Graduate (1967)$17,000

So far has made 65 films since 1961

Hollywood Now: Stars

Warren Beatty

Birth NameHenry Warren Beaty

SalaryIshtar (1987)$5,000,000The Only Game in Town (1970)$750,000Bonnie and Clyde (1967)$200,000 + 40% grossAll Fall Down (1962)$60,000The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961)$30,000Splendor in the Grass (1961)$15,000

29 film and TV productions since 1957 (Actor)

12 productions since 1956 (producer)

6 productions as a writer since 1975

5 productions as a director since 1978

Hollywood Now: StarsAl Pacino

Birth NameAlfredo James Pacino

Trade MarkVolcanic tirade, smoke-burnished voice.Frequently plays men of power and/or authority.

45 films from 1968

Hollywood Now: StarsRobert De Niro Birth Name

Robert Mario De Niro Jr.

Trade MarkOften played characters that were often prone to brutal violence and/or characters who were borderline psychotics.Known for method acting techniques with his characters by heavily studying their backgrounds.

Actor – 80 films since 1965

Producer – 31 films since 1989

Hollywood Now: Stars

Meryl StreepBirth NameMary Louise Streep

Trade MarkKnown for being a perfectionist when preparing for rolesKnown for her ability to master almost any accent.

Made 63 since 1977

Awards:Won 2 Oscars. Another 73 wins & 82 nominations

Hollywood Now: StarsJulia Roberts

Tom Cruise

45 films since 1987

Birth NameThomas Cruise Mapother IV

Actor – 35 since 1981

Producer – 15 since 1996

Hollywood Now: StarsBrad Pitt

Angelina JolieBirth NameWilliam Bradley Pitt

Trade MarkHis laugh

Actor – 62 films since 1987

Producer – 17 films since 2006

Birth NameAngelina Jolie Voight

Trade MarkHusky voiceHer full lips

Actor – 39 since 1982

Producer – 3 since 2005

Hollywood Now: StarsNicole Kidman

Bruce Willis

Birth NameNicole Mary Kidman

Trade MarkOften plays cold, emotionally vacant characters.

Actor – 54 since 1983

Producer – 4 since 2003

Birth NameWalter Bruce Willis

Trade MarkFrequently plays a man who suffered a tragedy, had lost something or had a crisis of confidence or conscience.Shaven head.Headlines action-adventures, often playing a cop, hitman or someone in the military.

Hollywood Now: StarsKate Winslet

Leonardo Di Caprio

Actor – 33 since 1990

Producer – 12 since 2004

Awards:Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 20 wins & 46 nominations

Awards:Won Oscar. Another 37 wins & 59 nominations

Actor – 33 since 1991

Hollywood Now: StarsTobey McGuire

Daniel Day LewisTrade MarkIn-depth and exhaustive preparations for roles.Frequently collaborates with directors Jim Sheridan and Martin Scorsese.

Daniel Day Lewis

Birth NameTobias Vincent Maguire

Hollywood Now: Stars

Johnny Depp

Birth NameJohn Christopher Depp II

Trade MarkHighly defined cheek-bonesFrequently plays freakishly eccentric outcasts whose oddities are misunderstood by society, and usually have a flamboyant appearance and mannerism. Frequently works with director 'Tim Burton'.Frequently bases his performances on rock stars.

Hollywood Now: Narrative in modern Hollywood

Some commentators argue that we are in a “post-classical” age, especially with regard to Narrative

David Borwell and Kirsten Thomson, however, highlight the essential continuity between Classic Hollywood Narrative and the present period, while accepting there have been stylistic shifts

Hollywood StyleHollywood narrative became more self-conscious from 70s/80s

Classic era screenwriters aware of structure but rarely codified

More recently, large number of how-to books on screenwriting, seminars etc

“Screenwriter’s Handbook” by Nash and Oakley (1978)

“Screenplay” by Syd Field (1979)

Hollywood Style: NarrativeScreen-writing manuals tended to identify a three act

structure in classic Hollywood film

e.g. Syd Field

(assumes 2 hour film script of 120 minutes, one page = one minute if screen time)

I. The Set up: 30 pages – plot point A

II. The Conflict: 60 pages – plot point B

III. The Resolution – final act- 30 pages where problem established by plot point A is resolved.

Hollywood Style: Narrative

Kirstin Thompson argues that a four-act structure is more useful, being more solidly based on character motivation,

i.e. structured around ways in which goals defined

Based on four more or less equal parts plus epilogue

(based on typical 110/120 minute film)

I. The setup – 25-20 mins

II. Complicating action – 20-30 mins

III. Development – 20 – 30 mins

IV. Climax

Hollywood Style: Narrative

I.The Setup

-Establishes characters’ world, defines main character’s purpose, culminates in near 30minute mark

E.g. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf (d. Mike Nicols, 1966) opens by presenting central couple and introduces younger couple as their guests

About 30mins in Martha’s goal of torturing George crystallizes and she changes into sexy outfit to seduce younger male

Hollywood Style: NarrativeII. Complicating Action

Focuses/recast film’s central goals

Protagonist changes tactics of achieving goal or faces entirely new situation

At first turning point in Witness (d. Peter Weir), boy Samuel identifies killer, but this action precipitates attempt on book’s life, in complicating action, book flees to Amish farm where he must adjust to very different circumstances

Hollywood Style: NarrativeII. Complicating Action (cont)

Often event ending complicating action arrives half way through film.

Kramer v Kramer, complicating action consists of Ted and Billy’s accommodation to each other in film’s second section

“countersetup” - formation of new family- disturbed by Joanna’s demand to take Billy back

Occurs at mid-point: 50 minutes

Hollywood Style: Narrative

III. Development

Where protagonist’s struggle towards goals typically occurs, often involving many incidents that create action suspense and delay

Often shows protagonist making little progress towards main goals

Development serves to postpone main action and to present delays or dwell on subplots, montage sequences, comedy interludes etc fills out this act

Hollywood Style: Narrative

IV Climax

Often following “darkest moment” (scene in which crisis forces protagonist to take action) section revolves around whether or not protagonists’ goals can be achieved (mostly they will be)

Flashback- Alex mist revaluate life after mentor Hanna dies and after Jenny becomes stripper, Nick has pulled strings so that Alex gets audition to ballet school and now she must choose one path or another. Decides not to use acrobatic show-dancing skills on judges, and wins admission

Hollywood Style: NarrativeV Epilogue

Confirms stability of narrative

Settles sub-plots and tying up motifs

Can be v. brief – last 50 seconds of Flashdance shows Alex running out of her audition to meet Nick at kerbside with her dog

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King must wrap up three feature-length films – lasts about 11 minutes

Hollywood StyleAccording to David Bordwell:

“the new screenplay manuals’ reliance on act structure, page counts, character arcs and the mythic journey did not overturn the Classic Hollywood dramaturgy. Rather, these procedures filled it in, fine-tuned it, left less to trial and error” (2006)

Hollywood Now: Some ConclusionsDistribution & Exhibition

Film revenue is no longer solely dependent on box office receipts

The increasing importance of distributing films through many windows is now what secures as film’s financial success

From 1950 to mid 1970s, the film majors exploited the popularity of television selling films to networks and syndicates

Hollywood Now: Distribution and Exhibition

In 1975, the introduction of Time Inc Home Box Office TV and Sony’s Betamax VCR provided the film industry with new outlets for their products

Video, DVD, television, cable, satellite, internet and digital channels are new “alternative distribution windows”

Hollywood Now: Typical Distribution Sequence

Initial theatrical release of six months

DVD window for an indefinite period – many of the majors now have own DVD labels and rental companies so they do not need to sell video rights to another company

Pay/ subscription/ digital television window for approximately one year

Terrestrial television window

Hollywood Now: Distribution and Exhibition

Today a major financier-distributor stands between the producer and the exhibitor

For most part the distributor dictates the terms of its deal with the exhibitor as well: the nature of the run, the length of the engagement, the advertising to be employed and the financial split of box-office receipts between various parties

Hollywood NowThe six Hollywood majors – each owned by large media- effectively dominate international film industry.

Individual studios involved in fierce competition with each other – but outside USA and in courts etc they stick closely together.

Hollywood is in effect the MPAA, controlled by the six majors.

Hollywood NowCustoms and Practices

• self-censorship through MPAA certification of films

•General agreement on average budget for mainstream film ($70 million + $30 million for marketing and P&A) (“print and advertising”)

•Importance of script development

•Use of test screenings and audience feedback before release

•Maintenance of technical quality through professional bodies

•Industry awards such as the Oscars to confirm “standards”

Hollywood NowHollywood operates an “oligopoly” – a market controlled by group of powerful organisations.

Cost of entry to market very high – each studio spends $1 billion + on “slate” of films.

NO guarantee they will make money – have enough resources to sustain losses in one year and make back losses in next.

Corporations also have range of other media products generating income at same time.

Hollywood NowInstitutional features of mainstream studio film

• major stars

•Stars usually more important than director

•Big promotional campaign

•Wide distribution

•Clear story structure

•Recognisable genre elements (even if “generic hybrids”)

•Targets all or most audience groups