Component 1 Section 1 - Hollywood 1930 - 1990 (comparative study)

THE GOLDEN AGE

Rise of studios around 1910, most of which are still prevalent today.

By the 1920s the 'studio system' was securely established with the 'big five' dominating film production.

These were: 20th Century Fox, Universal, Paramount, MGM and Warner.

Studio system:

Powerful studios because they were vertically integrated: produced, distributed and exhibited films

Consolidated all production under their studio

Studios focused on one genre

Produced films back-to-back - had the actors and the set design

Compared to assembly-line production on a conveyor belt

Highly popular with audiences

Dominant genres - formulaic - filled audience expectations

The star-system:

Particular actors signed up for long and unbreakable contracts to a studio

Typed cast in one role linked to genre (e.g. John Wayne in westerns)

Hollywood Old and New: An Overview

1920s - 1948: Golden, 'old' or 'classical' age
1948 - 'New' after the decline of the Paramount laws
1960 - new generation of directors, relaxing of the Hays code (abolished in 1965, replaced by MPAA)
1990s - 'New' in a cinematic sense
last ten years - contemporary (but could be post-1990s)

Mainstream vs Indie

There is now an established independent cinema stream to compete alongside blockbusters and mainstream cinema

The tensions and conflict between these two traditions has waned, often with an overlap

Mainstream funding from major studios for high concept/big budget films aimed at wide audiences has coexisted with a steady flow and high popularity of indie films looking at alternative values and ideologies


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