What was it?
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Essentially, the Hollywood Studio System was
a way to mass produce movies
Each studio was a massive lot that took up
acres and acres of land
Studios were complete with several different
sets (Western town, New York Avenue,
European Village, horror castle, etc)
Also included in studios were any prop,
costume, or piece of equipment one could
ever need to make a movie
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As film grew more and more popular
throughout the 1920’s, Americans demanded
more quality films quicker
The studio system was the answer—a way to
mass produce movies in one area
Eventually, five major studios emerged
Paramount
MGM
This is a New York City street set
from the 1920’s
Warner Brothers
Fox
And RKO
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Costume designer
Seamstress
Hair Designer
Set Designer
Music director
Technical Crew:
◦ Cinematographer
(lighting)
◦ The Grip
(Arranged the Set)
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Special Effects
department
◦ Find ways to bring
the impossible to
life—King Kong, Oz,
Frankenstein, etc
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Director
◦ Responsible for
guiding the acting
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Producer
◦ Brought all the pieces
together
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Oversaw the studio;
had a final say on all
decisions
To the Right: Louis B.
Mayer, head of MGM
With the continued
success of the film
industry, dictators
became very, VERY
wealthy (and ruthful)
The life of a Studio System
Actor
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Actors were contracted to a studio and
expected to make a certain number of films
in a given time.
Actors did not agree to how many hours they
would work, and were at the mercy of the
studio
Ralph Bellamy was contracted to appear in
thirteen feature films in one year; rebelled
when he was asked to work straight through
without a single days rest between films
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Actors had not formed Unions yet, so the
studio held a lot of power
1927 Actors Equity Association tried to
organize
Mayer, against unionization of actors, formed
the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences
◦ The Academy would be responsible for mediating
any conflicts between actors and studios
◦ The idea never fully came to fruition; however, an
awards show did come out of this
◦ 1933 Screen Actor’s Guild formed; has represented
the stars since. (unions vs. guilds)
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Despite the harsh studio demands, many
actors and actresses became household
names
Stars were read about in fan magazines
During making of films, wore makeup to
cover up any imperfections
Movie stars represented escape for
Americans, and offered different types of
escape throughout the Golden Age of
Hollywood. . .
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Rudolph Valentino
◦ Seen as the exotic
hero for women
◦ The Shiek
◦ Represented the
unreachable,
romanticized ideal
from a faraway land
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Gary Cooper, Clark
Gable, Cary Grant
All “Good Guys”
who could be
depended on to be
brave and noble
Handsome and
manly
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More sophisticated,
tougher hero
Someone who
became more
cynical and less
idealistic
Humphrey Bogart
Burt Lancaster
Judy Garland
Ingrid Berman
Gene Kelly
Most Famous Role:
Singin’ in the Rain
James Stewart
Most Famous Role:
It’s a Wonderful Life
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Studio System, through mass producing
movies, did several things:
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Delivered volume of films to American people
Created the Golden Age of Hollywood
Turned actors and actresses into stars
Made a ton of money in the process
Moviemaking
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Film vs.Video
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As noted:
Film stock is the imaging device for
motion picture film
CCD or CMOS is the imaging
device for video
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Picture resolution as
discussed
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Major Movie Studios
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Paramount (including MTV Films, etc. -Viacom / CBS )
One of the oldest, largest and most well
known movie production and distribution
companies. Only studio IN Hollywood.
Founded in 1912 by Hungarian-born
Adolph Zukor.
Currently owned by Viacom Inc.
Paramount held the record for highest
grossing film at the box office
(unadjusted)--Titanic 1997 grossed
$1,842,879,955 at the world wide box
office, with a domestic total gross of
$600,788,188.
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Paramount Behind
the Scenes...
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Paramount Behind
the Scenes...
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Paramount Behind
the Scenes...
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Paramount Behind
the Scenes...
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Paramount Behind
the Scenes...
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Major Movie Studios
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Warner Bros. -- Burbank, CA
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One of world's largest and most
successful film producing and distributing
companies.
Originally founded in 1918 by four
brothers, who were immigrants from
Poland.
The third oldest of Hollywood studios,
and is one of the original pioneers in the
film industry.
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Major Movie Studios
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Sony Pictures
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Walt Disney (Buena Vista Distribution)
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Owned by News Corporation
Universal
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Founded in 1923 by Roy & Walt Disney
20th Century Fox
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1987, Columbia Pictures Entertainment
(Columbia and Tri-Star Studios)
NBC Universal. Now owned by Comcast.
Founded in Los Angeles in June, 1912 by
a German Jewish immigrant: Carl
Laemmle
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Other Movie Studios
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Dreamworks SKG (Spielberg)
New Line Cinema
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Miramax
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Founded in 1967. In 1996 it became a
subsidiary of Time Warner. In 2008,
ceased independent operations as a
movie studio / absorbed into Warner
Brothers.
founded by Harvey Weinstein and Bob
Weinstein in 1979; bought by Disney in
1993, sold in 2010.
Lionsgate
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5 stages of
moviemaking
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Filmmaking vs. moviemaking
Development
Pre-production
Production
Post-Production
Distribution and exhibition
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Development
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Who can pitch, to whom do you
pitch, optioning a script / step deal
The script is written and drafted
into a workable blueprint for a film
Decisions made about stars
(‘packaging’) and initial casting,
location, budgets
Who is calling the shots?
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Development steps...
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Producer finds a story (from...)
After identifying a theme or underlying
message, the producer works with
writers to prepare a synopsis
They produce a step outline, (or scene
outline) breaking the story down into
one-paragraph scenes that concentrate
on dramatic structure
Then, they prepare a treatment, a 25 to
30 page description of the story, its
mood, and characters
‘Notes’ along the way
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Development
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Next, a screenwriter writes a screenplay
over a period of several months.
The screenwriter may rewrite it several
times to improve dramatization, clarity,
structure, characters, dialogue, and
overall style. Other writers may be
brought in.
BUT, Producers often skip the previous
steps and develop submitted
screenplays -- which investors, studios,
and other interested parties assess
through a process called script coverage.
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Development...
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A film distributor may be contacted -assess the likely market and potential
financial success of the film.
Hollywood distributors consider:
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the film genre, the target audience,
the historical success of similar films
actors who might appear, potential
directors.
All these factors imply a certain appeal
of the film to a possible audience and
hence the number of "A.I.S." during the
theatrical release.
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Development...
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Not all films make a profit from theatrical
release -- DVD sales and worldwide...
Producer & screenwriter prepare a pitch
and present it to potential financiers. If
the pitch is successful, the film (or TV
show) receives a "green light”
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May be ‘optioned’
The parties negotiate a deal and sign
contracts. Once the deal is set, the film
may proceed into the pre-production
period.
By this stage, the film should have a
clearly defined marketing strategy and
target audience.
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Pre-production
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Preparations are made for the
shoot
Cast and crew are hired
UPM -- script breakdown
Locations are selected
Sets are built
Equipment secured / leased
Script re-writes and staff
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Pre-production
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The production company is created
and a production office
established.
The production is storyboarded
and visualized with the help of
illustrators and concept artists.
A production budget is drawn up to
plan expenditures for the film.
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Production
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Actual shooting of the raw
elements
Crew members sharing the
‘Director’s Vision’
Call sheets etc
Studio stages, Locations,
department heads, 2nd units
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Post-Production
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Transfer to digital, then editing
Dialogue editing / including ADR
Music tracks (and songs) composed,
performed, recorded
Scenes are scored
Sound effects are designed and
recorded
Computer-graphic 'visual' effects are
digitally added,
All sound elements are mixed into
"stems," then the stems are mixed, then
married to picture
The film is fully completed ("locked")
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Once Locked...
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The film is passed into the hands of the
postproduction supervising sound editor
to layer the sound track.
Voice recordings are synchronized
The final sound mix is created by the rerecording mixer.
The sound mix combines dialogue,
sound effects, ADR, walla, Foleys and
music.
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Sales and distribution
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The film is screened for potential
buyers (distributors)
It is picked up by a distributor and
reaches its cinema and/or home
media audience.
Promotion and marketing -advertising, actor appearances,
etc. $$$
‘Straight to DVD’ ?
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Major Positions
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Above the line -- $$
Residuals / owners
Producer, Director, Writer, Actors
Producer
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Hires a crew
The nature of the film and the budget,
determine the size and type of crew used
during filmmaking
Many Hollywood blockbusters employ a
cast and crew of hundreds
A low-budget, independent film may be
made by a skeleton crew of eight or nine
(or fewer).
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Director
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Primarily responsible for the
storytelling, creative decisions and
acting of the film.
Established versus emerging
directors
Film school graduates
‘Author’ of a movie, while the
Producer is ‘author’ of a TV show
‘Director’s cuts’ of movies
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Famous TV
Producers / Movie
Directors
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Dick Clark, Gene Roddenberry,
Norman Lear, Aaron Spelling,
Jerry Bruckheimer, Chuck Lorre...
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Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee,
Oliver Stone, James Cameron,
George Lucas, Ron Howard, Tim
Burton, JJ Abrams...
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Below the Line
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Director of Photography (DP)
The cinematographer who supervises
the photography of the entire film
A chief over the camera and lighting
crews working on a film
Responsible for achieving artistic and
technical decisions related to the image
Some professionals insist that the term
cinematographer only applies when the
director of photography and camera
operator are the same person
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Unit Production
Manager (UPM)
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Responsible for watching all the costs--to
deliver the project on budget at the end of
principal photography.
Lead dept. managers, script breakdown.
Producers responsible for cost-related
decisions on above-the-line (primarily,
casting) issues; UPM responsible for
below-the-line (primarily, production
period) costs.
The film’s director has the final say on the
cinematographer, costume designer,
production designer, and film editor; UPM
makes the deals and hires the remaining
crew.
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Production Coordinator
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Serves under the UPM to coordinate the
various groups and personnel that come
together to make a movie or TV show.
Requires organizational skills and the
ability to handle a multitude of tasks
simultaneously under often highpressure situations.
Duties are often undefined and
extremely varied ranging from office
manager, to human resources, to
controller, to accountant.
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Other major positions
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Casting Director
Location Manager
Line Producer
Production Designer *
Sound Designer
Art Director
Editor *
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Discussion
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How much control does a Producer
have on a project?
How much control does a writer have
on the actual implementation and
production of a script (s)he has sold to
a Producer?
How involved is the Director typically
in casting a film?
(more)
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Discussion
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What is involved in Production
Design?
What is involved in Sound Design?
What is and how important is product
placement?
How important is casting?
Does the director direct talent or crew?
What are some issues about location
shooting?
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