Hollywood Studio System Task: 5 Questions


 1. During which decades was the Hollywood studio system at its most powerful?

1930s and 1940s

2. What were the major "big five" studios?

Warner Brothers, RKO, Fox, MGM and Paramount. 

3. What areas and roles in film production did the studio system have direct control over?

The studio system had direct control over every role in film production, everyone was for hire and made the films that the studio wanted them to make.

4. Why was this factory method of production successful?

This factory method of production was successful because of how cheap it was to visit the cinema during the great depression in comparison to other forms of entertainment like theater and concerts, the studio system in Hollywood capitalised on this by releasing a new film every week, using the stars to promote it. 

5. Why did the studio system lose power and control in the 1950s and 1960s?  

The studio system lost power in the 1950s and 1960s for a multitude of different reasons. The first one being the court case between the United States and Paramount in 1948, which Paramount lost. This decision outlawed block booking and forced studios to sell their theater chains. Another reason the studio system lost power was because of the fast rise of television, now for cheap and easy to access entertainment, consumers could do so from the comfort of their own home. Another reason the studio system lost power, and the final reason is the failure to appeal to new youth audience, this meant the studios gave full control and large budgets to younger directors.

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