Hollywood in the Studio Era
From the 1920s to the 1950s Hollywood was a time dominated by 8 large studios. 'The Big Five' consisting of MGM, Warner, Paramount, RKO and Fox. These 5 studios produced and distributed their own films which they could display in their own personal theatre chains. 'The Little Three' made up of Universal, Columbia and United Artists also produced and distributed their own movies however they didn't have their own theatre chains. These 8 giants dominated the market, controlling the distribution of 95% of films shown in the USA.
The reason these studios were successful was because they had capitalised on the Studio System. The Studio System essentially was the method of film production used wherein large motion pictures produced entire movies on their own filmmaking lots using creative personnel, often under long term contracts. This process also involved controlling exhibition through vertical integration which essentially meant the ownership or effective control of distributors, guaranteeing additional sales of films through manipulative booking techniques such as block booking.
The term Studio Era referred to a combination of both the main 8 studios and the Studio System method they used to be so successful. The method was so successful that the Big Five ended up with a monopoly on the film industry causing legal action to be taken. Tactics such as block booking were heavily reduced and so eventually the Big Five got rid of their theatres to keep financial risk at a minimum, thus ending the studio era.
The reason these studios were successful was because they had capitalised on the Studio System. The Studio System essentially was the method of film production used wherein large motion pictures produced entire movies on their own filmmaking lots using creative personnel, often under long term contracts. This process also involved controlling exhibition through vertical integration which essentially meant the ownership or effective control of distributors, guaranteeing additional sales of films through manipulative booking techniques such as block booking.
The term Studio Era referred to a combination of both the main 8 studios and the Studio System method they used to be so successful. The method was so successful that the Big Five ended up with a monopoly on the film industry causing legal action to be taken. Tactics such as block booking were heavily reduced and so eventually the Big Five got rid of their theatres to keep financial risk at a minimum, thus ending the studio era.
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