Hollywood studio system

Answering Question 4 from my initial questions

Some suggest that Vertigo may have been authored by Hitchcock or the hollywood studio system. This could have been through Hitchcock possibly playing a contrutber but not a determining role. I do wonder if Vertigo would have been successful with the whole studio system.

Image – http://filmstore.bfi.org.uk/acatalog/hollywood_studio_system.jpg

The studio system was a means of film production and distribution dominant in Hollywood from the early 1920s through the 1950s. The term studio system refers to the practice of large motion picture studios producing movies primarily on their own filmmaking lots with creative personnel under often long-term contract and pursuing vertical integration through ownership or effective control of distributors and movie theaters, guaranteeing additional sales of films through manipulative booking techniques. A 1948 Supreme Court ruling against those distribution and exhibition practices hastened the end of the studio system. In 1954, the last of the operational links between a major production studio and theater chain was broken and the era of the studio system was officially over. The period stretching from the introduction of sound to the court ruling and the beginning of the studio breakups, 1927/29–1948/49, is commonly known as the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Decline of the Studio Era

Paramount and RKO were the first studios to agree to the government’s claims and to sign the Paramount Decree. The Studios were forced to divorce themselves of their exhibition outlets; hence there would be no more vertical integration. Consequently, blind bidding and block booking were abolished.

In the post-war years, American audiences began to lose interest in cinema. By 1950 attendance had dropped from 90 million per week in 1948 to 60 million, and by 1953 it was down to 43 million per week. There were many factors that contributed to the decline in audience figures. The most obvious reason behind this was the rise in television. This had the greatest effect between 1950 and 1956. Ownership of televisions went from 10.3 million in 1951, to 20.4 million in 53, to 34.9 million in 56. By 1959, 90% of American homes had televisions. However, television cannot be held solely responsible for the decline of the studio system, which began earlier, in the 1940′s. In fact the drop in attendance between 1949 and 1950 couldn’t be blamed on TV, because during this time there were only a handful of stations. In fact, the earlier fall in audience figures can be attributed to the change in audience lifestyles and leisure time amusements. People were becoming less interested in passive entertainment and took a greater interest in more participatory recreations such as gardening, golfing, bowling, hunting, fishing, and boating. The introduction of the five-day working week meant that people were able to go away for whole weekends.

(http://everything2.com/title/Hollywood+Studio+System Accessed 8th November 2009)

Through understanding this passage, it allows me to understand that the general public was not interested into watching films during the 1950′s. With this happening, would releasing Vertigo be a good thing to do or a bad thing.

Studios were forced to rent studio space to the independent producers to make money, and also distributed and marketed their films. By 1957 58% of films distributed by the Big 5 and Little 3 were independent films. United Artists were the leading distributors of independent films in the 1950′s. By the 1970′s the Hollywood majors had reclaimed their dominance over the independents.

All of these factors combine:

• 1948 Paramount Decree
• The rise in independent film
• Leasing of studio space
• Cost cutting at studios
• Short term contracts

Leading to the package unit system in the 50′s, which is still used today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_system (Accessed 8th November 2009

Question 9: With all of this in mind with the studio system, did the film Vertigo become successful?

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