Movies Flashcards
(40 cards)
Movies as Modern Mythmakers
Tell communal stories
Evoke and symbolize our most enduring values and secret desires
Make the world seem clearer, more manageable, and more understandable
Industry reacts quickly to social events and cultural shifts.
Movies distract us from our daily struggles.
Encourage us to rethink contemporary ideas
Movies
Overlapped and Subsumed both Radio and TV
Continues to be a more intense experience than other media.
Individual experience
Darkened room,
As opposed to a social during the event
Nothing to interrupt concentration
A special power to shape cultural values.
Movies Work because of the phenomena “Persistence of vision”…
The human eye retains an image for a fraction of an instant… if a series of photographs capture, serially something in motion and if those images are flipped quickly the eye and the consciousness perceive continuous motion.
Early Development of the Technology
1888 William Dickson of Edison’s lab made the 1st motion picture camera.
It used Celluloid film of George Eastman… Eastman/Kodak
1891 Edison was producing movies for his kinotoscope (peepshow)… movement single angle wide frame of continuous action…boxing match waves hitting a beach… eventually a large screen picture called a
vitascope.
Lumiere Brothers
in France invented projection of motion pictures and in 1895 open the first motion picture exhibit hall in Paris.
Initially a curiosity but became a mass media when…
Narrative films appeared (Movies that tell stories)
George Melies
opened the first public movie theater in Paris1896.
He understood that a movie could be planned and controlled like a stage play.
Produced fairy tales and science fiction stories like “Trip to the Moon”.
He was a magician first and introduced special effects, slow motion, animation.
Edwin Porter
Pioneered technique of editing diverse shots together to tell a coherent story.
The Life of an American Firefighter… 10 minutes long. 1902 First American narrative movie.
He moving the camera varied distance from subjects and objects… first close-up
The great Train Robbery. Here he Demonstrated art of film suspense through alternating shots of robbers with scenes of the posse pursuit.
Arrival of Nickelodeons…
Arrival of film as mass media
At first spaces converted from other uses.
Typical showings one hour. News, documentaries, comedy fantasy, and dramatic shorts.
The Nickelodeons:
Usually able to transcend language barriers so it flourished during the great European immigration at turn of the century…
Inexpensive escape as well as a way to learn English.
Minimal investment Business: projector and a large white sheet.
By 1908 displaced vaudeville theaters as primary venue for movies.
By 1910
the industry had established its 3 major divisions:
Production make
Distribution deliver Exhibition show Much of Film business history involves the studios vying to dominate the other two industry divisions.
Technology Cartel
Edison formed Motion Picture Patent Company.
Cartel of US and French film producers to control technology patents.
Acquired most major film distributors
Exclusive right to Eastman’s movie film.
Sell only to Trust Approved companies.
Adolph Zukor & William Fox
They ignored the trust
In Hollywood California… far from NY and Paris
Near Mexico
Cheap labor, mild weather for year round shooting
Breaking one Trust to control Another
Suit by Fox distributor and a nickelodeon operator broke up the Trust for restraint of trade violations in 1917.
Zukor went on to try to monopolize the industry himself
Another Vertical integration of industry production, distribution and exhibition.
Fan Mail
1910 first fan mail to find out who actors were… originally no credits for actors… fear that with popularity they could ask for more $$$.
Start of the Studio System
Zukor organized Famous Players company… of popular actors.
He exerted control by exclusive contracts with most popular performers that attracted the largest audiences.
He understood difference between screen acting and stage acting.
“America’s Sweetheart”
First Super Star Mary Pickford
Key figure in elevating financial status and professional role of actors.
1910 $100 a week, 1914 $1,000 per week,
Appeared in 200 films
Mary Pickford
Broke with Zukor 1919 to form United Artists.
Joined by Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin.
Triumphed for a time but then fell prey to the…
Studio System
Assembly line movie making
Not only actors on exclusive contract but also directors, editors, writers, and all other movie trades.
So efficient each studio produced about 1 film per week.
Choke Point: Controlling Distribution
The Trust used block booking technique
To get access to popular movies with stars, exhibitors had to also take new or marginal films with no stars.
Many possible clunkers to get a few Pickfords.
Test market a new star at little risk.
Success of Early Distribution System
Eventually outlawed as monopolistic but was effective while it lasted as a guarantee to financial success in a competitive market.
Marketed American films in Europe. Their industry disrupted by WWI and therefore allowed US to dominate from the start. By mid 20’s $100 million in foreign revenue.
Controlling Exhibition
Theater owners tried to form cooperatives to break block-book practice.
Zukor himself owned 300 theaters. Then merged with largest theater owner Publix for combined total of 800 theaters.
Zukor & the 5 Majors Realized
Needed to control only first run theaters
15% of 20,000 at the time, to control the industry.
Through the 1940’s these venues accounted for 85 to 95% of film revenue.
Movie attendance peaked in 1946 at 90 million tickets per week.
Genres:
Westerns Gangsters Horror Fantasy/Science Fiction Musicals Film Noir
Comedy Drama Romance Action/Adventure Mystery/suspense
