The Studio System

The studio system consisted of a small number of major studios (Paramount, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox and RKO) during the first decade of the 20th Century. The studio system, according to Barsham and Monahan 5th Edition the classical Hollywood studio system the actors’ box office appeal depended on their ability to project a screen image that audiences would love and aspire to look like. These actors were then signed to a studio which allowed them the opportunity to have steady careers. During the era of the studio system films were mass produced this led to quantity between 400- 500 films a year. This marked a key moment in the film industry in which genres were created. This also led to famous actors drawing the audience to the film. Furthermore the genre created a level of …show more content…
With the cinema experiencing noticing an upward trend in ticket sales. The structure according consisted of 4 groups Major, Minor, most significant “B” (Poverty Row), and most significant Independent Producers. The Major Studio at that time consisted of five studios and these studios were large corporations and were viewed as “A” pictures. They were the movies that were the main feature in the theater. The Minor Studios which were three studios (Universal Studios, Columbia Pictures and United Artist) though two had their own production companies they did not have their own theaters. United Artist was considered a studio though it mainly focused on the distribution. United Artist was founded in 1919 by such names as Charlie Chaplin (comedy star), Mary Pickford and her husband Douglas Fairbanks(the popular film stars) and D.W Griffith the director. They were the leading filmmakers of their era. The company also handled the distributions of the films. United Artist was the first major production studio to be controlled by the