From Silents to Studios

Part 1: Explore how the inclusion of sound in the movie pictures impacted the Movie Industry. Detail how it happened, who was effected, what was lost. 

By mid-1920s, the technology to incorporate sound is films had been developed and ready to use. However, major studios were doubtful of this new investment. Firstly, they were not sure if the audience would like sound in films. Also, including sound would mean more money being invested and change of established actors who did not fit the big screen because they accents or their voice didn't match their structure. Overall, including sound would mean a loss for studios who had invested so much in actors and it would also mean more effort would be needed to put into film making. At the time however, a studio by the name of Warner Brothers took the chance on a sound in film. Although executives of Warner Brothers didn't see a future for sound in film, they were struggling to survive and had to try something different from what every studio was currently doing. This meant experimenting with sound eve though most cinemas were not equipped with the appropriate technology. But those that did have sound installed in their cinemas were able to experience the first feature film with sound and dialogue, The Jazz Singer (1927) [the film seen in the clip]. Although only a total of 354 words were spoken and the film consisted mostly of background music, the film captured the public attention and the people were lining up from morning until night to get a glimpse of this new phenomenon. Seeing the success of the Jazz Singer and its successor The Singing Fool, both staring Al Jolson under Warner Brothers, other major studios started building sound stages and creating films known as "talkies."  

The "talkies" sadly ended careers of highly established actors and musicians. Many actors were unable to make the transition in favor of the "talkies." To save themselves, many took voice and diction lessons in hopes to continue their career. Many of the musicians who played the background music in local film theaters  were no longer needed and thus they lost their jobs as well. 

The addition of sound can be considered a step backwards in its early days. Although it appealed to an another sense, it created limitations for the film makers that they had to work around. One of them being the immobilization of cameras. Because the cameras made too much noise, they had to be put in soundproof enclosure. This way the microphones were not able to pick up the noise coming form the camera, but it also meant that it became almost impossible to add camera movements. This resulted in bland shots where and boring films. 


Part 2: The 20 years between 1930 and 1950 are generally recognized as the studio years. Describe what the pros and cons were of this factory system.

The studio/factory system was a type of control after the NPPA guild was ended by the government antitrust action. Studios such as 20th Century FOX, RKO, Warner Brothers, MGM, Paramount, Columbia, and many others created complex sound stages and tuned hundred of acres of land in CA into movie sets. Studio created films in this era just like factory workers made a product. Less time was put into each film and studios demanded more and more films to be made. In this system, a major studio hired a group of stars and a crew to complete films they were assigned. Because of their contract, they were not allowed to work for any other studio.

Although those were hard times for the cast and crew, the Studios became known for the type of films they were constantly distributing. For example, Warner Brother became known for its gangster films while 20th Century Fox became known for its historical and adventure films.