The Film Industry In The 1950's

Filmmakers were forced to adapt, changing the industry. By the Second World War, the film industry cooperated with the government, to gain support towards the war effort. Cinema began to have a great cultural impact, becoming the mass medium for consumption of information and ideas. This influence occurred slowly and sublimely, deeply rooted and enduring in society. Following the Great Depression and World War Two, the film industry became lucrative before the advent of the home television during the late 1940s. Studios fought for the declining viewing audiences that still frequented the theater, exploiting the advantages of viewing in color on a larger screen as opposed to black and white on a smaller television screen. By the 1950s, fifty percent of American feature films were made in color. The
Real life was captured, in an attempt to reflect real life. However, this would prove limiting, not allowing for stories to be transformed into a realm of unfamiliarity for the viewing audience. If the exotic were desired, the filming itself would take place on location. This was often difficult at the turn of the 20th Century when international travel was limited. Early stage theater techniques of fabricating a scene were slowly adopted by the industry. Fabrication of three-dimensional sets was first pioneered in Europe. By the 1920s, most American movies were domestically produced with the film industry moving to Hollywood. Studios set up their faux towns and cities, reminisce of all architectural periods and regionalities, artificially constructed on large plots of land. The depicted built environment was under complete control. Often the past was represented with fallacy, exaggerated with little concern as to accuracy. Local architects were versed in both practice and film, called upon for reproduction of the ideal