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Production, Consumption, Reproduction
A Brief and Completely General History of Production in
the Culture Industries
1930-1965: Vertical Integration
The Studio System.
All work is done in different departments of a single firm-- comissioning
writiers, scripting, casting, finance, marketing, production, rights, contracts,
sales and design.
Top-down production, with a clear hierarchy of control.
1965-1985: Vertical Disintegration
Firms begin to contract with smaller companies, or individuals as needed,
rather than paying the costs of maintaining a labour force.
The studio finances the film, and puts production in the hands of a
producer who contracts out for studio space, set designers, costume, special
effects, editing etc.
The studio distributes it.
Rather than a clear hierarchy of firms, a transaction-rich web of specialized
firms emerges. Some of these "firms" are also individuals, who
now must represent themselves as a company, rather than as workers.
1985-Present: Horizontal Integration, or Vertical Re-integration
The major media conglomerates now control distribution and financing,
which puts producers and directors (and the studios themselves) at their
mercy.
Most films cannot be made without the help of a major media corporation,
and even if they could be, they can only be distributed by the mega-conglomerates.
The result is that the fianancing corporations take an increasingly
greater interest in the making of a film (witness the spate of "director's
cut" films that have appeared since 1985).
8 may 1997