The invention of motion pictures have captivated audiences all over the world with their unique way of telling a story; through moving pictures. The article Structure of New Hollywood explains the little known history behind original film production, distribution and exhibition. As photography entered society during the 19th century, a group of inventors found a way to display a toy with the capability of showing a series of pictures in a rapid progression. This created the illusion of a moving storybook with a rapid succession of events you could just watch instead of having to read or analyze for context. This tool was called a zoetrope and became wildly popular by society. This inspired a scientist to try using the zoetrope to portray the illusion of a horse galloping which won prizes and was even showcased at Stanford for it’s heightened quality during this early period when film was still being adapted.

Since then movies have given people the freedom to experience events through the feelings of being there and experiencing the emotions of as if they really were in that present moment. Audiences are able to relive moments of immense joy, heartbreak, romance, adrenaline and so much more through watching a movie being played on a screen. Since movie theaters have advanced in technology, screens have gotten bigger and 3D has become a desirable form of viewing by simply wearing a special pair of glasses.

The original movie production companies started out as 5 major competitors. Nobody really knew what to expect from these early films as directors and motion picture companies were still figuring out what would attract the public. These succeeded onto classic-novel adaptations, recruiting attractive men and women to become actors that people would want to watch and then making the plot simplistic and easy for anyone to follow. Movies in the 20th century have evolved so much and movie plots are more complex (drawing interest) from the viewer. Movies are not a ‘one size fits all’ concept and are made with different visions and target different audiences. More types of people are also represented as actors and directors have had the ability to form characters into being more open-ended to create uniquely. Some things about the Industry have changed while some have stayed the same however this is all still evolving as time goes on.

Question for the class: What is your all time favorite movie and why?