<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > preface</h1>
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, "During the Great Depression, when people were in higher spirits than ever, for just 15 cents, an American could go to a movie, see a baby's smiling face, forget his troubles, and that's a remarkable thing." ”
President Franklin D. Roosevelt
On October 29, 1929, the U.S. stock market suddenly collapsed, thus beginning a 10-year-long economic crisis, known as the "Great Depression". During this period, factories collapsed, banks went bankrupt, workers lost their jobs, the U.S. economy was hit hard, and all walks of life were in a depression. However, even in such a social context, there are still individual industries that have flourished, achieving the so-called "flying against the trend". This includes the film industry. So, how does it do it? This article takes you through three aspects: technology, content and marketing.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" >01 Technical level: from silent to audible, filmmakers are full of ambition</h1>
The American film industry before the Great Depression was in a major transition period from silent to sound films, and filmmakers invested huge sums of money, eager to recover costs and make profits.
Movie poster for the Gaumont Company in France in 1908. On film screenings, they use their own air compression phonographs to project sound.
Before the Great Depression, after 30 years of development, the film industry had formed a complete industrial chain from production to distribution. Technically, it is also in a major transition period. As we all know, early films were silent "silent films". Until October 6, 1927, the first truly sound film in the history of world cinema, the musical drama feature film "Jazz Singer" produced by Warner Bros. Pictures in the United States, was officially released and achieved great success, bringing the film industry from the silent era to the sound era in one fell swoop.
In 1927, the pioneering work of the sound film: "Jazz Singer" poster.
The 89-minute jazz singer uses a disc system developed by Vitaphone to record and play the sound, soundtrack and dialogue in the film for the first time. At the premiere scene, when the film was halfway through the screening, the protagonist said the first line, when the audience was suddenly shocked, and when they understood what was going on, they burst into warm applause. There are six songs in this film, and after each song is sung, the scene is full of thunderous applause.
This is Vitaphone's self-developed audio disc system, which realizes the leap of film from silent to sound.
"Jazz Singer" cost $422,000 to produce, and normally Warner Bros. Pictures doesn't invest more than $250,000 in a film. At that time, their financial situation was already in jeopardy, and this huge investment was undoubtedly equivalent to a big gamble. They won the bet! The introduction of sound technology made this unprecedented film gross $2.625 million worldwide, breaking Warner Bros. Pictures' all-time box office record and ranking third in the U.S. film box office that year. In 1996, Jazz Singer was selected as a film of "cultural, historical or aesthetic significance" kept by the National Film Register. In 1998, it was voted one of the best American films of all time by the American Film Institute, ranking 90th.
In the cinema of the 1930s, there were pianos and other instruments played live for silent films in front of the screen, setting off the atmosphere.
Although there is finally a sound in the film, it is still in its infancy. From the film shooting equipment and technology, to the cinema projection equipment and environment, it needs to be upgraded. To this end, American film companies have invested huge sums of money, and the film industry seems to have gained a new life overnight, showing a thriving scene. All the filmmakers are full of ambition, ready to go, ready to do a big job.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" >02 Content level: From entertainment to inspiration, filmmakers follow the trend</h1>
The Great Depression brought great challenges to the American film industry, but the film industry also profoundly influenced the Great Depression through a series of classics, creating a "golden age" in the history of American cinema.
Hollywood in Los Angeles became the dream factory of the American film industry.
After "Jazz Singer", American cinema entered the era of sound, Hollywood began to rise, luxury theaters gradually emerged, and the entire industry made great progress. But a sudden great depression poured cold water on the booming film industry. By 1932, the number of people in the full-scale film had plummeted from 90 million to 60 million per week, and the average ticket price had dropped by 10 cents, causing the studio a loss of $56 million. With the exception of MGM, almost all other Hollywood studios began to lose money. To get through the storm, the studio reacted quickly. They restructure their businesses, request government assistance, cut budgets, cut staff, and close theaters when the audience is low.
Hollywood's movie stars, it was their outstanding performances that created the golden age of American cinema.
In addition, the studios are trying to change from the source — that is, to produce top-quality films that have the potential to re-attract audiences to the cinema. At that time, the film works were divided into categories A and B. Class B is generally a small-budget film with relatively low quality. But not for Category A movies. Not only is the content often adapted from popular or award-winning literary works, the storyline is fascinating, but there are also star-studded stars who will do their best in marketing and publicity. So, during that period, Hollywood studios continued to invest heavily, bringing together an all-star cast to produce a large number of classics in film history.
In 1939, the classic "Gone with the Wind", produced by the Selznick International Film Company, was a microcosm of that era.
It can be said that Hollywood at that time was like a dream factory, producing movies that were either entertaining, ironic, or inspirational, and they allowed the American people who were struggling in the economic crisis to temporarily escape the harsh reality, obtain spiritual pleasure, and strengthen their faith in the future. During this period, impressive classics emerged in various genre films. This period, which lasted until the 1940s, is also known as the "Golden Age" in the history of American cinema. Here are the 10 great films that were born during the Great Depression, sorted by year of production:
No War on the Western Front (1930)
Enemy of the Nation (1931)
King Kong (1933)
Duck Soup (1933)
One Night (1934)
Modern Times (1936)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
Gone with the Wind (1939)
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Mr. Smith to Washington (1939)
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" >03 Marketing level: From price cuts to giveaways, filmmakers are creative</h1>
The arrival of the Great Depression inspired the creativity of filmmakers, and various marketing methods emerged in an endless stream. People re-enter the cinema not only for the quality of the film, but also for the benefits of these benefits.
Movie promotional posters from the Great Depression.
As the saying goes, "the aroma of wine is still afraid of the deep alley". At that time, filmmakers had deeply realized that it was not enough to just produce good movies, but also to carry out active publicity and effective marketing. During the Great Depression, movie theaters in Seattle, USA, would publish daily promotional advertisements for movies and wonderful reviews from film critics on the "Entertainment" section of the Seattle Times. To a certain extent, this has stimulated the interest of people who are deeply trapped in a difficult life to watch movies.
American cinemas during the Great Depression.
As for the specific marketing measures, even compared with today's marketers, they are not inferior. First, cinemas have reduced ticket prices by 50 percent, or more. For only 10 or 15 cents to watch a movie, "discounts" are a promotional "killer" that will never go out of style in any one era. Second, a movie ticket can see two films, or even more. For example, for the same money, you can watch a Class A movie and a Class B movie, and you can even watch a news clip or cartoon. All in all, it feels like it's great value for money. Third, different viewing periods, different fares. For example, a movie theater in Seattle introduced a promotion policy in the summer, and before 7 p.m., it only costs 10 cents to watch a movie. Watching the rest of the night, you only pay another 15 cents. Does this sound like the "night-pack" sales policy implemented by Internet cafes in some cities now?
A giveaway that the American people have preserved and received during the Great Depression "Food Night".
In addition to the above marketing methods, the most intelligent filmmakers have also introduced the concept of "giveaways" into the promotion of movies and played them to the fullest. For example, in the "Food Night" promotion, any participating lady can get a free dinner plate, or a lottery ticket to redeem gold with a seat number lottery, or a silver tableware. They would deliberately take apart a set of fine silver cutlery and give away only one of them for each movie. Many housewives regularly walk into the cinema again and again in order to collect this seemingly precious set of tableware for free.
During the Great Depression, American women who walked into movie theaters in search of temporary relief.
It is particularly worth mentioning that the marriage of popcorn and cinema also occurred in that era. After the film enters the sound age, chewing delicious popcorn while watching a movie in the movie theater will no longer have too much impact on the people around you as in the silent film era. Popcorn has thus become one of the few items that can be licensed for sale in cinemas. Such a move also added a new source of income to the cinema, a habit that continues to this day.
The Great Depression witnessed the golden age in the history of American cinema.
This series of marketing combinations punched down, creating a feeling in people's hearts that watching a movie seems necessary, but it is cheap, and it is part of daily life.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > summary</h1>
At one point in 1933, the nationwide box office receipts fell to $480 million, but by 1941 that number had slowly risen to $810 million. Therefore, the reason why the American film industry was able to retreat from that difficult era, and even really "fly against the trend", is inseparable from people's desire to escape from reality and pursue entertainment, but it is also the result of filmmakers across the United States giving full play to their creativity and working together.
A luxurious cinema during the Great Depression.
Today, nearly a hundred years have passed in the blink of an eye. The rapid development of the film industry is no longer the same as that of that year. Today, an outbreak called the "new coronavirus" is sweeping the world, and the film industry is once again facing the brunt of the test. Do you believe that waiting for the epidemic to pass, as long as filmmakers combine the current actual situation and exert their creativity like a hundred years ago, they will once again achieve "flying against the trend"? (Text/World History)