Activity One

1. Hollywood Studio System

Start with providing some background information on the Hollywood studio system in the 1930s and 40s. Some options include:

• Have the students watch the American Masters film on David O. Selznick and Alfred Hitchcock. Lead a discussion on the film, focusing on the studio system.
• Assign a research paper on the topic. Students may use library and Internet sources for information, and should include a bibliography and footnotes in the report.
• Make this lesson part of a larger unit on film history.

2. Posterboard Project Assignment

Have students break up into small groups of 3-4. The assignment is to compare Hollywood in the 30s and 40s to Hollywood today. Students choose one of the following categories:

• movies
• famous actors or actresses
• film directors

Within the chosen category, they will do research to select a specific film, actor, or director of the 30s or 40s. They will also select a matching film, actor, or director of today, and compare the two. See the student organizer, which suggests some questions they can explore.

Movie

• Who directed and acted in the movie? (Enhance posterboard with pictures.)
• What studio produced distributed the movie?
• How much did the movie cost to make?
• What genre was the movie?
• What did reviewers say about the movie? Write a capsule review of the movie, or use excerpts from real reviews of the period.

Actor or Actress

• What other movies did this person star in? (Enhance posterboard with pictures.)
• When did this person's career start and end?
• Did this person work for a single movie company during his or her career, or many? Which ones?
• What did this person get paid to act in movies? Or what was the average pay of a movie actor at the time?
• Did this person specialize in a particular genre of movie?
• How did this person's career change over time?

Director

• What other films did this person direct? (Enhance posterboard with pictures.)
• Did this person work for a movie studio, or were they independent?
• Would you describe this director as an "auteur"? Why?
• Was this director famous for a particular genre or style of film?
• Did this person specialize in a particular genre of movie?
• Did this director have any special style or technique that was unique?
• How did this person's career change over time?

The students can demonstrate the comparison creatively on the posterboard, using pictures of movie posters, stars, and directors, capsule movie reviews they write themselves, director's filmographies, and newspaper clippings. These things can be copied from books and period magazines, available at the library, and from newspapers and magazines they have at home.

Finally, it would be a good idea to go over some basic film vocabulary, or you can make this part of the research assignment.

Auteur (auteur theory): according to auteur theory, the director of a film is its author, because the director creates and executes a unique vision, marking the film with a signature style. Others disagree with this theory, because films are complex to produce and could not be made without the collaboration of a large team. In the Hollywood studio system, the director was considered to be just part of the team, while the producer was supposed to provide the unique signature.

Capsule review: a short movie review.

Continuity editing (or continuity cutting): part of the basics of "film language", continuity cutting was developed early in the 20th century. A system of editing movies that provides clear and continuous movement.

Filmography: a complete list of films by a particular actor or director, usually organized by year.

Genre: a way of categorizing films according to styles and themes (westerns, sci-fi, etc.)

Independent film: films not produced by a major movie studio. An independent film has to find funding and distribution that would otherwise be provide by the studio.

3. Film History Gallery

Set up the posterboards all around the classroom and let students circulate and see them all. You could also invite other classes and even parents to the event.

4. Final Discussion

Lead a discussion of Hollywood then and now. Based on their research, what has changed and what has stayed the same?

Some ideas:

• Cost of movies then and now - what are budgets spent on (stars, special effects)?
• Women in the movies: what are the differences in standards for women and men in the movies, then and now?
• What kinds of things are/were scandalous or forbidden in movies?
• What genres are/were popular? Are there new genres now?
• Have existing genres changed? (For instance, how has the "western" genre changed?)
• For a class that has previously studied film: How have film styles changed? (Cinematography, editing...)
• How has the role of the director changed?

Assessment

Students will be assessed on the quality of their participation in class discussions, and on the group posterboard activity. Students can also assess one another.

Extension Activities

1. Connect this lesson plan to other American Masters lessons to develop the theme of "what makes an American Master."
2. For older students, you might require an individual research paper rather than a group posterboard presentation.
3. This could be part of a larger media studies unit. Combine it with other lesson plans about film history.
4. If possible, screen a famous movie from the 1930s and 40s with the class. 

Next: Organizers for Students >>>

Visit PBS TeacherSource