A Timeline of Progression

1920's

The transition to sound-on-film technology occurred mid-decade with the talkies developed in 1926-1927, following experimental techniques begun in the late 1910s. With sound, the concept of the musical appeared immediately, as in The Jazz Singer of 1927, because silent films had been accompanied by music for years when projected in theaters.

1930's

Many full-length films were produced during the decade of the 1930s. A lot were fantastical and adventurous films to keep people's minds away from the Great Depression. The studio system was at its highest with studios having great control over a film's creative decision.

1940's

The decade of the 1940s in film involved many significant films. Hundreds of full-length films were produced during the decade of the 1940s. The great actor Humphrey Bogart made his most memorable films in this decade. Orson Welles's masterpiece Citizen Kane was also released. The film noir genre was at its height.

1950's

Films of the 1950s were of a wide variety. As a result of television, the studios and companies sought to put audiences back in theaters. They used a more techniques in presenting their films through widescreen and big-approach methods, such as Cinemascope, VistaVision, and Cinerama as well as gimmicks like 3-D film. Big production and spectacle films perfect for this gained popularity with the many historic and fantasy epics.

1960's

The decade is known for being prominent in historical drama, psychological horror, and comedy, as well as the sub-genres of spy film, sword and sandal, and spaghetti westerns, all peaking during this decade. Beginning in the middle of the decade due to the start of the cultural revolution and the abolishion of the Hays Code, films became increasingly experimental and daring and were taking shape of what was to define the 1970s.

1970's

In cinema all over the world, the seventies brought about vigor in adventurous, cool and realistic complex narratives with rich cinematography and elaborate scores. The decade opened with Hollywood facing a financial slump, reflecting the monetary woes of the nation as a whole during the first half of the decade. Despite this, the seventies proved to be a benchmark decade in the development of cinema, both as an art form and a business.

1980's

The 1980s saw the continued rise of the blockbuster, an increased amount of nudity in film and the increasing emphasis in the American industry on film franchises, especially in the science fiction, horror, and action genres. Much of the reliance on these effect-driven blockbusters was due in part to the Star Wars films at the advent of this decade and the new cinematic effects it helped to pioneer.

1990's

The 1990s were notable in both the rise of independent cinema - as well as independent studios such as Miramax, Lion's Gate, and New Line - and the advancements in CGI-technology, seen in such films as Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Jurassic Park. The Disney Renaissance begins in 1989 with The Little Mermaid, reaches the peak in popularity with The Lion King in 1994, and ends in 1999 with Tarzan.

2000's

Building on developments in the 1990s, computers are used to create effects that would have previously been more expensive. In addition, film genres not known for their popular appeal in North America became increasingly attractive to filmgoers: films in foreign languages and documentaries for example.