From small grove to Hollywood fame
How can you talk about California without mentioning the beating heart of American cinema, Hollywood? And yet, this now famous district of Los Angeles was originally just a small town surrounded by orchards, named after the holly wood, a much-loved lucky charm for the town's founder. It wasn't until the 1910s that New York studios, in search of milder weather conditions and having abandoned Florida's stormy climate, settled in the region. Among the first filmmakers to set up shop here was none other than D.W. Griffith, who in 1910 directed In Old California, considered one of the first films to be produced in this future cradle of the seventh art. This rise to prominence would continue apace in the years that followed, with the birth of major studios such as Paramount (1912), Universal (1912), Warner Bros (1923), Metro Goldwyn Mayer (1923), 20th Century Fox (1935) and, of course, Walt Disney (1923). The growing success of cinema as a mass medium, and the arrival of sound with The Jazz Singer (1927), led to an explosion in production, bringing the number of films released each year by the studios to several hundred. It was also at this time that Hollywood's first "stars" appeared. Bette Davis, Clark Gable, Fred Astaire and Joan Crawford were just some of the mythical figures brought to the screen by filmmakers such as Cecil B. DeMille, George Cukor and Michael Curtiz. While the likes of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers make the world laugh and smile. Hollywood, the factory of dreams, was born.
The second half of the 20th century saw the advent of new studios and new production methods. In the 50s, to counter the growing influence of television, the majors vied with each other in technical prowess to produce grandiose peplums such as The Ten Commandments (1956) and Cleopatra (1963). Others bet on young talents such as Marlon Brando, James Dean and Marilyn Monroe, future global icons. But all set out to conquer the world, spreading American values and the American Way of Life throughout the post-war U.S. sphere of influence. It was also at this time that the Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars of cinema, established themselves as one of the most important ceremonies of the seventh art. The hegemony of the studios would be somewhat shaken by the 1960s-1970s, when the Vietnam War and the liberation of mores shook up the codes. The New Hollywood, driven by filmmakers such as Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda(Easy Rider, 1969) as well as Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola and a certain Georges Lucas, revolutionized themes and genres. This was the era of Apocalypse Now (1979), Star Wars (1977), as well as Jaws (1975) and Journey to the Edge of Hell (1978). These films have become cult favorites, along with The Godfather (1972) - and many others.
The diversity of productions also reflected the talents of filmmakers from all horizons, captured by Hollywood, which thrived on this plurality of styles and points of view. For example, Ernst Lubitsch incorporated his sense of humor into Ninotchka (1939), starring the great Greta Garbo, Alfred Hitchcock infused his very British mastery of suspense into films such as Rear Window (1954) and Cold Sweat (1958), while Sergio Leone revisited the western with Clint Eastwood in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). Milos Forman came from the Czech Republic to make Cuckoo's Nest (1975), while others tried their hand at blockbusters or revisited classics, like Australian Baz Luhrmann and his Romeo + Juliet (1996), starring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Having survived the advent of television and soap operas, Hollywood cinema began to turn to special effects in the early 1990s, at a time when the digitization of society was underway. The majors ' productions played on this trend with varying degrees of skill. James Cameron, the filmmaker behind two of Hollywood's greatest successes of all time, Titanic (1999) and Avatar (2009), has become a master in this field. A revolution is also taking place in animated films, with the emergence of 3D in Toy Story (1995) and Shrek (2001), putting the giant Disney on its knees.
Today, Hollywood faces new challenges. The chronic under-representation of female directors, and the flaws in the system in place until now, have been brought to the fore by the numerous #Metoo scandals. Voices are now being raised for greater transparency, diversity and respect in this American industry with global media coverage. A new generation of filmmakers such as Chloé Zhao(Nomadland, 2020), Jordan Peele(Get Out, 2017) and Ava DuVernay(A Wrinkle in Time, 2019) are telling new stories, adopting new points of view. While on the majors' side, the recent pandemic and competition from new streaming players are driving ever more mergers, forever transforming the landscape of the Dream factory.
California on the small screen
While cinema remains at the heart of Hollywood's identity, the studios have not abandoned television, or more recently, streaming, either. Cult series such as Baywatch (1989-2001), The Fresh Prince (1990-1996) and Beverly Hills (1990-2000) have lulled the youth of millions of fans around the world. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) is set in the fictional town of Sunnydale, a typical California town with a supernatural twist. In recent years, productions such as Sense8 (2015-2018), Lucifer (2016-2021), The OA (2016-2019) or Euphoria (2019-) have taken the series to new heights and reached new audiences, whether broadcast on conventional channels or via platforms such as Netflix, Amazon or others. Alongside these productions, American shows such as The Good Doctor (2017-) feature the region from many angles, taking advantage of the state's iconic landscapes and cities. Proof that Hollywood can lend itself to the big screen as well as the small, and that California remains a major filming location and film industry hub in the globalentertainment landscape.
San Francisco lights up and collapses on screen
Because cinema doesn't stop at the borders of the City of Angels, San Francisco has also been the setting for many classic and recent films, as well as a wide variety of TV series. The iconic Golden Gate Bridge appears in Hitchcock's classic Cold Sweat , but also in Dangerously Yours (1985), the fourteenth episode in the James Bond saga, in Eye for an Eye (1981) with Chuck Norris, in Star Trek in 1986 and 2009, and in numerous animated films such as Soul (2020), The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021) and The New Heroes (2014), in which the city has become a hybrid city between East and West called San Fransokyo. The red steel structure is also a favorite target for filmmakers seeking to undermine the American dream, blithely destroying it with superheroes(Superman, 1978, X-Men: The Final Confrontation, 2006), legendary monsters(Godzilla, 2014, Pacific Rim, 2013), and even showers of objects and various creatures in Sharknado V, 2017 or San Andreas, 2015. This work is also part of the many fictions revolving around earthquakes, a natural phenomenon intimately linked to the lives of Californians. Another iconic location,Alcatraz Island, is the star of several feature films, including Point Blank (1967), The Alcatraz Escapee (1979) with Clint Eastwood, and The Rock (1996) with Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. A breathtaking action film by Michael Bay, one of the masters of the modern Hollywood blockbuster.
Take a stroll through the city's streets and relive films such as Madame Doubtfire (1993), starring Robin Williams, or the more recent Matrix Resurrections (2021), before delving back into the Homecoming series (1987-1995), which revealed sisters Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Finally, don't miss The Towering Inferno (1974), a disaster classic featuring San Francisco firefighters and the Steve McQueen - Paul Newman duo, a beautiful encounter between the Bay Area's landscapes and Hollywood's technical prowess.
Living from the movies in California
From the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, official cinema of the Oscars since 2002, to open-air screenings in San Francisco's Dolores Park, you won't have enough eyes for all the screens available in California. The legendary Grauman's Chinese Theatre offers an unparalleled cinematic experience, with one of the largest IMAX screens in the country (29 meters wide). The theater is also famous for the cobblestones where stars from all over the world have left their mark, dating back to 1927. Take the time to discover all its secrets on a visit to the Hollywood Walk of Fame on majestic Hollywood Boulevard, before heading to the many museums dedicated to the seventh art, scattered between Los Angeles, Hollywood, San Francisco and other cities in the region. Last but not least, you can't miss a visit to one of the majors ' studios . Universal Studios, Paramount Studios and Warner Bros. will take you back to the films and series of your childhood, as well as to classic movies. An essential step in any cinephile's visit to California, and one that's accessible to all, film buffs or not.
