The interdisciplinary subfield of media industry studies understands film and television not merely as a set of cultural texts and artifacts but also as complex industries in their own right. While media industry history shares analytical commonalities and concerns with business history, Hollywood historians emphasize the distinctive organizational cultures and path dependencies of the sector, which necessitate a specialized approach, particularly in relation to labor practices. Through this roundtable, we explore a range of case studies in the history of Hollywood as a media industry with the aim of considering the labor forces at its heart. Those case studies not only work to allow better insight into the role of labor in past moments, but also provide possible insight into contemporary labor concerns and challenges. Our panelists bring a broad base of expertise to the discussion, considering a range of laborers, from the highest paid actors and producers, to rank-and-file union members, to the lowest rung gig workers. Across the board, we consider how the context for these workers changed in relation to economic exigencies as distribution technologies evolved, legal frameworks shifted, and management strategies transformed.
Each presenter will take approximately 5-7 minutes to introduce their case studies, and then we will spend the remainder of the roundtable discussing questions including: How do Hollywood’s labor dynamics compare to those of other sectors, in terms of both shared characteristics and distinctive practices? Does Hollywood as an industry and its labor force hold broader lessons for business history? How can scholars in other fields help bring new perspectives to and shed new light on media industry studies and the study of production cultures? How can the business history of filmed entertainment inform contemporary policy debates about cultural production and beyond?