For a director in the studio system this already established infrastructure and helped to focus on the film itself without having to worry about gathering resources for it. During shooting, the division of labor was coordinated according to areas of specialization. However due to the highly organized structure in the studio system, sometimes directors were made to work around the clock to complete a film. For example Michael Curtiz, who made Casablanca in 1942, directed on average, five films a year for Warner Bros.
Another advantage of directing under the studio system is the relatively short period of time it took for the production compared to independent productions and present day film productions. What took 3-4 months to produce during the studio era now takes approximately 1 year to complete. As Billy Wilder once said, “in the old days we used to spend time making our pictures; these days we spend it making deals.”
Not to mention the cost of production that has sky rocketed since the studio era. The cost of a picture has gone up from $400,000 to 20 million Dollars since then, just for the production. This can obviously put a lot of pressure on present day directors of the film, because they have to be concerned more about the success of the film.
Frank Capra was one of the directors of the studio era. During his affiliation with Columbia several great pictures were made. One such famous one is his famous screwball comedy “It Happened One Night” (1934), which swept the five major Academy Awards and established Capra as a major director. He also produced "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town", "Lost Horizon", "You Can't Take It with you", and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington". It was with producer Harry Cohn, head of Columbia Studios, that Capra made his most classic films.
Despite all the good things the studio system had to offer, there were some drawbacks too. The artists and directors felt that the studios were controlling their lives too much. Therefore artists began to unite against the studios. In 1919 Griffith who directed “Birth of a nation” was asked to become a part of a daring plan to liberate the screen artisan from the suffocating embrace of studio control. Artists were completely dependent on these studios for better or worse. Griffith, as huge a figure as he was, accomplished his great works like a maverick with a mission. This group went on and formed the United Artists. It is said that, President of Metro Pictures, Richard A. Rowland, was quoted as saying, "So the lunatics have taken over the asylum!"
