The
studio system is a method of film production and distribution dominated by a small number of "major" studios in
Hollywood. Although the term is still used today as a reference to the systems and output of the major studios, historically the term refers to the practice of large motion picture
studios between the 1920s and 1960s of (a) producing movies primarily on their own
filmmaking lots with creative personnel under often long-term contract, and (b) dominating exhibition through
vertical integration, i.e., the ownership or effective control of
distributors and
exhibition, guaranteeing additional sales of films through
manipulative booking techniques.