People love entertainment. Movies, for many of us, have been the main source of that entertainment. Whether you want to be in the middle of a warzone, or flown off to distant galaxies, movies have provided us with an escape from reality and let us indulge in our fictional desires. Behind all these movies is, of course, a movie studio. The places where dreams become reality. Over the years, movie studios have grown into industry giants with respectable names. In this article, we will take a look at some of the best movie studios and how they have influenced the film industry.
The production of a movie would be impossible without studios. They provide the funding and resources to make it happen. With modern movie production being on such a grand scale, sometimes with filming lasting years, external help is necessary to complete such a feat.
We’ve all heard of the biggest and most renowned movie studios. The famous Warner Bros and 20th Century Fox intros have been permanently ingrained into our brains. However, we tend to not consider their actual input so well. We know their importance, and we know that most great movies are made in them but that tends to be the only thought we give them. That’s why we wanted to present you with 10 of the best movie studios in the world!
10 Of The Best Movie Studios
So, let’s get started, shall we?
Here are 10 of the best movie studios in the world!
10. Paramount Pictures Studios
To kick off our list we bring you the birthplace of Titanic. Paramount Picture is an extremely well-known studio and is part of the Big 6 – the biggest studios in America. Despite this, Paramount has only produced 3 of the top 50 highest-grossing films.
The Wolf of Wall Street, Top Gun, and The Godfather all came out of these studios as well as many other much-loved films.
Adolph Zukor, the movie producer in 1916 contracted 22 actors and actresses. He honored each of them with a star, hence the 22 stars that make up the Paramount intro still today. Also noticeably, they became the first studio in the world to distribute all their films digitally.
9. Best Movie Studios – Sony Pictures
Sony Pictures is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc. Its early life was quite confusing and involved bidding for Coca-Cola stock and some conflicts with Warner Bros. Now, they house the division’s film studios for Columbia Picture, TriStar Pictures, and Screen Gems. The studio itself was originally owned by MGM.
Franchises like Spider-Man and Jumanji are some of the highest-grossing films to come out of the Studio. Impressive, but not so much compared to some of the other titles on this list.
8. Lionsgate
Lionsgate was formed in 1997 after the acquisition of numerous small production facilities and distributors. Currently, Lionsgate has two divisions with Lionsgate Film and Lionsgate Television. Films like John Wick and The Hunger Games have been products of Liongate, but typically they haven’t produced as many huge titles as the others on this list.
What makes Lionsgate stand out is their tendency to go for less conventional movies. If a film is controversial or disturbing, Lionsgate is the most likely studio to take on the project. The Saw franchise would be the best example of this.
7. MGM Studios
Short for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, MGM is maybe the most recognizable out of any of the studios with their infamous Lion intro. After being founded in 1924 MGM became the biggest and most well-known studio in the world. However, after a not-so-smooth journey in recent years, MGM has become a mini-major studio after filing for bankruptcy in 2012.
Despite this, MGM’s history is legendary and we believe that grants it a spot on this list. With the likes of many James Bonds, The Wizard of Oz, and Gone With The Wind, how could we deny its place among the best movie studios?
6. Best Movie Studios – Marvel Studios
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has made a huge impact on the film industry. 24 films in total all related and part of the same universe is an amazing achievement for a movie studio. These films have become undeniably popular with The Avengers: Endgame being the second-highest-ever grossing film. It has single-handedly redefined the potential of movie franchises with a collective gross worth of the films being $17 billion! They also average 64 award nominations for each movie.
For films that on the surface appear to appeal to a more comic-loving audience, Marvel has taken over the film industry in such a short time.
5. Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures is far more than a movie studio. This studio brings films to life in the form of a theme park. Instead of just witnessing how movies are made, you can experience recreations of the actions for yourself. Going to Universal Pictures will give you the chance to see some of the most iconic sets within the industry, the motel from Psycho, for example.
It was founded in 1912, making Universal the oldest studio in America. Since then, it has produced many classics like Jurassic Park, Jaws, and E.T. Extra-Terrestrial all produced by Steven Speilberg.
4. Best Movie Studios – Pixar Animation Studios
Based in California, Pixar works in computer-animated feature films. A more recent studio on this list, Pixar was founded in 1979 as part of Lucasfilm. It only became its own corporation in 1985 with Steve Jobs being the major stakeholder.
Pixar’s first feature film was Toy Story, released in 1995. The first-ever fully computer-animated feature film. Since then the studio has released a total of 24 films which are mostly well-loved. Pixar is known for releasing good quality, tear-jerking, emotional films.
The more recent “Soul” was a classic Pixar film with a plot centered around the experience of death, something that Pixar seems to do amazingly every time. Soul, Coco, Up, Onward, all of the plots are significantly influenced by death! No studio makes animated kids films about such big issues and so successfully as Pixar does.
3. Best Movie Studios – 20th Century Studios
20th Century boasts a very prestigious title. It produced the highest-ever grossing film with Avatar in 2009. Avatar’s worldwide box office reached $2.8 Billion, firmly taking the top spot. With that said, let’s not forget the other amazing films to come out of this studio such as Alien, Home Alone, and X-Men.
This studio was formed in 1935 when Twentieth Century Pictures and the Fox Film Corporation merged into one. After its merging, they signed young actors such as Henry Fonda, Carmen Miranda, Alice Faye, and Shirley Temple who helped popularise the studio.
In 1953, 20th Century announced it would be using CinemaScope to produce all its pictures. To popularise the new process they offered it to any rival studios as well as paying the conversion costs. This caused Warner Bros., MGM, Colombia Pictures, and Disney to all jump on the bandwagon.
2. Walt Disney Studios
Walt Disney Studios makes animated features and short films. Some of these have become the most influential films for many of us while growing up. From the 1937 Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs to the more recent Avengers: Endgame.
Technically, Disney has made this list 4 times! Disney owns Pixar, 20th Century Studios, and Marvel Studios! Wild, we know.
Collectively, Disney would be the biggest studio, with the highest-grossing and most films released out of any studio in the world!
However, with Disney producing some of the most magical and loved films, each of the studios deserved their spot on our top ten movie studios.
1. Best Movie Studios – Warner Bros. Pictures
Warner Bros. has produced some of the most loved movies and TV in history. Harry Potter, Batman, The Matrix, Wonder Woman, Inception, do we need to say anymore? Since being founded in 1923 by the 4 Warner brothers, this studio has become potentially the most famous movie studio in the world.
The studio has seen the likes of Christopher Nolan and Stanley Kubrick release some of the most iconic films we’ve ever seen. Out of the 50 highest-grossing films ever made, Warner Bros. lays claim to 11 of them.
Visiting the studio is an amazing insight into the magic behind the scenes with 3 tours available; the Studio Tour, Classic Tour, and Deluxe Tour. You can even go enjoy a cup of coffee at Central Perk Cafe or go take a peek at the Batmobile.
That Was Our Review Of The 10 Top Movie Studios
Over the past 100 years, movie studios have made a solid claim on their contributions to the film industry. Without them, countless classics would have never made it to the big screens. We owe them for so much joy and entertainment that these amazing movies have brought us.
There is no shortage of popular movie studios. Even though the big names seem to hold their position at the top, numerous others deserve recognition. From small indie film productions to the biggest blockbusters, movie studios make the concept behind a film a reality.
We hope you enjoyed reading this review! If you enjoyed this article, why not check out another on our blog? To get you started, we recommend our Film Terminology Glossary, Pre-Production Checklist For Filmmakers, and our guide on How To Make A Biographical Film.
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