Studio urbanism

Abstract

This chapter examines the renewed importance of film and television studios to the contemporary city. It commences with a brief overview of critical literature on the history of studios as urban and architectural spaces, before moving on to consider some recent developments in the relationship between studios and urban space. Arguing that studio production has become more, rather than less, important in the era of digital streaming and media convergence, the chapter shows how studio spaces have become financialized real estate assets in the global rentier economy while being co-opted into local creative city agendas. At the same time, digital visual effects and “virtual” production practices have begun to destabilize the traditional dualism between studios and locations. Studying the contemporary studio complex therefore requires us to think about cities and media at multiple scales, whether viewed in terms of finance, real estate, and the creative economy on the one hand, or the convergence of architecture, technology, and esthetics on the other.