The 10-volume, illustrated series considers the film industry from its early roots in the 19th century through the 1980s. It examines the development of film and the film industry, analyzing both the genres, themes and technology that defined each decade and the political and economic background that gave rise to them. Each volume focuses on a separate decade, providing a narrative on the evolution of both the business and the art of film in America. Each volume is heavily illustrated and ends with several indexes, notes, a bibliography and a variety of appendixes of top-grossing films, stars and Oscar winners, and more. This series is the most thorough history yet published of the business, technology, and art of the film industry from its earliest roots 100 years ago, through the 1990s.