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My guess is that back then producing films was expensive cutting edge technology, and the few films that got made hired the brightest and best, and gave them time to get it right.

Today any unemployed bozo can make explainer YouTube videos. That great as a "democratization", but the average quality is obviously lower.

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Some quick googling shows cinematic film cameras in 1930/40 used to cost $100k-$300k adjusted for inflation.

Today, the cheapest Netflix-approved camera is $2k [0]

Lower barrier to entry is a blessing and a curse. Signal v noise, etc.

[0] https://noamkroll.com/the-3-most-affordable-netflix-approved...

It's even lower. The FS7 on that list is more like $1,000 these days.

(Not that I would consider all those cameras on the Netflix list cinematic. Some are geared more towards documentary.)

And not that it's contrary to the $1K price point but, I think, Apple's last event was filmed with iPhones albeit with a lot of expensive lighting and other gear/people.

Film reels were also a significant cost that's pretty much gone to zero these days.

This is the right answer

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