Behind-the-scenes stories of ranting directors stingy producers temperamental actors and the like have fascinated us since the beginnings of film and television. Today magazines websites television programs and DVDs are devoted to telling tales of trade lore-from on-set antics to labor disputes. The production of media has become as storied and mythologized as the content of the films and TV shows themselves. Production Studies is the first volume to bring together a star-studded cast of interdisciplinary media scholars to examine the unique cultural practices of media production. The all-new essays collected here combine ethnographic sociological critical material and political-economic methods to explore a wide range of topics from contemporary industrial trends such as new media and niche markets to gender and workplace hierarchies. Together the contributors seek to understand how the entire span of media producers -ranging from high-profile producers and directors to anonymous stagehands and costume designers-work through professional organizations and informal networks to form communities of shared practices languages and cultural understandings of the world. This landmark collection connects the cultural activities of media producers to our broader understanding of media practices and texts establishing an innovative and agenda-setting approach to media industry scholarship for the twenty-first century. Contributors: Miranda J. Banks John T. Caldwell Christine Cornea Laura Grindstaff Felicia D. Henderson Erin Hill Jane Landman Elana Levine Amanda D. Lotz Paul Malcolm Denise Mann Vicki Mayer Candace Moore Oli Mould Sherry B. Ortner Matt Stahl John L. Sullivan Serra Tinic Stephen Zafirau