Industrial Light and Magic: Pan's Labyrinth

Set in 1943 in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, the story centres on a young girl, Ofelia, who escapes into the magical labyrinth of her fantasies. Vividly beautiful, hugely imaginative, its combination of children’s fantasy, adult parable and historical drama proved a winning one: grossing more than US$80 million worldwide, it was only recently toppled as the biggest-ever Spanish-language hit at the US box office.

Cinema was the world’s first form of industrialised mass-entertainment. From early days as a fairground attraction, by the early 1900s film had evolved into an industry in its own right, distinct from other entertainments, with its own buildings and advertising. By the late 1930s, film was all-pervasive: nearly everyone in the Western world went to the movies, and many at least once a week. Billions of cinema tickets were sold each year.

Relatively quickly, the American film industry rose to global predominance, and yet other national cinemas have had – and continue to have – huge global hits. Mexico’s industry knew a ‘golden age’ in the 1940s, when it dominated the film market in Latin America; it’s biggest-ever success came, though, in 2006 with Guillermo del Toro's Pan’s Labyrinth.