The Film Studio sheds new light on the evolution of global film production, highlighting the role of film studios worldwide. The authors explore the contemporary international production environment, alleging that global competition is best understood as an unequal and unstable partnership between the "design interest" of footloose producers and the "location interest" of local actors. Ben Goldsmith and Tom O'Regan identify various types of film studios and investigate the consequences for Hollywood, international film production, and the studio locations.

"The book's strategy—positioning the studio at the centre of current international production—permits a very persuasive and useful analysis of where the industry (in the largest sense) is now and how it got here." - Media International Australia