Gone With the Wind is still considered the highest-grossing film in the history of American cinema. By 1943, it had over $ 32 million in fees (with a budget of just over $ 4 million, including advertising costs). In subsequent releases, it increased this amount to $ 76.7 million. The producer David O. Selznick initially insisted that the film was shot in color, using the Technicolor technology, which could be used exclusively by specialists. It also automatically raised the production costs by several times.
The film became an example of cinema revolution, being far ahead of its time: the three-strip Technicolor mass production would begin only in the 1960s. Gone With the Wind is the first full-length color film shot using the Technicolor technology, which implied shooting at three synchronous black and white negatives through red, blue, and green filters.
The first scene was the one of Scarlett and Rhett fleeing Atlanta as it is burning. For the film, Selznick destroyed many of the standing 40 Acres sets for the famous scene. Spectators admired the reality of panoramic filming: for greater realism, an entire block leftover from the movie King Kong blazed. The decor of the city of Atlanta was constructed later, including a large train depot and the mansion house of Scarlett O’Hara’s plantation – Tara. In the famous scene at the Atlanta train station, the Confederate flag flutters against the backdrop of thousands of wounded waiting for help. Cranes and mechanical dolls were used during the filming process.
It is not surprising that the production designer William Cameron Menzies received Oscar for the production of Gone with the Wind. This film was remembered for its atmosphere as the picture captures attention.