A brutal year was 2009, one of the scariest Hollywood and the world economy has seen in decades.
And yet 2010 dawns with what should be a sense of optimism.
In 2009, Hollywood underwent a vitally necessary correction, one that was painful but which places the entertainment industry on much healthier footing as it faces the future.
The dark news came all year as production companies closed, independent movie studios floundered and studios and networks cut hundreds of jobs. People were eliminated at Warner Brothers (800), News Corp (400 at MySpace), Disney (1,900), Sony (300) and Lionsgate (45).
DreamWorks sat idle for months as it struggled to close its funding from a reluctant Indian partner.