Since drugs have been shown in movies, people have had strong opinions on whether or not it is acceptable. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan once said that "the film industry should be part of the solution, not the problem." The depiction of drugs in films has influenced the general population in both positive and negative ways. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Since the beginning of cinema, the way drugs have been depicted in films has changed and evolved with each era of cinema. It began with the silent era (1900-1920). Thomas Edison set the scene and made the very first drug film called Chinese Opium Den​ in 1894. The silent era mainly portrayed drugs in a more positive and comedic light, because at that time, drugs were not weren't studied as much and most people were doing it. I don't know their harmful effects yet. At that time, drugs were not controlled at all by the government or the film industry. In fact, the New York Film Academy stated that "Hollywood first officially addressed the problem of drugs in films in 1921 by discouraging films that showed 'narcotic use.' The next era of cinema was that of the production codes of the 1930s-1950s. It was during this time that more and more laws were passed so that drugs were viewed in a more negative light. For example, the Motion Picture Production Code was adopted by Motion Pictures in 1930. This required films to be approved before they could be released to the general public. After the production code was passed, Hollywood began releasing only anti-drug films and entered an "exploitation phase." Many people have relied on movies and television shows to educate the public about drugs. As we enter a changing era, the representation of drugs has further evolved. This time, instead of everyone being absolutely afraid of drugs and the film industry being completely one-sided, we started looking at the negative effects of addiction and informing and educating the public about realistic situations. “As social unrest grew throughout the decade, it was not until the late 1960s that drugs began to be depicted differently and not just negatively in films.” In the 1970s, cocaine became a more accepted drug among the "upper class" and therefore became more desirable. As the title of this era suggests, the Just Say No era in the 1980s was a huge era in which many were advised to oppose drugs and addiction and had a predominantly negative connotation. This has been shown on all forms of media. For example, while cocaine was booming in the United States, films changed focus and increased the number of films showing the effects of cocaine. There has even been a “decline in popular use and cinematic depictions of marijuana.” Modern cinema (1990s-2010s) has been the most neutral era ever for drugs depicted in films. It didn't lean more to one side than the other. "With the Clinton administration and Generation X signaling a new permissiveness toward drug use, drug films became more mainstream and neutral in their depictions, moving away from negative moralizing toward to more stories 2000.