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RealD and Cinepolis see Latin America in 3D

July 18, 2008

Cinepolis logo Mexican exhibitor Cinepolis has big 3D plans for the whole of Latin america. Its deal with RealD envisions 500 screens to be converted in the next few years. From the press release:

The rollout of these 500 RealD 3D screens has already begun with six new screens installed for the release of Journey to the Center of the Earth, and will continue through 2010. The partnership makes RealD the exclusive choice of Cinepolis for digital 3D and creates a strong platform in the market for the upcoming slate of over thirty major studio 3D releases in 2009 and 2010.

The press release then goes on to quote Jeffrey Katzenberg and Disney before remembering to sample the opinions of the two companies that made the deal happen, showing you where the TRUE power of 3D lies today (content, content and, yes, more content). THR.com’s take is that:

Cinepolis and RealD are co-financing the venture, though Cinepolis declined to disclose financial details when contacted Thursday.

The deal provides a major platform for 3-D cinema in Latin America as Cinepolis continues to expand in the region. Cinepolis rival Cinemark also has a partnership with RealD.

and

Cinepolis, owned by the Ramirez family, currently has more than 1,800 screens. In recent years, as Mexico’s exhibition market has grown more saturated, the exhibitor has expanded into Guatemala, Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Honduras and Colombia. Moving forward, Cinepolis is eyeing Brazil’s underserved exhibition market.

So at the present screen count, one out of every 3.6 screens will be 3D. This is clearly a bit too high, so it is likely to come about when Cinepolis has increased its footprint across Latin America. It must also mean that the screens will embrace digital cinema in 2D first, though whether Cinepolis will finance this itself or with a third party provider is nit clear. This means that the deal might not be contingent on something like the delayed DCIP deal holding up Regal and Cinemark’s 3D plans.

Posted in Countries, Digital 3D

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No Avatar vs. Monsters vs. Aliens at the BO

By Patrick von Sychowski

September 20, 2007

It was a battle of the titans at the box office that was destined not to be. Paramount and DreamsWorks Animation (DWA) have moved the release date of ‘Monsters vs. Aliens‘ significantly forward to avoid a clash with James Cameron’s ‘Avatar‘. Both films were set to be showcase examples of the new digital 3D technology in cinemas already used to screen ‘Meet the Robinsons‘, ‘Monster House‘ and the upcoming ‘Beowulf‘ stereoscopically. Having initially both set release dates for 22 May 2009, ‘Monsters vs. Aliens’ at first shifted slightly to 15 May but have now moved further forward to 27 March 2009, making it an Easter release. ‘Avatar’ has meanwhile not budged, showing the strength of Cameron and Fox. Quoted in the Hollywood Reporter, Katzenberg was pragmatic about the move:

Had “Monsters” stuck to its proposed May release, “I saw more and more problems splitting the market for 3-D right at the time when it will be becoming the most exciting thing in moviegoing,” Katzenberg told The Reporter. “Instead of splitting the market, I want to see it get launched in the best possible way.”

Katzenberg predicted that there would be 5,000-8,000 3-D screens available domestically by the time “Monsters” rolls out in 2009. While a 2-D version of the film also will play in smaller markets, the majority of its U.S. dates will use the new 3-D technologies.

With its new release date, “Monsters” will have an eight-week window in the 3-D corridor before “Avatar” takes over for the Memorial Day holiday.

Given that digital 3D movies have staying power, this should just about give MvA enough time to complete its run. Variety also has an article about it, but it ads little new, other than Katzenberg quipping that “In 2009, summer begins on March 29,” though what is more likely is that on that day the power of digital 3D in cinemas will be tested as it outnumbers the releases on 35mm film or even regular 2D digital.

Posted in Analysis

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