Timeline for Why are blockbusters now only released in 3D for the first week/weekend?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
13 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 30, 2014 at 2:57 | comment | added | I wish I was Incredible | Spoke with my local theatre and it is indeed a requirement from the studio/distributor that certain movies must be shown in 3D only, for the first week, to capitalize on the extra revenue. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 16:24 | vote | accept | I wish I was Incredible | ||
| Jul 30, 2014 at 3:00 | |||||
| Jul 29, 2014 at 16:00 | comment | added | I wish I was Incredible | Well, thanks for the comments guys (commenting here, because I won't let me comment on the answer now that it moved to chat). I'll contact my local theatre to ask why they only show 3D for week 1, and maybe their reason will be the same for the big theatres. But yes, very confusing why a 20 screen theatre in Vancouver does not have 1 showing of Guardians of the Galaxy in 2D on the 1st weekend (and showing it on 4 screens): [link]cineplex.com/Showtimes/guardians-of-the-galaxy/… | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 15:41 | comment | added | Napoleon Wilson | @MattD Yeah, I was talking about the past. When having an "ordinary" projector, you certainly have to, well, buy a 3D projector to have one. And this in the end only pays if there are enough 3D movies released at all. And I also guess the people actively boykotting 3D movies are rather rare. I don't need it and would love to pay less for a 2D version, but still this won't stop me from going to movies I'd like to see. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 15:40 | comment | added | MattD | I just find it odd that it seems non-American theaters are apparently moving towards only showcasing movies in 3D if they're available in 3D. I know here in the States there would be plenty of angry people if movies available in 3D were only screened in 3D, at an added cost to the consumer. As I noted in my answer, my theater has moved towards showing the 2D version on our biggest screen, where as a few years ago we prioritized the 3D version. Kids films especially see a higher preference for 2D over 3D due to the added cost. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 15:38 | comment | added | MattD | @NapoleonWilson While I can't speak for all theaters, I'm pretty sure all projectors in my theater can also work as 3D projectors, they'd just need to either add the appropriate lens or move the lens heads around. And I actually know a few people close to me who refuse to see a movie in 3D. Some of them don't see the point of it and hate the upcharge, while others actually feel sick watching movies in 3D. Likely a small audience that falls into that category, but still, they exist. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 15:36 | comment | added | Napoleon Wilson | Or maybe it was part of slowly adapting the audience to accepting the new technology. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 15:35 | comment | added | Napoleon Wilson | @MattD Yet on the other hand I also noticed here in my city that they screened 3D and 2D versions in the past (some years ago) but now only the 3D versions. I answered this for myself guessing that they probably didn't have enough 3D projectors and thus instead of showing the movie only half the time at least showed the 2D versions rather than nothing. But now, since they have enough 3D screens, why bother to show the 2D version at all, which obviously nets less ticket income (and who wants to see the movie won't just not watch it because he'd rather like 2D when there isn't a 2D showing). | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 14:41 | comment | added | MattD | Now that I see his comment noting that the largest theater evidently has 20 screens, I'm a bit more baffled as to why the theater would be doing this on their own. The smaller theater at 10 screens would make sense, as they have less room to have multiple versions, thus they likely want to monetize the more expensive 3D version when the movie is fresh, but the larger theater with more screens should have absolutely no problems showcasing several movies in both 2D and 3D in the same week. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 11:26 | comment | added | MattD | Could be, but then why not just keep every showing in 3D? | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 7:27 | comment | added | Mario | Maybe they fear piracy and consider the 3D version harder to record or something? | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 3:35 | comment | added | I wish I was Incredible | Interesting. I find it very strange that a large city like Vancouver would not have 1 theatre showing a 2D version of the movie on the first weekend...so it must be a contract with the major theatre complexes up here in Canada. | |
| Jul 29, 2014 at 3:04 | history | answered | MattD | CC BY-SA 3.0 |