How Many Saw ‘Avatar’ Re-Release This Past Weekend?

The Aug. 27 re-release of “Avatar” on 812 3D screens grossed $4 million during its opening weekend; by the Los Angeles Times’ estimate, the gross figure averages out to 28 people attending each screening. The paper’s back-of-the-envelope calculation assumes a premium ticket price of $15 and a dozen showings of the film per screen over the three-day period.

Cameron: 3D Backlash Will Raise Quality Of Conversions

The reported consumer backlash against studios’ hasty 3D conversions is actually a good thing for the projection technology, according to “Avatar” director James Cameron.

“I want the studios to get spanked for making bad decisions because I actually think they’re compromising the overall 3D market if they continue this way,” Cameron tells Popular Mechanics in a candid Q&A. But the filmmaker remains upbeat on the technology’s prospects in theaters. “I don’t think any long term damage has been done‚ as long as [studios] take heed of these lessons, and don’t do slap dash six week conversions that look like crappy pop-up cards.”

‘Toy Story 3’ Crossing $1 Billion Mark

Premiums for 3D screenings are helping to propel a second Disney film, “Toy Story 3,” past the $1 billion sales mark today, according to Deadline Hollywood. The studio becomes the first to release two $1 billion films in a single year; “Alice in Wonderland,” which saw theatrical release in March, grossed $1.02 billion in theaters worldwide.

Analyst Raises Concerns Over 3D Films’ Premium Pricing

Theater chains nationwide are charging an average 49% ticket premium for studios’ latest 3D films, according to a survey of exhibitor prices on Aug. 23 by BTIG Research. But with films including “Piranha 3D,” “Step Up 3D” and “Cats and Dogs 3D” all underperforming at the box office, BTIG analyst wonders whether a uniform premium for 3D versions is sustainable.

“With 3D increasingly being used as a gimmick by Hollywood  — ‘Avatar’ was one thing, but the recent slate of 3D movies leaves a lot to be desired — we suspect some consumers are choosing 2D movies solely to reduce the cost of their movie going experience,” Greenfield says in a note published yesterday (subscription required).

One theoretical response from exhibitors, Greenfield says, is variable pricing: limiting 3D premiums to “major event pictures” such as next year’s “Transformers 3,” while reducing prices of other 3D films to 2D levels. But such a move would not likely find much support in Hollywood; nor would it help theater chains pay off installation of 3D projection equipment from the likes of RealD, as Greenfield admits.

‘Re-Pricing’ Trend Takes Hold Among Publishers

A book publisher has raised its prices on a best-selling Kindle novel by 30% from Jan. 1, while the New York Times upped the price of its Kindle newspaper subscription by 33% from its March 31 level. These are two examples of a trend the Wrap calls “re-priced media,” with publishers looking for digital products to represent larger revenue streams. The site applies the upward trend in publishing to the theatrical box office, where analysts expect 3D films to drive this year’s average ticket price increases ahead of inflation (and contrary to decades of precedent).

Disney Delivers Strong Quarter On ‘Alice’ Box Office

Disney’s film studio drove the company’s 55% year-over-year increase in net income during its fiscal second quarter. The 3D “Alice in Wonderland,” released in theaters March 5, surpassed $960 million in global ticket sales. Cost-cutting programs also added to the studio’s bottom line. By The New York Times

At NAB, Debates Over 3D Standards, Market Opportunities

The importance of quality 3D content and the difficulty of achieving it — or even defining it — became a theme of the weekend’s Digital Cinema Summit at NAB Show in Las Vegas, Variety reports. Even when there was agreement at the summit on what constitutes quality, there were harsh words about theaters that fail to deliver it. By Variety

MPAA: Global Box Office Up 30% Since ‘05

Global box office receipts reached an all time high of $29.9 billion in 2009, an increase of 8% over 2008 and 30% from 2005, according to year-end stats from the Motion Picture Association. The U.S./Canada market reached $10.6 billion, an increase of 10% from 2008, while International markets rose 6% year-over-year to $19.3 billion in 2009.

The 3D market gave the U.S./Canada box office a boost, with 3D films accounting for 11% of the total compared to 2% in 2008. Studios released 20 3D films in 2009, compared to eight in 2008.

Admissions, meanwhile, rose 5.5% in the U.S. and Canada year-over-year to 1.42 billion. MPAA

Technicolor Signs First Theater Chain For Film-Based 3D Projection

Technicolor has reached an agreement with Bow Tie Cinemas to install its Technicolor 3D system on 25 screens across the New York-based theater chain’s 18 locations.

Technicolor says its new 3D lens system for 35mm film projectors enables exhibitors to upgrade their theaters at a fraction of the cost of installing digital 3D projection systems. Mitigating exhibitors’ upgrade costs is a key issue in ensuring that the number of 3D screens continues to grow as studios beef up their 3D film slates.

The Technicolor system requires studio support on the film production side as well. To this end, DreamWorks Animation SKG, Lionsgate, Paramount Pictures, Overture Films, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros., and The Weinstein Company have all announced support for Technicolor 3D. The studios represent 13 of the 19 3D films already announced for 2010 release. Via MarketWatch

‘Avatar’ Tops ‘Titanic’ Box Office; Helped By 3D, New Global Markets, Inflation

Peculiar to “Avatar’s” success is the latest wave of exhibition technology. At least 65% of its overseas box office and nearly 80% of its domestic earnings derive from 3D venues, which charge the equivalent of several dollars more than conventional theatrical sites. Imax locations worldwide playing “Avatar” have rolled up $134 million in 38 days at ticket prices at about $15 each. By The Hollywood Reporter

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