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- No 3D movies are currently showing in South Africa's biggest cinemas.
- But some 3D movies are lined up for screening over the next year.
- Production studios are feeling the pinch of the post-Covid-19 cinema environment and are less likely to convert films to 3D, according to a Ster-Kinekor representative.
- For more stories, visit the Tech and Trends homepage.
There are no three-dimensional (3D) movies available to view at Ster-Kinekor or Nu Metro cinemas, but don't throw away your 3D glasses just yet because there are screenings in the pipeline.
Some of the biggest titles released this year, including the Barbie movie and Oppenheimer, were not screened in 3D format.
News24 reached out to both cinema franchises, asking whether there any movies were still being screened in 3D.
Ster-Kinekor accounts for around 60% of the cinema market in the country.
Neither franchise answered the question directly
Both franchises said 3D screenings would be released later in 2023 and in 2024.
News24 flicked through the movies available for viewing on their websites and couldn't find any available screenings in 3D.
READ MORE | Why South African cinemas are still struggling to get 'bums in seats'
Ster-Kinekor chief marketing officer Lynne Wylie said five films were set for release in 3D for Ster-Kinekor between November 2023 and September 2024. She added, however, that the releases were subject to change.
Walter Gelderblom, the publicity and public relations manager at Nu Metro, pointed to two titles that were set to be released in the format before the end of the year.
He said Nu Metro recently screened The Meg 2 in 3D.
News24 was only able to find 2D screenings for the film while it is still on the circuit.
Historically, South African cinemas have charged more money for 3D screenings and required cinemagoers to buy 3D glasses if they didn't have any of their own.
International winds
Gelderblom explained that cinemas do not get to decide whether a film is released in 3D or not.
"Cinemas screen movie content as received from the local film distributors, who represent the international studios," he said.
READ MORE | Here are some innovations Ster-Kinekor are considering to get people back to the cinema
He added that there hasn't been a decision on whether 3D should fall away as a format.
Wylie explained why fewer films were being produced in 3D.
"As studios are still recovering from the effects of the (Covid-19) pandemic, they are less likely to incur this cost of conversion unless they believe that it will result in incremental box-office earnings," she said.
Ster-Kinekor CEO Mark Sardi told News24 earlier this year that the South African cinema industry was struggling to deal with a stunted pipeline of content coming out of Hollywood.
He said the South African film industry was still "heavily reliant on the US" for content.
In June, he said he expected between 70 and 80 blockbusters for 2023 - down from the 130 to 140 blockbusters which were standard before the pandemic.
