According to Variety, Dreamworks Animation is going to release all of its films in 3D starting in 2009. Granted that’s like one or two films a year at most…but what the hell is with the Hollywood interest in 3D lately? The article insinuates it’s because of the annual amorphous “falling theater attendance” alarm thanks to DVDs, home theater systems, piracy, cable, whatever. And it’s funny, if I remember correctly, the studios first embraced 3D back in the 1950s when they felt like there was another giant threat to their livelihood: TV. The more things change, etc. Monsters vs. Aliens even SOUNDS like an old 3D movie. Considering this is Dreamworks we’re talking about, let’s just hope there aren’t any references to The Matrix and a Robin Williams character dancing around to “I Feel Good.”

Anyway:

DWA summer 2009 release “Monsters vs. Aliens” starts production this spring and will be made with 3-D in mind from the outset. Studio will produce two versions, with a standard version for nondigital screens, DVD and TV.

By waiting until 2009, studio will also benefit from a significantly higher availability of 3-D enabled digital screens.

“By that time, I think that in domestic markets we will be able to release a film entirely in 3-D,” said Jim Tharp, prexy of domestic distribution for Paramount, which releases DreamWorks Animation pics.

There are just over 500 digital 3-D screens in the U.S., but that’s expected to expand to several thousand by 2009.

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