An Exhibitor Responds

The Owner of an Independent Theatre Offers his Thoughts on 3D

Jim Kayton is the owner and operator of the Callicoon Theatre in Callicoon, New York, a single screen venue in a small rural town. He offers his perspective on the present and future of 3D movies and the impact it is having on theatres like his.

The slowdown in the headlong pursuit of digital and 3D cinema is encouraging. The transition is a complex issue as you have fairly and emphatically pointed out. I see 3D as, at best, no more than the off-and-on distorted novelty that is has been since, what? the 1950s, and at worst, a gimmick foisted on exhibitors by distributors, PR types and lobbying groups desperate to keep the film industry relevant and a short-sighted, heavy-handed effort to gain market share.

The cost of 3D and digital equipment would permanently darken many screens, depriving a significant number of people the unique movie theater experience while eliminating an important source of income for small, independent exhibitors at a critical economic juncture.


Quality films, with good scripts, directors, acting and other relevant components, will keep the industry stronger than will more cheesy special effects. So will reasonable admission prices and production cost-containment.

Exhibitors, and the public, see gimmicks for what they are; perhaps that's why only some five percent of our nation's screens are equipped with 3D presentations.