MUMBAI: REAL D, announced that its next-generation 3D cinema experience reaches over 1100 screens as of press time, surpassing the company’s previously announced milestone of 1000 screens for the release of Paramount’s Beowulf on 16 November, and outpacing industry estimates.

Most moviegoers who see Beowulf in 3D will see it in REAL D 3D. Beowulf premiered in REAL D 3D on 5 November in Los Angeles. REAL D estimates 4,000 to 5,000 REAL D 3D screens globally by 2009.

“The expansion of REAL D 3D screens to over 1100 is a milestone in bringing the most advanced 3D visual experience to moviegoers everywhere. We estimated that we’d be at 1000 screens for Beowulf, but we passed that mark in early October. Clearly, the next generation of digital 3D is already here in REAL D,” said REAL D chairman, CEO and co-founder Michael V. Lewis.

DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg said, “3D has the opportunity to be the most important innovation in film since the use of color in motion pictures. The rollout of REAL D 3D to well over 1,000 screens globally is the beginning of a very viable and very exciting platform for filmmakers to tell their stories in 3D.”

ImageMovers producer Steve Starkey added, “On the release of the film Beowulf, I think we are about to witness the enormous impact that 3D will have on motion pictures. The creation and the expansion of Real D arrived at a time to fully take advantage of a film that was perfectly suited for the 3-D experience.”