Number of digital 3D cinema screens worldwide 2008-2018, by region

Asia Pacific had the highest number of digital 3D screens worldwide in 2018 with 62,608 screens in this format, and over the last decade the region has shown the strongest growth in this regard. North America was the only region to record a drop in numbers from 2017, while Latin America had the least 3D screens overall.

Digital cinema

Digital cinema refers to the use of digital technology to shoot and project movies, as opposed to the traditional method of using film reels. In 2018, the number of digital 3D and digital non-3D screens amounted to 182,019 worldwide, up from 169,198 the previous year. With digital recording and projecting technology becoming more commonplace in the movie industry, this upward trend is expected to continue, resulting in the gradual replacement of analog movie screens.

3D cinema in North America: successful films and current figures

In 2009, James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ revolutionized 3D cinema around the world. The science fiction film is listed among the highest-grossing 3D movies of all time in North America as of July 2019, ranked third after ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame’. Despite the major success of these films, the number of 3D movies released in North America has dropped in recent years.