The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) announced that it is partnering with "Polar Express" director Robert Zemeckis to create a new film company that will develop three-dimensional animated movies. Besides "Polar Express," Zemeckis also made "Monster House" and is working on the upcoming performance capture movie "Beowulf."
The market for 3-D animated movies is much smaller, but are very profitable as theater chains are able to charge a premium of up to $4 a ticket for the experience, which theater-goers are willing to dish out.
In the deal, Zemeckis will direct a unknown number of films using performance capture, and will bring along his other partners Steve Starkey and Jack Rapke. 
When you think of performance capture think of the character Gollum in "Lord of the Rings" or "King Kong" where the actor wears a bodysuit with sensors within it that enables computers that are equipped with cameras to record the movements.
Disney has already tested the waters on 3-D animated film with "Nightmare Before Christmas" and also saw the results of Sony's (SNE) "Monster House," and the numbers were twice those earned by their 2D counterparts.
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