Do RealD’s Executive Departures Reflect 3D Fatigue?

RealD has lost some top execs recently — and it may not be entirely coincidental. Yesterday was the last day for COO and General Counsel Craig Gatarz. He was right behind SVP Marketing and Communications Rick Heineman, who quietly left in June. CEO Michael Lewis says that they “have been valuable members of the RealD executive team” and that he wishes them “luck in their new endeavors.”  Gatarz, he adds, has a “true passion… for early stage companies so we are supportive of his desire to return to these roots.”

That likely isn’t the end: I hear that another senior exec is preparing to bolt.

Company morale took a hit in March with the retirement of Joe Peixoto, who was RealD’s President of Worldwide Cinema. The former top exec at United Cinemas International and Canada’s Famous Players chain helped to introduce RealD’s 3D technology with Disney’s Chicken Little, and drove many of the company’s deals with exhibition chains. (more…)