NEW LOOK: Peter Jackson shows off his 3D video setup on the set of The Hobbit.

Peter Jackson has revealed he will shoot The Hobbit using extremely lifelike film technology never seen before in mainstream theatres.

In a blog post on his Facebook page today, the director said he is shooting the Lord of the Rings prequel at twice the normal frame rate - use 48 frames per second instead of the normal 24.

Films have been shot at 24 frames per second since the late 1920s, and although many modern cameras are capable of shooting at the faster rate, most cinemas are not capable of projecting the footage they capture.

NEW LOOK: Peter Jackson will shoot The Hobbit using extremely lifelike film technology never seen before in mainstream theatres.

Jackson said they had chosen to shoot the Hobbit at the faster rate to make the film "more lifelike" and easier to watch in 3D.

When projected at the higher frame rate, the "result looks like normal speed, but the image has hugely enhanced clarity and smoothness," he said.

"It looks great, and we've actually become used to it now, to the point that other film experiences look a little primitive. I saw a new movie in the cinema on Sunday and I kept getting distracted by the juddery panning and blurring. We're getting spoilt!"

Jackson said Warner Bros were supporting the move to shoot in 48 fps, despite there never being a wide release feature film made at the rate before, and the lack of cinemas capable of projecting the material.

"We are hopeful that there will be enough theatres capable of projecting 48 fps by the time The Hobbit comes out where we can seriously explore that possibility with Warner Bros," he said.

"However, while it's predicted that there may be over 10,000 screens capable of projecting The Hobbit at 48 fps by our release date in December, 2012, we don't yet know what the reality will be."

Most new digital projectors were capable of projecting at 48 fps, with only the digital servers needing some firmware upgrades to deal with the material.

He said shooting the movie at the higher rate was future-proofing it, and likened the move to the moment when vinyl records were supplanted by digital CDs.

"You get used to this new look very quickly and it becomes a much more lifelike and comfortable viewing experience," he said.

"There's no doubt in my mind that we're heading towards movies being shot and projected at higher frame rates."

Check out new photos from the set of The Hobbit here.