Peter Jackson is shooting The Hobbit at 48 frames per second

Peter Jackson has announced, via a post on his official Facebook page, that he will be shooting his adaptation of The Hobbit at the higher rate of 48 frames per second.

The usual rate is 24fps, and has been since its introduction to cinema in 1927. The Hobbit will be the first major motion picture in history to feature the upgrade

Jackson thinks, "after nine decades", it's time for a change.

In the post, he addressed the inevitable backlash from "film purists" by saying that audience will "get used to this new look very quickly" as it will bring about a "much more lifelife and comfortable viewing experience."

He also said that films will become "easier to watch, especially in 3-D", with audiences being able to sit through "two hours of footage without getting eyestrain".

Jackson went onto claim that the difference between 24 and 48 fps is "significant", likening the technological evolution to when "vinyl records were supplanted by digital CDs".

The Lord of the Rings director also thanked Warner Bros for their support in the advancement, before predicting over 10,000 screens would be capable of projecting 48fps by the time of The Hobbit 's release.

Jackson, who won an Academy Award for his work on The Return of the King , took over the directing chair after Guillermo del Toro left. He had become frustrated with the constant production delays that had thwarted the project early on.

The Office 's Martin Freeman has been announced to be playing Bilbo Baggins in the film, a role originally played by Sir Ian Holm in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, while Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis will be reprising the characters of Gandalf and Gollum respectively.

Serkis will also act as Second Unit Director on the project.

The Hobbit will be split into two parts, with the first being released in December 2012.