Of the various developments in film over the past century, the development of 3D effects is one of the most fascinating. This thesis examines 3D cinema in the context of immersive narratives, and argues that the experience of 3D cinema is similar to experiences with virtual reality. With the advancements of digital imagery in cinema and the resurgence of 3D, films are reaching a level of virtual immersion previously unseen. This advancement in film technology increases a film's ability to draw audiences into a constructed world for pleasure, a characteristic films have always possessed, but one that is redefined and re-imagined with growing effects technology. 3D is thus a refinement of cinema's inherent immersive properties, a development that speaks to the desire to be able to experience fiction in a way that makes it seem more realistic. This is only enhanced by digital 3D technology, which combines the constructive power of computer-generated imagery with the screen-breaking, depth-making, boundary-crossing power of 3D. Such use of the technology also benefits film by making it reminiscent of simulated videogame environments, media which are known for the pleasure they produce in creating a virtual space that users "inhabit" via avatar and control over narrative progression. 3D films, then, are appealing in their ability to turn a film into a virtual immersive experience, as opposed to a text that one simply perceives. This development speaks volumes not only of film's potential to be an experiential narrative, but in how we can analyze the pleasures that are to be derived from cinema.
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