10. Writing Without Frames

It is in the name… Screenwriting. As we head into the third decade of the century, concepts and techniques of writing for the screen are being rewritten and adapted to new forms of durational storytelling that have expanded beyond the single screen, to the multiscreen, to the third dimension, to the panoramic, and into the surround, that is 360 degrees. This has been most apparent in industry pushes towards immersive technologies, for instance, virtual reality and associated sensory technologies including haptics (touch), thermoreceptors (temperature), and olfactory devices (smell). This chapter serves as a primer in writing beyond the frame, for emerging variation of the screens and associated sensorial technologies, historical precedents, contemporary examples of immersion, and a specific focus on the author’s recent immersive narratives.