In a recent paper, we investigated inference processes during watching educational movies. In three experiments we found that viewers make online bridging inferences, that these inferences are integrated into the mental representation of the film’s content, and that the visual information of the film helps viewers to compensate for coherence breaks in the audio narration.
Tibus, M., Heier, A., & Schwan, S. (2013). Do films make you learn? Inference processes in expository film comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105, 329-340. doi: 10.1037/a0030818