Optical compensation films (positive C-plate) with mesogen anisotropic subunits (OASUs) that have high positive birefringence throughout the wavelength range 400 nm<.lamda.<800 nm are provided. The optical compensation films may be processed by solution casting to yield a polymer film with high birefringence without the need for stretching, photopolymerization, or other processes. Such optical compensation films are suitable for use as a positive C-plate in LCDs, particularly IPS-LCDs.