Erica Hillary Stein

Dr. Erica Hillary Stein serves as Associate Professor and Chair of Film at Vassar College, where she is also a member of the Urban Studies steering committee. She holds MA and PhD degrees from the University of Iowa.

Her teaching encompasses foundational film studies including aesthetics, history, and industry analysis, alongside specialized courses on contemporary auteurs, media urbanization, and avant-garde cinema. Pedagogical innovations include site-specific intensives that partner with communities to increase access to alternative cinemas.

Research investigates the intersections of mediation and urbanization, examining how visual strategies facilitate capital's claims on physical/social space and how moving images resist these processes. Primary scholarly contributions analyze the relationships between cinematic representation, urban planning ideologies, and spatial justice.