معرفی
Zachary Horton is an Associate Professor in the Film and Media Studies Program at the University of Pittsburgh's Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences. He directs the Vibrant Media Lab and teaches courses in Critical Making, Game Studies, virtual reality, media and environment, and media theory.
His academic background includes a PhD in English from UC Santa Barbara, an MFA in Film Directing from the American Film Institute Conservatory, studies in Philosophy and Creative Writing at Oxford University, and a BA in Media Arts and Philosophy from UC San Diego. Horton's research primarily focuses on the relationship between scale, ecology, and technological mediation, with his first book The Cosmic Zoom: Scale, Knowledge, and Mediation published by the University of Chicago Press in 2021.
Horton's scholarly work spans multiple creative domains as he is also a filmmaker, camera designer, and game designer. His theoretical framework of scale studies has influenced both his academic publications and practical projects. His current research focuses on the early history of video games, tabletop games, and climate mediation, connecting historical game forms with contemporary ecological concerns.
Horton has received the 2002 national Cary Grant Film Award for his film work, which includes completing his 'Disaster Trilogy' of feature-length films examining middle-class American culture and directing 'Swerve,' a ten-chapter science fiction epic exploring embodiment, virtuality, and posthuman identity.
He is the founder of Pandora Games, a boutique tabletop design company specializing in reconstructing ancient games and developing innovative new ones. His creative projects include the Mercury Camera System (a modular photography system) and the Domes project, an experimental architectural/ecological dwelling system designed to harmonize with natural fire and water cycles.
