John Powers, an assistant professor in film and media studies within Arts & Sciences at WashU, has been awarded the 2024 Best First Book Award by the Society for Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS).

Powers earned this accolade for “Technology and the Making of Experimental Film Culture,” a work that explores how the avant-garde utilized the tangible resources of small-gauge media technologies — including the Bolex camera, 16mm reversal film stocks, commercial film labs, and economical optical printers — and imbued them with meanings and values aligned with those of semiprofessional film culture.

Established in 1959, SCMS is the premier scholarly organization in the U.S. focusing on fostering a comprehensive understanding of film, television, and related media through inquiry and instruction rooted in the contemporary humanities tradition. The organization boasts nearly 3,000 scholars across more than 500 institutions in 38 countries. The annual SCMS Awards, initiated in 1971, recognize the top achievements in cinema and media studies scholarship, education, and professional service for that year.

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