Noël Burch (born 1932) is an American film theorist and movie maker who moved to France at a young age.
Burch is known for his contribution to terms commonly used by film scholars (such as institutional mode of representation (IMR)) and for his theories compiled in books such as Theory of Film Practice or La lucarne de L'Infini.
In doing so, he found what he thought was a "purer" cinema, one untainted by what he considered bourgeois ideology.
In the foreword to the 1980 edition of Theory Of Film Practice, Burch repudiated some of his earlier theories, expanding on his younger self's limited conception of formalism as applied to the film arts.
In January 2013, Burch launched fundraising campaign on Kickstarter.com to make the narrative movie The Gentle Art Of Tutelage.