Brian Henderson was an American film theorist, author, editor, and educator. Life and career In 1962, Henderson graduated with a BA in philosophy from Johns Hopkins University. He received his Juris Doctor from Harvard University in 1965. He earned his PhD in 1973 from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Henderson taught film at San Francisco State University for a year before joining the University at Buffalo faculty in 1974. At the University at Buffalo, Henderson was one of the founders of the Center for Media Study, now Department of Media Study, alongside Gerald O'Grady, James Blue, Tony Conrad, Hollis Frampton, Paul Sharits, and Woody and Steina Vasulka. Henderson was the Department of Media Study chair twice before retiring in 2010.

Henderson's published works include Critique of Film Theory (1980). He also wrote and edited for Film Quarterly.

Henderson served as an intelligence officer during the Vietnam War for the United States Army. References