The Martlet

WHAT: Antimatter Film Festival

WHERE: Cinecenta, UVic Visual Arts Building, Open Space Arts Centre, Deluge Contemporary Art and Window Project on Government Street

WHEN: Oct. 9 to 17

HOW MUCH: $6 for adults, $5 for students. Cinecenta showings are regular price

The Antimatter Film Festival is about more than just movies. With art installations, musical performances and groundbreaking hybrid media, the festival aims to shatter traditional perceptions of art.

The festival, which takes place at venues around town, includes work from about 25 different countries — and the films are all premiering in Victoria. In most cases, it’s the only opportunity audiences will have to see these pieces of art.

Antimatter is celebrating its 12th year of bringing experimental cinema to Victoria. The festival is free from any commercial or industry agendas.

“It’s a festival of primarily experimental and art-based films,” said Eacrett. “We’re showing work made by individuals rather than studios. You’re going to get a lot of individual viewpoints at the fest, a lot of do-it-yourself techniques.”

Nightly programs include titles such as Circadia: Performative documents shaped by fractured time and circumstance disorder of ‘reality’ and Strange Particles: Scientific and celluloid inquiries investigating phenomena from photochemical to biomechanical: hypothesize, experiment, repeat.

“We don’t have a theme or anything,” said Eacrett. “The films go from very abstract shorts to feature-length documentaries. It really runs the gamut.”

Some Highlights of the Fest

Small World-Friday, Oct. 9, 9 p.m. at Open Space Arts Centre

To kick off this year’s festival, musical artists Slut Revolver, the Pine Family, Run Chico Run, Natasha Enquist and more explore the world of Walt Disney.

The Antimatter website reads: “This ride includes smoke machines, nostalgia, tinfoil, corporate iconography, pretty lights ... To experience Small World, you should be in good health, free from high blood pressure, heart conditions, fatigue, or any other physical limitations that could be aggravated by this attraction.”

Sounds like an adventure.

Loki: Arnaldo Baptista-Tuesday, Oct. 13, 9 p.m. at Cinecenta

Loki is an award winning documentary following the life of Arnold Baptista — the “musical genius” behind the Brazilian pop band Os Mutantes.

“I’m really excited about Loki,” said Eacrett. “ It’s about a psychedelic band that really set the tone for rock and roll in that era.”

The band flourished in the late 60s and early 70s by taking American and British-style rock’n’roll and adding a Brazilian flare and a whole lot of psychedelia. The film tracks the ups and downs of Baptista’s music obsession and sometimes LSD-driven life, as he falls into a depression. The festival program promises that the film ends on “a triumphant note with the return of the regrouped Mutantes to a delirious-packed house at London’s Barbicon in 2006.”

Everyone likes a happy ending.

Just One Kiss: The Fall of Ned Kelly Wednesday, Oct. 14, 9 p.m. at Cinecenta

This is the world premiere of Just one Kiss: a reconstruction of found footage of the first film ever created.

“The showing is going to have live music,” said Michael Ryan, Manager of Cinecenta. “That’s something we used to do here at the Cinecenta quite a bit and it really adds a new dynamic.”

Local musician Lee Hutzulak will create a collage of synthesiser, turntable, acoustic guitar, prepared CD-Rs, field recordings and an assortment of amplified objects.

The filmmaker, Sami Van Ingen from Finland, is known for his examination of the cinematic and exploring the boundaries within it. He’ll be in the audience on Wednesday, too, for those of you who like stargazing.