The complete works of Peter Kubelka and early abstractions by Harry Smith also screened. Made possible by grants from The Bing Fund and The National Endowment for the Arts (Coordinated by Eric Sherman, programming assistance by David Grosz and Fred Camper): 'This four-hour survey of may of the key 'experimental' works includes 24 films by 15 filmmakers. Any survey is, of course, incomplete, but a wide variety of styles, themes and techniques here is presented. While a few 'classics' will be shown, many of the films have never before been exhibited publicly in Southern California. The intention is to stimulate- the visual and aural senses. The American 'independents' more or less forced to work on a modest level, have created an astonishing testament to the force of personal art. While in some cases the polish to their work may have been limited, their scope might equally have been liberated from the usual commercial concerns and fears. This double-edged thrust has resulted in an ever-growing body of work which is, at the same time, internally satisfying yet evocative of all the territory left to explore. These films yearn for the attention of serious filmgoers, for they are directed to the individual open and bold enough to question the assumptions of his own daily assumptions. As philosopher Paul Weiss says, one of the functions of art is paradoxical: by forcing us to draw from the world into a delimited sphere of personal expression, art nevertheless helps us to see deeper into the world from which we began. By this voluntary focus of attention into an object apart from ourselves, we are better able to penetrate further the mysteries and beauties of the universe of which we are a part yet which surrounds us. These often short, frenetic, and nonlinear experiences provided by 'experimental' films may serve as the very conduit by which we learn of the inextricable role our perceptions play in altering the 'realities' which seem to constitute our daily life.' -Eric Sherman [Source: Los Angeles International Film Exposition Program Notes, 1976]