Free Radicals (1958) ***

In arguably his greatest film, Lye reduces the medium to its most basic elements by scratching designs on black film. He uses a variety of scribers ranging from dental tools to an ancient Native American arrowhead, and synchronizes the images to traditional African music. The film won second prize at the International Experimental Film Competition during the 1958 World’s Fair in Brussels, judged by Man Ray, Norman McLaren and Alexander Alexeiff.