Montreal cinephiles were justifiably upset at digital-technology guru (and former National Film Board director) Daniel Langlois for shutting down Ex-Centris, one of the city's premium art house cinemas for over a decade, and one of the few theatres that regularly screened avant-garde Francophile films. The decision was not an economical one; the theatre was actually quite well-attended. Instead, it was Langois' left-of-the-dial mentality – the same mentality that won over many movie-lovers – that inspired him to turn Ex-Centris into a multi-purpose performance venue.

Welcome eXcentris, an offshoot of the former incarnation but with new focus, new attitude, and new spelling. The new eXcentris has broadened its horizon into the aural sphere not because of all the great music coming out of Montreal (that scene is so 2006), but because, according to Langlois, music is ahead of cinema in the realm of digital technology. As such, the new multi-pronged venue is an audiophile's dream, constructed to showcase and experiment with high-quality acoustics.

One of the venue's three rooms, the Cinéma Parallèle, remains dedicated to film, however with only 93 seats, it's the smallest segment of eXcentris. Equipped for both 35mm and 16mm prints, the screening room continues to screen a multitude of independent films, although the new high-resolution display and state-of-the-art sound system betrays the venue's new auditory obsession. The Cassavetes Room retains much of its cinema vibe, and indeed is still equipped for high-definition projection, but it's outfitted with removable wooden panels that allow it to variously used variously for opera and classical (it's a seated, amplified space) and multimedia audio-visual performances. This is also the case with the Fellini Room, although it's better suited to more avant-garde works in 3D or virtual reality, as well as video installations and media arts.

Although there are the occasional popular concerts (Thunderheist are already scheduled), this is mostly a venue for forward-thinking avant-garde performance, those who can best benefit from the infinite potential of the malleable space. eXcentris may have left its exclusive dedication to cinema behind, but its replaced it with something richer, fuller, and more adaptable. I think cinephiles can forgive that.