GIFs—those difficult-to-pronounce, endlessly looping video-images that fill up inboxes and litter comment pages—while sometimes clever, generally serve as the irritating white noise of the online world. But can a GIF rise to the level of art? Do these bite-sized, hypnotically repeating time-wasters deserve to be shown on the big screen, alongside movies that aren’t six seconds of attention-grabbing irritation, followed by the same six seconds of attention-grabbing irritation, to infinity?

The forward-thinking folks over at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York seem to think so, as this year, as part of of its First Look Film Festival, they will be showcasing between films a series of seven GIFs from artists like A. Bill Miller, Lorna Mills, and Eva Papamargariti, as well as GIFs pulled from Tumblr.

Speaking to Buzzfeed, MoMI’s Associate Curator of Digital Media, Jason Eppink, explains the decision, arguing, “This is just another way we’re challenging our audience.” He adds, “The GIF has more in common with a still image, or a painting or a sculpture. It’s a thing that you exist with on your own terms for as long as you want rather than something you enter; it begins, it ends, and then you leave.”

We’re a little dubious of GIFs getting the big-screen, film-festival treatment, as this could prove a terrible precedent for ring-tone-centered music festivals and literary conferences conducted solely in Emoji. Readers interested in seeing some totally trippy shit that’ll make you feel like you’re totally baked can check out the seven GIFs chosen for the festival on Buzzfeed. Now imagine those shiny loop thingies on a big-ass screen between real-ass movies and prepare to have your mind blown.

Is this the future of film? No, no it is not. But it is an interesting experiment in how long audiences can look at GIFs before fleeing theaters in horror or throwing chairs at the screens (which would be extra tough if they’re nailed down, but like a mother who can lift a car to save her baby, people irritated by staring at the same moving image over and over again might experience a surge of superhuman strength).