Suki Chan

Suki Chan

From First Time Go by Benjamin Duchek

April 28, 2026 · 23 min · Season 4 · Episode 23

About this episode

Filmmaker Suki Chan discusses her feature directorial debut, CONSCIOUS, and her approach to documentary filmmaking.

Watch This Episode On YouTube The words "artist, writer, and director" that my guest, filmmaker Suki Chan, uses to describe herself, do not come close to encompassing the artistic brilliance of her feature directorial debut, CONSCIOUS (2026), which she premiered at CPH:DOX this year in Denmark. The film delves into the stories of three people who "navigate dementia in transformative ways", and even that gives short shrift to what we see on screen. I don't think I've seen a documentary get closer to explaining the frailty of the human mind in visual form. It's no surprise to people who've seen Suki's art, though -- they say this gorgeously shot film is in line with her signature style. I cannot wait for you to see this film and for what's next for Suki. In this episode, Suki and I talk about: how she decided to approach making CONSCIOUS and what that tells us about documentary filmmaking; how she went from a fine art degree to expanding into moving image; her signature style, whether it's sculpture or a film; the medium of documentary and where she thinks it's going in the future; incorporating dramatizations into the film and what she learned about that process -- and people who…

People in this episode

Host: Benjamin Duchek

Guest: Suki Chan

Topics covered

  • documentary filmmaking
  • artistic style
  • dementia
  • moving image
  • future of documentary

Keywords

  • Suki Chan
  • CONSCIOUS
  • documentary
  • CPH:DOX
  • dementia
  • art
  • filmmaking
  • moving image

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: CONSCIOUS

Places: Denmark

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