Experiencing Interruptions?

Fog In My Head

A mesmerising and intimate journey into the personal experiences of author Wendy Mitchell as she navigates the fog of dementia.

Conceived through a collaborative process with Wendy, the film interweaves her audio testimonies with abstract dramatisations and creative re-imaginings of her hallucinations, misperceptions and poignant moments in her life.

FOG IN MY HEAD juxtaposes real-world imagery with abstract scientific material, blending poetic vision, subjective viewpoints with post-human perspectives.

The audience is taken on a sumptuous visual and aural journey: from the centre of a natural beehive, a developing brain, a home, an office and a forest. Connecting these distinct spaces is fog. “Fog descending on the brain” is Wendy’s metaphor for how the neurocognitive disorder makes her feel. Fog is an analogy for the confusion, disorientation, isolation as well as the strange comfort that dementia brings.

  • Suki Chan
    Director
    MEMORY, HALLUCINATIONS
  • Suki Chan
    Writer
    MEMORY, HALLUCINATIONS
  • Anna Jancsó
    Producer
    Saint Maud, The Party, Mari
  • Érin Geraghty
    Key Cast
    "Wendy"
    Birds of a Feather (TV Series), Last of the Summer Wine (TV Series)
  • Dominik Scherrer
    Music and Sound Design
    The Serpent (TV Mini Series), The Widow (TV Series)Elizabeth Is Missing (TV Movie)
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    36 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 13, 2022
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, ARRI
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • Film London
    Distributor
    Country: United Kingdom
Director Biography - Suki Chan

I am an artist and filmmaker. My immersive, mesmerising films draw the viewer into a cinematic 'else-where', investigating memory and subjectivity.

My practice is research-based and features dialogues with diverse communities from people living with dementia, blind and partially sighted people, to psychologists and neuroscientists. I seek out narratives that explore alternative ways of looking at the world and stories that challenge and destabilise our understanding of perception and reality.

This year I was selected for the BFI NETWORK x BAFTA Crew, a year long development programme delivered by BAFTA in partnership with BFI NETWORK. I am currently a Women in Film and TV (WFTV) mentee, a mentoring programme designed to support women to take a significant step in their career.

In 2020 I was selected for Film London's FLAMIN Productions, a major moving image artist award supported by Arts Council England. In 2017 I was selected by FLAMIN for New Approaches, a programme that helps artists cross over into the film industry and develop a feature-length film.

www.sukichan.co.uk

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

With this film, I hope to to encourage greater empathy and understanding about dementia. As a film maker I want to shine a light on taboo subjects and change the perception of dementia in society.

We are entering the dementia century. As a society we are becoming more and more aware of a disease that steals our memories, dismantles the self and changes our perception and understanding of reality. Dementia reminds us that we have a very precarious grip on our minds and bodies. Of all the many diseases, dementia is, for many of us, the one we now most fear.

In a society that values independence, prosperity, youth and success, people living with dementia often do not have a voice and are forgotten about. We turn away from this vulnerability because it makes us uneasy. When dementia is explored, the focus is often on the suffering – from the individual, to their families and carers.

Since 2017, I have been researching dementia. I participated in an artist residency at a dementia village where I interviewed many residents, their families and friends. In 2018 I made contact with Wendy Mitchell and each year, I have visited her and interviewed her about her coping mechanisms, what it feels like to live with dementia and her new experiences, from foggy days to electrical storms inside her head.

Wendy’s story is incredibly inspiring. She is a bridge to the world of dementia. Wendy is able to articulate her experiences and give voice to her journey with dementia. She shows us that there is still a life to be lived and focuses on the positive aspects of dementia.

Dementia has taken away Wendy's fear, it has brought her a different life - to the one that she had and a new appreciation of time. Wendy uses technology to help her navigate the multiple realities of dementia. Whilst some of us might use technology to escape from reality, Wendy uses technology to show her what is real when she experiences her mis-perceptions.