Good Family (2022)

The east-northeast wind will blow today. My mother and I climbed up the sand dune, and the sand blown by the wind made the corners of my eyes dry and painful. Grandma and uncle told their mother, "It's only autumn now, and the winter wind hasn't come yet."

"So the earth is at my feet and the sky is under my head. I lower my head to look up to the earth and my head to look down to the sky." - Excerpt from "Natural History"

In the heat of midsummer, Winnie Weiyun Szu returned to her mother’s hometown, embarking on a journey to explore identity and belonging. Fragmented and unfocused imagery blends seamlessly with spontaneous memories and rediscovered family videos—intimate recordings her mother had made during Winnie’s childhood abroad, when she shared a close bond with her grandmother. Now, despite living on the same island, that closeness has given way to a sense of estrangement.

Through this deeply personal exploration, Winnie delves into the emotional ties between three generations of women, strained by alienation yet subtly bound by shared history. In an era of rapid Westernization and modernization, she reflects on the mundane rhythms of everyday life—punctuated by gaps, silences, and an undercurrent of fatigue. Amidst these fragmented visuals, she questions whether a sense of belonging can emerge, or if it must be continuously deconstructed and rebuilt.

The interplay of time and space becomes dazzlingly intricate as past and present collide. Family videos, unfocused memories, and the act of filming intertwine to map an emotional terrain where hope for cultural continuity coexists with the reality of disconnection. Through her sensitive lens, Winnie investigates the elusive nature of home and the delicate reconstruction of relationships within her own familial lineage.