Directing

Lida Suchy

Lida Suchy chronicles communities through portraiture. She is a first-generation American, born into a refugee family and often draws on this background as inspiration for her creative work. She earned a BA in cultural anthropology from SUNY Albany, an MA from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communication and an MFA from the Yale University School of Art. Lida taught photography a…

Known For

Prysia’s GardenPrysia’s Garden · 2015
Prysia’s Garden
10.02015
MovieDocumentary
An intimate meditation on exile and home, Prysia’s Garden portrays the quiet life of aging Ukrainian refugee Prysia through the detailed photographic lens of first-generation Ukrainian-American Lida Suchy. By confronting Prysia’s story, Lida reflects upon her own roots, looking to understand what makes a new place a home.
Transmitting BabaTransmitting Baba · 2001
Transmitting Baba
10.02001
MovieDocumentary
An ocean stood between Baba and her grandson, so she did the only thing she could: she became a whale and swam to him.
Home Movie: A Diary for my American-Born SonHome Movie: A Diary for my American-Born Son · 2003
Home Movie: A Diary for my American-Born Son
10.02003
MovieDocumentary
A film about homes on both sides of an ocean.
PictographPictograph · 2007
Pictograph
10.02007
MovieDocumentary
Vignettes of life in the village Kryvorivnya in the Carpathian Mountains of Ukraine, where once the novel "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" was written and later filmed and where, to this day, the passage of time has its own pace.
About Dogs And PeopleAbout Dogs And People · 1993
About Dogs And People
1993
Movie
When I first arrived in America, (from my native Slovakia), I neither spoke nor understood a word of English and I soon found myself in the position of a mute creature. Perhaps it was this experience of muteness that inspired me to make a film about America from the perspective of a creature that neither speaks nor understands this country’s language or ways. Dogs can’t speak, but they can tell a lot about the society in which they live. About Dogs and People is an account of my journey across America to explore its’ canine culture. The film is made in the form of an essay: it uses authentic footage, but presents the material in a subjective way. Derived from my experience with non-verbal communication, the film “speaks” through imagery, using the vocabulary of archetypal gesture, tone, melody and rhythm.
A Short Film for LidaA Short Film for Lida · 2003
A Short Film for Lida
10.02003
MovieDocumentary
A love letter told through still photographs

Filmography

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About Dogs And PeopleAbout Dogs And People · 1993
About Dogs And People
1993
Movie
When I first arrived in America, (from my native Slovakia), I neither spoke nor understood a word of English and I soon found myself in the position of a mute creature. Perhaps it was this experience of muteness that inspired me to make a film about America from the perspective of a creature that neither speaks nor understands this country’s language or ways. Dogs can’t speak, but they can tell a lot about the society in which they live. About Dogs and People is an account of my journey across America to explore its’ canine culture. The film is made in the form of an essay: it uses authentic footage, but presents the material in a subjective way. Derived from my experience with non-verbal communication, the film “speaks” through imagery, using the vocabulary of archetypal gesture, tone, melody and rhythm.

Producer