In the 9th grade, the US filmmaker Samira Mian had a panic attack while presenting to her Latin class – although she couldn’t identify it as such until she experienced several more a decade later, and in a much more intense fashion. Delivered with a hefty dose of self-deprecating humour, Mian’s autobiographical short melds collage-like animations built from classical busts, medical diagrams and school photos to form a connection between her experience of panic attacks and some timeless wisdom she learned from the ancient Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus way back when – ‘know thyself’. Entertaining and endearing, Mian’s portrait is also an insightful reflection on the inextricable connection between mind and body, and the power of self-understanding.
