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The Flaherty Film Seminar is one of the nonfiction film world\u2019s most interesting events. Founded by Frances Flaherty in 1955 in honor of her late husband, Robert\u2014the documentarian best known for Nanook of the North (1922)\u2014the Seminar brings together scholars, artists, programmers, critics, and more to watch and intimately discuss a selection of works curated by rotating guest programmers. But here\u2019s the twist: none of the films are revealed to the audience in advance of the screenings, in accordance with a principle that Frances Flaherty described as \u201cnon-preconception\u201d\u2014an open-minded encounter with the unknown. Typically, the Seminar is held in Upstate New York, but this year\u2019s curators, Julian Ross and May Adadol Ingawanij, decided to host it in a new location\u2014in Thailand, at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya. It\u2019s added a whole different dimension to the Flaherty experience, with audiences and films drawn primarily from Southeast Asia.\xa0\n\nOn today\u2019s episode, Film Comment Editor Devika Girish, who\u2019s been on the ground as a Fellow at the Seminar for the last week, invites May and Julian\u2014as well as Thai Film Archive deputy director Kong Rithdee and Thai filmmaker Anocha Suwichakornpong\u2014to discuss the making of this year\u2019s seminar. Their engaging conversation charts how the works of featured artists\u2014Jumana Manna, Chikako Yamashiro, Riar Rizaldi, Ho Tzu Nyen, Saeed Taji Farouky, Korakrit Arunanondchai, and more\u2014elucidate overarching themes of solidarity and communion.