Songtaijia was born into an art teacher’s family in the Tibetan region of Amdo, Qinghai Province. He grew up as a nomad, amongst shepherds and herdsmen. After graduating from the Qinghai Normal University with a BA in fine arts, Songtaijia became an art teacher, artist and curator at the Tongde Cultural Museum. Songtaijia’s dream of becoming a filmmaker came true when he received a grant to study at the Beijing Film Academy for two years, majoring in cinematography. He became a prominent member of the first generation of Tibetan filmmakers who started making films in the Tibetan language, having worked on many such productions as art director or cinematographer. Amongst others he regularly collaborated with Pema Tsedan on many of his films such as The Search (2009) and The Silent Holy Stone (2005). Songtaijia was initially inducted into the Academy in 2011 for his nomination as Achievement in Cinematography for his film Old Dog.
The Asia Pacific Screen Academy expresses its respect for and acknowledgement of the South East Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of country, including the custodial communities on whose land works are created and celebrated by the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. We acknowledge the continuing connection to land, waters and communities. We also pay our respects to Elders, past and present. We recognise the integral role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and First Nations peoples continue to play in storytelling and celebration spaces.
