Ricky Qi

Ricky Qi is a filmmaker and photographer whose work has appeared in National Geographic. He graduated from the University of California, San Diego where he studied under renowned China scholar Paul G. Pickowicz, receiving a degree in International Studies with a focus on Modern Chinese History. Ricky has lived and traveled extensively throughout China, his work spanning from the sand dunes of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang to the snow-capped peaks in Kham Tibet. His documentary Under One Roof, chronicling the Mosuo people – China’s last matriarchal society – led to his recognition as a National Geographic Explorer.

More recently, Ricky retraced the famed Tang dynasty poet Li Bai’s sojourn up the Yangtze; his photographs were published in the Chinese language edition of National Geographic, “In the Footsteps of Li Bai.” As of 2021, Ricky is in development for his feature-film directorial debut. He remains deeply committed to telling stories that bridge the cultural distance between his ancestry in China and his home in the States.